2 Weeks with Tinnitus Caused by Headphones (Loud Music) — Many Sleepless Nights

Hi, introducing myself here I suppose out of desperation! I've had unbearable tinnitus for the past 2 weeks and I wanted to reach out in a space more knowledgeable than I am. I am only 18 and I admit I have been very irresponsible when looking after my hearing. I usually listen to music through Bluetooth headphones a lot, louder than I'm supposed to. Most of the time I keep the volume to a recommended volume, but I will raise it occasionally such as when doing chores. So I guess you can say this is the cause of my tinnitus.

It first started around March this year. At first it was only in my right ear and initially it was bearable. I brushed it off as a one-off, and it eventually did leave after a week. Now this is where it gets worse.

I didn't take this warning very seriously and continued to use headphones almost daily. That temporary ringing in my right ear would come and go occasionally, but again I brushed it off as temporary occurences. And again, the ringing arose around 2 and a half weeks ago. And again I was going to brush it off... but then I realised now also my LEFT ear was ringing - much louder than my right. So for the past 2 weeks I have had ringing in both my ears at different volumes. I thought I would be able to just ignore it again this time and hope for the best, but I wouldn't be here if that was the case. It has only been 2 weeks and I'm aware this is arguably not that long, but the ringing in both ears has persisted since then and I'm starting to worry that I've caused some irreparable damage to my ears. I will admit for the first week I continued my headphone use to mask the noise but then realised that it was a bad idea and have not used headphones since. I've been trying to avoid loud sounds as best as I can.

I will also add shortly before my left ear began ringing I felt a pain in my throat and ear (as I've heard that these issues can trigger tinnitus) which is still present, so I'm hoping that it's from an infection of some kind so the tinnitus can resolve itself after it's passed. I'm intending to see a GP if the ringing doesn't subside by 3 weeks.

I guess what I'm asking for is some support or advice. I have been able to tolerate during the day, but as you could expect it is absolutely unbearable when I'm trying to sleep. I would consider a white noise machine but I'm afraid this will bother the rest of my family. So far I've had many sleepless nights. I'm hoping that this is only temporary and will subdue eventually upon which I will certainly be more careful with how I listen to music. But I am starting to lose hope - I don't think I'll be able to mentally handle long-term tinnitus.

I would really appreciate any advice or support.

 

Have you tried steroids?

Ask for a Rx of Prednisone for at least 7 days.

 

Hi @CC_16, I haven't tried any kind of medication yet. I'm putting them off unless I get a prescription from the GP since I'm worried about the side effects. I may look into it further after doing some research though, thanks for the suggestion!

 

Sure! Is yours constant or on and off? Both ears or just one ear?

You are so young I am so sorry this happened.

How are you feeling?

 

I know it hasn't been long since I've posted this, but my tinnitus has seemed to spike.

The quiet ringing in my left ear has suddenly become much louder, louder than my right ear. It was completely fine the whole day (quiet enough for me to be able to ignore it, though my right ear continued to bother me) until someone had blasted the TV speakers

I realise that I may sound irrationally paranoid, especially since I've only had the ringing for such a short amount of time compared to most cases. You could say I'm finding some comfort in documenting it, however I would really appreciate if anyone could tell me what any of these signs mean. I'm absolutely clueless as to how to go about this as I can't seem to stop focusing on it.

 

Hi again, sorry I didn't receive the notification for this til now! My tinnitus is constant and in both ears. In the above update I've noted that now the volume has changed - earlier today my right ear was louder, but now it is my left and it's even more intolerable.

Thank you for your concern. I'm also incredibly worried and I haven't been feeling well at all if I'm honest. I'm already quite an anxious and irritable person and ever since I've perceived the tinnitus it has gotten worse as you'd expect. Ever since the realisation I'm unable to properly function and making myself sick with worry, but after reading around I see that is the common first reaction. I just sincerely hope it'll get better or fade away eventually. I honestly can't take it

 

You are right not to take any medication for the tinnitus @idiaidi.

Headphones are one of the most common causes of tinnitus, because of listening to audio at too high a volume. Stop using them immediately and don't even use them at low volume.

Click on the links below and read my posts. They will give you information and what to in this early stage of noise induced tinnitus. Tinnitus can make a person feel stressed so talk to your GP about this. You might be temped to seek private treatment and suggest that you don't. Try to avoid quiet rooms and surroundings especially at night, by using low level sound enrichment. More information about this is in the links below.

Take care,
Michael.

New to Tinnitus, What to Do? | Tinnitus Talk Support Forum
Tinnitus, A Personal View | Tinnitus Talk Support Forum

 

That's not irrational at all, it's common for people who are newer to tinnitus to react to it like that, I certainly did when it happened to me (probably a lot worse ).

You should try not to focus on every small detail or change in your tinnitus or worry about the implications. I did exactly the same thing when I first got it and ultimately it just kept me stressed for longer. In my experience, tinnitus is a fairly inconsistent and often changing condition, especially during the earlier days, so its to be expected. The only obvious thing to watch out for is more noise exposure.

Do take solace in the fact that you are early on though, there is no guarantee that this will be a permanent problem for you. Like you, what initially damaged my ears was daily headphone use with much too loud volume, and even though it gave me a good 6 or so months of hell, I did eventually recover to a point where I couldn't hear the ringing anymore and life went totally back to normal for me.

So expect it to be rough for a while, but don't despair too much because it usually does improve, keep as optimistic as you can and give your ears a good rest in the meantime.

 

How long did they blast the tv speaker for? If it was short, then you are fine.

Tinnitus can definitely worsen depression and anxiety. I know a lot of people are taking a benzo or an SSRI for it.

Are you still able to go to school? Able to sleep? Able to work?

 

Thank you for the advice, I have read some of your articles prior and am taking it on. I'm definitely quitting using headphones for the time being and won't be using medications unless a GP tells me to do so, though I'll look for alternatives anyway.

I've decided to buy a white noise machine for sleep - ironically I'm unable to sleep as I'm writing this. I'm certainly more used to sleeping to complete silence so it has been extremely hard to adjust.

 

This puts me at ease even a little bit, thank you. I know I shouldn't focus on whether the ringing will leave or not, but so far I've found it hard to cope with. It's unfortunate that the starting stages of tinnitus are so tough, there is barely any actual support It really puts these sorts of conditions into perspective. I'm glad to hear that it eventually got better for you, and the other success stories here also give me some hope. I will absolutely be resting my ears as much as possible so I hope things look up from here.

 

It was a few seconds, before I asked them to turn it down. As I'm writing this the left ear seems to have lowered a bit thankfully.

If things continue like this I may also have to ask for antidepressants or something too.

The thing is I have my exams during this time period, very ironic I know. I've managed to continue my studying in rooms with ambient noises, but actually being in the quiet exam rooms has been tough. I've just decided to power through them. As for sleep it has been so horrible. I'm basically awake for most of the night or sleep at max 2 hours at a time. In fact I'm writing this at 4am in the morning. I plan to buy a white noise machine soon so hopefully it'll be easier to sleep.

 

Can you hear tinnitus outside like driving or going to class? It sucks that we are all suffering daily.

I am in my 30s and already feel pretty bad. You are younger. I hope we both recover.

Given your age and good performance status, I recommend you to try steroids to reduce your inflammation.

 

In car rides I'm able to usually ignore it due to the background noises, I wouldn't say it's that bad fortunately. I'm no longer required in class due to study leave, so I have been making the most of my time surrounding myself with as much white noise as possible which I think has helped me relax - I don't know what I'd do if I was still attending classes right now.

I'm very sorry to hear that, if you don't mind me asking how long have you been experiencing your tinnitus? I sincerely hope it improves for us too, and that the future brings more effective treatments for it.

I have booked a consultation with my GP so I'm still not considering any medication until then. If they recommend any I'll give them a go, but I think I'll definitely be asking for something to help me sleep or to calm my nerves at the very least. Thank you for the suggestions though, I really do appreciate them

As an update I managed to sleep a little bit last night using white noise, although I constantly woke up during the night. I decided to switch the sound off and managed to sleep a good few hours with the ringing, I suppose out of pure exhaustion. I've calmed down a little since the onset so I hope things will start improving soon.