Why Is Tinnitus Not More Common? Loud Bars, Concerts, Restaurants...

[Mark A]

Anyone else feel like you toggle between "an I really part of that unlucky 1%" or "am I just overly sensitive and need to toughen up and get a grip on it"?

Basically from panic to cope; yes.

 

[Yuuls]

Basically from panic to cope; yes.

Some days I feel like I take 1 step forward and 5 steps back.

You grow up thinking nothing bad will happen to you. And then it happens. And you think you've paid your dues. And it happens again.

 

[PeteJ]

That's so sad. We're so different also, all of us. Some of us have "glass ears" that break and get worse easily, it seems, while others seem to have ears that don't get affected at all. Add to that our different ability to cope. I'm sure there are people with worse ringing than I have that just don't care much, for example.

I doubt it. Lots of people get mild tinnitus. Maybe moderate but I think most get mild tinnitus and can cope with it at the particular state it's at. Severe tinnitus is loud but the intrusiveness is often several tones whereas someone who has mild tinnitus will have only one or two tones at a significantly lower volume that is only somewhat intrusive. It is usually only bothersome in quiet areas where it's more noticeable.

 

[Digital Doc]

It seems like there is a genetic component to it, or some other unknown factor. Some people just don't seem to get tinnitus no matter how much insane noise they expose themselves to.

My theory is that with noise induced ear damage, some folks get tinnitus, and some don't, as they just gradually lose their hearing.

 

[Mark A]

My theory is that with noise induced ear damage, some folks get tinnitus, and some don't, as they just gradually lose their hearing.

It would be nice if it could be identified in the DNA code.

 

[PeteJ]

My theory is that with noise induced ear damage, some folks get tinnitus, and some don't, as they just gradually lose their hearing.

Ears get more damaged or don't heal as much at an older age, too?

Young people are exposing themselves to louder noise and sounds but maybe their tinnitus, when and if they get it, starts out as mild?

 

[Yuuls]

I originally brought a white noise device but found it annoying too. Later I just use white noise through an app on my phone and it was fine. I actually slept better with the app

Yes as long as the sensitivity is there ears we are unable to socialise at all. Listening to music more than 70 decibels seems to cause spikes too
How long have you had Hyperacusis. I seem to have mild burning sensation too in the ears. Strangely it moves ear to ear.

I tried listening to various white noise tunes on my phone but found that they're too quiet, probably because the speakers on my phone are too small and it doesn't fill the room the same way a fan does. I also start messing with my phone and different sounds at bedtime and it spikes my anxiety because I can't settle on a sound! I have fan with a white noise setting and although sometimes the extra tone it emits drives me crazy it's better than artificial white noise for me.

I got tinnitus on November 20th 2019 and the hyperacusis began about 3 weeks in. I didn't notice weird tones from white noise until maybe a week after that when I started using a fan at my parent's house to mask. I haven't really been listening to music much until this week because I didn't have a speaker with me when I was staying at my parent's house and it was annoying to listen to on my laptop.

 

[Yuuls]

My theory is that with noise induced ear damage, some folks get tinnitus, and some don't, as they just gradually lose their hearing.

I think that I'd 100% pick being mildly deaf at like 60 with no tinnitus than in my mid 20s with hyperacusis and tinnitus.

 

[Sash]

I think if you look after your ears for next few months you should improve significantly quickly. Lot of young people are getting tinnitus which is a worry though healing powers are perhaps greater at that age. Actually if you have tinnitus at your age then hopefully you will take care of your ears for life which will prevent any problems in future so that could be blessing in disguise.

 

[Kriszti]

I think if you look after your ears for next few months you should improve significantly quickly. Lot of young people are getting tinnitus which is a worry though healing powers are perhaps greater at that age. Actually if you have tinnitus at your age then hopefully you will take care of your ears for life which will prevent any problems in future so that could be blessing in disguise.

I really don't see any blessing in disguise to have it at a relatively young age (I'm 31.). Tinnitus is basically ruining my life, my present, and my future and has a great negative impact on the life of people who care about me. This sucks all the time, no silver lining whatsoever.

 

[Bobby B]

Hi Bobby, how old where you when you got yours? How bad was your hyperacusis initially?

@Yuuls
I was 47. Age plays a role of course. The hyperacusis was really bad but it took 2 weeks to go from non-existent to bad after trauma - like I could not take a shower without ear plugs, switching a light switch sounded like a loud bang on the wall... beyond insane. This is caused by nerve damage which takes a week or two to detach after hair cells damage, which is immediate.

It took about 3 years to go back to normal and now after 4 years the hyperacusis is mostly gone, leaving me with the tinnitus only which is maybe 50 to 75% of the original loudness.

 

[Mark A]

@Yuuls
I was 47. Age plays a role of course. The hyperacusis was really bad but it took 2 weeks to go from non-existent to bad after trauma - like I could not take a shower without ear plugs, switching a light switch sounded like a loud bang on the wall... beyond insane. This is caused by nerve damage which takes a week or two to detach after hair cells damage, which is immediate.

It took about 3 years to go back to normal and now after 4 years the hyperacusis is mostly gone, leaving me with the tinnitus only which is maybe 50 to 75% of the original loudness.

I noticed the same with timing. It seems for me there is about a three week or greater time frame for the effects of noise trauma to occur. I guess this has to do with nerves dying after the hairs detach. This makes it sometimes difficult to pinpoint the cause. Going through my third permanent spike now and the tinnitus is screaming through the roof, but the hyperacusis is somewhat mild. I am just amazed how fragile my hearing has become, and requires me to be ready to protect instantly and scared to go out at all.

 

[Digital Doc]

I think that I'd 100% pick being mildly deaf at like 60 with no tinnitus than in my mid 20s with hyperacusis and tinnitus.

I am pretty sure that most would be happy to skip the tinnitus. I am not convinced that it is universal on the way to NIHL, although it certainly seems quite common.

 

[Tweedleman]

I've had tinnitus since about 9 or 10. Never knew why, overbite, dental work, ear infections and antibiotics all suspects. Parents never had my hearing tested. It stayed the same until 26. 3 loud metal concerts this year was all it took to sustain NIHL, hyperacusis, and tinnitus to increase from 1 to 4/10. My buddy who took me didn't start experiencing mild tinnitus until "years and years of concert going." Prior to the concerts I was ignorant to the fact tinnitus could even get worse than what I was used to hearing. Had never even heard of hyperacusis. Now, I read the word every day.

 

[Juan]

If tinnitus can occur from any sort of loud environment; loud bars, concerts, loud restaurants, basically anything in the harmful dB levels, why isn't it more common?

Or do you guys suspect that more people have it than we realize? There seems to be a lot of people who talk about always having a buzz or hiss in their ear and thinking it was normal their whole life until discovering it's not in their 20s or so.

Bars and clubs are packed to the brim every weekend, often with people who go out 3+ times a week. I also hardly ever see anyone wearing ear plugs at concerts or even loud sporting events.

Something does not add up.

Tinnitus is very common. Statistics are like 1 in 5 people in America have tinnitus.

 

[all to gain]

I've had tinnitus since about 9 or 10. Never knew why, overbite, dental work, ear infections and antibiotics all suspects. Parents never had my hearing tested. It stayed the same until 26. 3 loud metal concerts this year was all it took to sustain NIHL, hyperacusis, and tinnitus to increase from 1 to 4/10. My buddy who took me didn't start experiencing mild tinnitus until "years and years of concert going." Prior to the concerts I was ignorant to the fact tinnitus could even get worse than what I was used to hearing. Had never even heard of hyperacusis. Now, I read the word every day.

Wow, 9 or 10! Do you remember the day you first heard it? Did you tell your parents?

At least it's still only 4/10. Let's hope it doesn't get worse.

 

[Juan]

Can you imagine what parents have to go through, while raising their children? Imagine the noises and stress, for those parents... Yet, I haven't heard of a young person, who got their tinnitus by raising children.

Because tinnitus and NIHL come from sounds that were not in nature and were invented by mankind, and particularly impulse noise on high frequencies (firecrackers, gunshot, loud motorbikes, power tools...) Those are the sounds that typically produce tinnitus and hearing problems.

 

[Tweedleman]

Wow, 9 or 10! Do you remember the day you first heard it? Did you tell your parents?

At least it's still only 4/10. Let's hope it doesn't get worse.

I will never forget the day I first noticed it. We had rented a movie and I remember sitting on the couch in silence before we put the tape in and just hearing this awful ringing coming from inside my head. At some point I saw my family Dr. He taught me the valsalva maneuvre which accomplished nothing.

 

[Shaz1]

Because tinnitus and NIHL come from sounds that were not in nature and were invented by mankind, and particularly impulse noise on high frequencies (firecrackers, gunshot, loud motorbikes, power tools...) Those are the sounds that typically produce tinnitus and hearing problems.

though there's evidence of people as early as ancient Egypt suffering from it - it's just likely a lot more common now

 

[Juan]

though there's evidence of people as early as ancient Egypt suffering from it - it's just likely a lot more common now

Yes, that's because we, humans, introduced a lot of dangerous noise in our daily lives, and no-one cares about it. It is not up to you or up to me to be noise-free, not exposed to noise, because it is other people who produce it, and also industries fully supported by governments, that only care about economics and not the welfare and health of people.

 

[Pawel1]

I agree with Shaz. I think that low frequency sounds are often more dangerous than high frequency sounds because high frequency sounds can't penetrate through objects very well. But, it's all about the sound waves which reverberate the air particles, and they cause a little explosion in your ears, so you get permanent damage. I sometimes compare tinnitus to a scar, or phantom pain, or whatever.

People get tinnitus from getting punched on the ears once or twice. But, I am sure you can get tinnitus if you lightly slap your ears many times.

 

[Yuuls]

I haven't read through all the posts in this thread yet, but here is my 2 cents.

Tinnitus is often a result of acoustic trauma, or it's caused by accumulative damage to your hearing system. When you're young, you tend to experience temporary tinnitus when you're laying in bed at night. If you have many of those nights, your tinnitus might become permanent.

Or, if you were close to a gun shot, you might get acoustic trauma, and permanent tinnitus straight away.

Some people's hearing system can heal itself well, while others' not. Apparently, Magnesium mineral deficiency, and unhealthy lifestyle, can negatively affect tinnitus! When you get like 50 or 60 years old, your body is becoming rather less able to heal itself from various damages, and therefore you get tinnitus. Tinnitus is common in older people.

According to some approximations, there might even be around 200 or 250 million people worldwide who suffer from permanent Tinnitus. There are way more than 10 million tinnitus sufferrers in the US, alone.. I think that many people have this disease, but only a small percentage of them is actually really bothered about it. I don't know the reason for that, because my tinnitus keeps getting worse, and I don't understand how some people can live with it their whole lives.

It's probably up to genetics of a person, but in my opinion, it takes a lot of ear damage to cause tinnitus at young age. When I think about all the noises and sounds that my ears have had to go through in the past 2 decades - My ears have been doing good, for the most part of my life. Unfortunately, I have tinnitus now, and my ears are very sensitive to any noises.

Can you imagine what parents have to go through, while raising their children? Imagine the noises and stress, for those parents... Yet, I haven't heard of a young person, who got their tinnitus by raising children.

I think that anyone can get tinnitus, because even guinea pigs can get them from listening to loud music. The scientists don't know the whole mechanism behind this, but 2020's are surely going to bring a lot of new information for us about tinnitus.

I'm in my mid twenties. I've had my fair share of noise exposure, but no more than the average person who goes to a couple concerts, bars here and there and listens to headphones. I've never experienced "mild tinnitus" not even a slight chirp or ring.

The onset of mine was severe, multiple tones in each ear, crickets, tuning fork, etc. Couldn't be masked by a TV or anything of the sort

Most people my age who do have "mild tinnitus" just hear a slight eeee when they go to bed. This is coming from people I have spoken to in person.

How can I go from no tinnitus, not even mild, to severe and debilitating? Trust me I would have noticed any mild ringing as I deal with anxiety and it would have definitely freaked me out.

Why is it that my friends are able to abuse their ears every weekend and end up with a slight eeee and I have chirping, hissing, truck backing up, bells ringing and crickets in both ears?

My tinnitus did not follow a loud event directly - but I did go to a concert about 4 days prior to the onset of it. So I do think it's some sort of noise damage, but I just think it's strange why it got so bad so fast while my friends straight up go deaf for days and are able to bounce back.

 

[Yuuls]

I think if you look after your ears for next few months you should improve significantly quickly. Lot of young people are getting tinnitus which is a worry though healing powers are perhaps greater at that age. Actually if you have tinnitus at your age then hopefully you will take care of your ears for life which will prevent any problems in future so that could be blessing in disguise.

I am avoiding concerts, clubs, and loud bars like the plague. Any pair of headphones I had have been accumulating dust for the last 2 months or so, and will continue to do so.

At thins point I am more worried about cars honking, noise from public transportation, etc. I live in a major US city so noise is almost unavoidable here. Perhaps I should just move away since I live in fear every day and can't enjoy the things I actually moved here for anymore

 

[Yuuls]

Yes, that's because we, humans, introduced a lot of dangerous noise in our daily lives, and no-one cares about it. It is not up to you or up to me to be noise-free, not exposed to noise, because it is other people who produce it, and also industries fully supported by governments, that only care about economics and not the welfare and health of people.

Sometimes I think it's going to become an epidemic due to music festivals, headphones, etc. But at the same time shitty venues have been blasting music for the last 50+ years, concerts existed in the 60s and 70's, people went to war and came back with hearing damage.

What makes 2020 and going forward so different?

 

[Yuuls]

I will never forget the day I first noticed it. We had rented a movie and I remember sitting on the couch in silence before we put the tape in and just hearing this awful ringing coming from inside my head. At some point I saw my family Dr. He taught me the valsalva maneuvre which accomplished nothing.

I think the Valsalva maneuver for sure did some damage when I had to do it multiple times after taking a flight with a cold (tinnitus started a few weeks after).

 

[Yuuls]

Tinnitus is very common. Statistics are like 1 in 5 people in America have tinnitus.

It's common but there is a huge difference between someone who hears a slight bell when they go to bed and can resume living life normally, while others have multiple tones of high pitched screeching and almost physical pain, noise sensitivity, and anxiety

If we are taking very very mild tinnitus into account, I am almost certain more than 1/5 people have it.

 

[Yuuls]

@Yuuls
I was 47. Age plays a role of course. The hyperacusis was really bad but it took 2 weeks to go from non-existent to bad after trauma - like I could not take a shower without ear plugs, switching a light switch sounded like a loud bang on the wall... beyond insane. This is caused by nerve damage which takes a week or two to detach after hair cells damage, which is immediate.

It took about 3 years to go back to normal and now after 4 years the hyperacusis is mostly gone, leaving me with the tinnitus only which is maybe 50 to 75% of the original loudness.

The hyperacusis is driving me insane.
It is terrible.

So what causes hyperacusis to get better if those nerves are "detached"? Can detached nerves heal? I know that hearing cells cannot once they die.

 

[Pawel1]

The number of hearing loss and tinnitus sufferers, unfortunately keeps growing, every year.

The scientists are currently testing different pills and ear injections to see if they will be able to regenerate hair cells. It's speculated that when you successfully regenerate a hair cell in the ear, a hearing nerve will attach itself to the hair cell. So it looks like hair cells and nerves might be able to heal themselves long time after tinnitus onset, but we just don't know yet, for sure. Ear hair cells cannot be brought back alive after they die, but they can be duplicated/cloned.

There is a lot of info about this on Tinnitus Talk. I can give you links if you want. But, I think that you've already found them.

@Yuuls, your tinnitus seems to still be quite fresh, though, which is good, in my eyes.

 

[Juan]

It's common but there is a huge difference between someone who hears a slight bell when they go to bed and can resume living life normally, while others have multiple tones of high pitched screeching and almost physical pain, noise sensitivity, and anxiety

If we are taking very very mild tinnitus into account, I am almost certain more than 1/5 people have it.

I know... there are always degrees of severity.

 

[Juan]

Sometimes I think it's going to become an epidemic due to music festivals, headphones, etc. But at the same time shitty venues have been blasting music for the last 50+ years, concerts existed in the 60s and 70's, people went to war and came back with hearing damage.

What makes 2020 and going forward so different?

The amount of traffic, the fact that every family has like at least two cars. Also the fact that we live faster, we fly more, and airports and planes are noisy as hell. People also carry cellphones, that blast a tone full volume when someone calls. Every restaurant has music, loudspeakers. Coffee machines and those electric grinders that are so popular are extremely noisy. Basically we have turn every old appliance into a noisier version, and places that weren't so noisy (restaurants) now are noisy. It is hard to find a place to eat or have coffee without getting a big headache.

The design of restaurants, cafes and other venues is also more "modern" and this implies tiled floors, glass, and other items that make sound bounce and reverberate instead of absorbing sound (like booths, wooden floor, carpets...)