What Caused My Tinnitus? I Don't Listen to Loud Music and I Work in a Quiet Office

[Aaaron8]

Hi,

It all started with me being able to hear a beating/popping noise in my right ear. After a few weeks, I started to get light ringing tinnitus in my right ear and it felt clogged. Doctor thought it might be caused by wax so got it removed via micro suction.

Few days later I developed slight tinnitus in my other ear and my right ear has gotten worse.

Doctors appointment isn't for another few weeks but I am frightened that leaving this so long will make it worse.

Pressure builds up in my right ear and then tinnitus gets worse. I still get that intermittent beating/popping noise in my right ear only but it feels like that is causing my ear to reduce the pressure.

Is it possible that this beating/popping noise is my tubes opening?

I am also wondering what is likely the cause of this? I don't listen to loud music and work in a quiet office so loud noise is unlikely to have caused this. However I did have a few bad colds a few weeks before the popping started.

Any advice or info would be greatly appreciated.

A

 

[Dr. Nagler]

Hello @Aaaron8 -

Thank you for your question.

There are innumerable things that can cause tinnitus. The reason most folks try to figure out what has caused theirs is in the hopes that once it is identified, the cause can be fixed, thereby eliminating the tinnitus or at least significantly mitigating it in some way. The problem is that often the cause cannot be pinpointed. And in those cases wherein the cause can be pinpointed, often it cannot be fixed. And in those cases wherein the cause can be fixed, often fixing the cause does not eliminate or at least significantly mitigate the tinnitus. I liken it to a snowball going downhill; even if you can make it stop snowing at the top of the hill, that doesn't stop the snowball.

So as I see it, purely from a practical standpoint there are only two questions that need to be answered: (1) Is your tinnitus caused by one of the (unfortunately) relatively rare causes that can be fixed with the reasonable expectation that in-so-doing the tinnitus will be eliminated or at least significantly mitigated? ... and (2) Is your tinnitus caused by one of the (fortunately) extremely rare causes that represent a threat to health or life? Now it takes at most two or three visits to an ENT's office to get answers to both of those questions - and assuming that the answers to both questions is No, then for all intents and purposes the cause is irrelevant.

Now that's not to say your tinnitus won't resolve on its own; quite often it does. All I am saying is that if the answer to both questions is No, the search for a cause becomes little more than an intellectual exercise. We all do it, of course. [I know I sure did - for months and months ... and months!] But at some point it helps to look at things a bit differently.

Here's a question to ask yourself: Let's say that your tinnitus did not bother you in any way whatsoever. It does not distract you, it does not worry you, it does not affect your concentration, it does not make you anxious, it does not worry you, etc. In other words, your tinnitus does not impact your life in any way at all; it's just "there." Under that magical hypothetical, would it be fair to say that while you still have tinnitus, you no longer have a problem?

Continued below ...

 

[Dr. Nagler]

Before going further, I just want to be clear that ideally you want your tinnitus to be eliminated or at least significantly mitigated. So I believe that 100% of tinnitus research funds should be devoted to curing tinnitus rather than to habituation and the like. All I am talking about above is a philosophy directed towards achieving some degree of meaningful lasting relief until that cure is found.

So with that in mind, I hope you will agree that if your tinnitus does not affect you in any way, then while you still have tinnitus (i.e., your tinnitus is not cured), you no longer have a problem. And as a natural corollary, the less your tinnitus affects you, the less of a problem you have. In other words, the less you react to your tinnitus, the less of a problem you have. The challenge lies in the fact that you have no conscious control over decreasing your reaction to your tinnitus. You cannot make it happen. But there are a number of legitimate strategies towards paving the way to allowing it to happen. I have discussed those strategies (such as CBT) elsewhere; I am merely trying to offer some perspective here. None of them replaces a cure, but at the same time I see no reason for a tinnitus sufferer to suffer any more than is absolutely necessary while waiting for that cure to arrive.

Which is why I say again (getting back to your original question), if your tinnitus is not caused by one of the few causes that can be fixed with the expectation that in-so-doing your tinnitus will be eliminated or at least significantly mitigated, and if your tinnitus is not caused by one of the very rare causes that represent a threat to health and life, then the cause is for all intents and purposes irrelevant. And you might want to consider looking into strategies towards decreasing your reaction to your tinnitus.

In my opinion, of course.

Hope this helps.

Stephen M. Nagler, M.D.