Almost 9 Months, and Many Changes

Hi everyone,

My tinnitus started last September, due to wax build-up in my right ear. I was hearing ringing, a "shinging" noise, hissing and whistling all at the same time. The shinging was the worst sound. It wasn't smooth, but a very fast up-and-down "tshh, tshh". It was impossible to habituate, and I was scared because I never had problems with tinnitus before, and at first I didn't know what was causing it. After 3 weeks of olive oil and gentle irrigation, most of the wax was gone, and the tinnitus was much better. But the shinging sound (which I'll refer to as T) lingered on. I figured my ears and nerves just needed time to heal.

By December, I was getting nervous because the T was still there. It started to alternate between good days and bad days. I would go to sleep with medium level T, and wake up to near silence. And vice versa. At one point, I was hearing a "crosswalk beeping" noise, seemingly imposed onto external sounds. It was annoying, but fortunately only lasted several weeks.

After noticing popping sounds near my ears, I thought it might be eustachian tube dysfunction. I took nasonex for one week, and the T was reduced to almost nothing. Then, one night, I woke up with a piercingly loud ring in my right ear. I did the valsalva maneuver, and the ringing started to go away. From that point on, the nasal spray didn't do anything to help, so I stopped it. But overall, the T was less frequent (every 5-10 seconds instead of every second) and a bit quieter.

Around February, my jaw was getting painful, and clicked when I opened and closed it. I realized the popping sound was my jaw, not my eustachian tubes. I grind my teeth in my sleep, and my 6 year old bite plate had worn down, with a tiny hole on the right side. That's when I learned about TMJ, and how it can cause tinnitus.

I got a new bite plate last Thursday. The moment I laid down in bed that night, I heard a "beep beep be be be beeep be be" morse code type of sound. At first, I couldn't tell if it was internal or external. I can't hear it with loud music, or with my ears plugged. But I hear it imposed onto sounds like the tv, fridge, ventilation and shower. When I'm lying down, and it's quiet, I also hear it and it seems to be more in my right ear. I'm feeling worried again, but I'm hoping it will go away just like the "crosswalk beeping."

At this point, I'm curious about two things:

-Whether the T will completely go away after wearing my new bite plate for awhile

-If the beeping noises are also linked to the TMJ, or caused by some other problem

Thanks for any support or advice you may have! It's been a crazy process of elimination, and it feels like every time a solution is at hand, a new problem comes up.

 

The ear and auditory system are delicate and quite sophisticated. Your symptoms really need to be investigated by an ENT doctor and in the case of TMJ, you may need the help of a periodontist/ orthodontist. Whatever is causing your tinnitus I believe you need to seek the help of medical professionals.

Best of luck
Michael