Could someone let me know about ear plugs please?

Hello there c:

I have been slowly but surly coming to terms with my tinnitus as I have been realising that it is linked with my TMJ (for some reason being able to pinpoint a reason has calmed me a lot). Although I still have times during the day when feelings of hopeless dread over takes me, it is getting less frequent and I am having more 'brighter' and hopeful moments too.

So rambling aside I have had a hearing test and there is no loss or damage to my ears but being more aware of tinnitus makes me very... paranoid about the possibility of damage in the future which has made me want to start to be pro-active in caring for my ears. I am also having some slight painful reactions to loud sounds in my ears (possibly a side effect of having ETD) and there are times when I cannot avoid loud noises (like the hoover).

So can someone point me in the right direction of some decent ear plugs and clue me on when to use them? I have heard it is not goof for you to wear them too often? What kind do I need? and where can I get them from in the UK?

 

I also have TMJ-related tinnitus and at first was very sensitive to sounds; even stacking dishes in the cupboard bothered me. I went to the drugstore and bought foam earplugs; they're cheap but work. I only use them at the movies or loud restaurants. I don't think you should use earplugs all the time. You need to get used to ordinary sounds again.

 

@DebS - I totally agree that I need to get used to everyday sounds again. The only problem is I have moments at college where they play short videos at SUCH a loud volume and it does hurt! Also going out for meals and out to bars is tricky as well (have not been out in months).

Are foam ear plugs safe or do they block air flow to the ears? Or am I sounding like a total idiot? haha

Also, how do you manage your TMJ? Mine is getting slowly worse everyday now :/

 

Kys I too have T related TMJ I've been going to TMJ Physical therapy and although it hasn't done much for my T it has helped me a great deal with the TMJ.

 

I don't have too many other symptoms of TMJ; I just know when I got tinnitus my dentist said it was probably jaw-related and sent me to an orthodontist who did x-rays. He said I had TMJ syndrome and suggested bite splints to shift my lower jaw forward to supposedly relieve the pressure on the TMJ. Besides being very expensive, this type of therapy is not proven to work and can maybe do more harm than good (according to the TMJ association), so I decided to hold off and see if the tinnitus might resolve itself over time. It does seem to be getting a little better, or I'm just getting used to it!
As far as I know, foam earplugs are safe--they're very soft, you just twist them to put them in. You can adjust them to totally block out sound or to let some sound in. I wouldn't wear them for long periods of time, tho. You'd probably want customized earplugs for extended wear.

 

I had severe hyperacusis soon after my ultra high pitch loud tinnitus. H turned all normal sound piercingly hurtful to the ears. I couldn't stand normal noises, TV, driving, social conversation, parties, eating outs, etc. etc. Even my wife's soft voice could be hurtful when spoken from a normal distance. So I researched on ear plugs and bought $200 worth of them, LOL. I had plugs of all kinds for different situations, foam plugs for daily use, earplanes for flying, plugs for listening to music, even ear muffs to make sure my ears were all covered. I was paranoid to sounds so I over-reached myself to buy all the protection I thought I needed. I wore ear plugs all the time back then.

I thought I was doing a good job for protecting my ears. But experienced forum members warned me about over-protecting the ears which can lead to sound sensitivity issue, even misophonia, the hatred of sound, a neurological disorder. They told me that the ears need to normalize to normal ambient sounds of the environment to desensitize from normal sounds. So the ear plugs were coming off reluctantly and slowly. It worked. Hyperacusis slowly faded. Now, I don't wear ear plugs for most situations, including going to cinemas, flying long inter-continental flights, even dancing to the sounds of live ballroom dancing music bands. But I am prudent to not go to gig or stand in front of really loud loudspeakers. If in the movies some sounds get too loud, or during the takeoffs of flight, I just use my fingers as temporary ear plugs, or just use my ipod ear buds (buy the good buds) to serve as ear plugs.

The main thing is that you can get better with this sound sensitivity over time if you don't over protect your ears. At the early stage, if you need ear plugs, you can buy the normal foam ones from drug stores. Or you can buy higher quality ones from special stores. I bought mine from a German shop call 'Sonic Shop' : http://www.sonicshop.de/ but there are other specialty online stores like the 'Ear Plug Superstore': http://www.earplugstore.com/ or this one in UK which besides ear plugs also has special products for tinnitus such as sound pillows & sound generator machines: http://www.earplugs.co.uk/Tinnitus/c-1-419/