Always Check The Volume Before Pressing Play — Music Blasting on Headphones Gave Me Tinnitus

Hello everyone, been reading for a bit and just wanted to introduce myself and add my story here.

One month ago I did the stupidest thing I've ever done.

Since working from home, I decided to get myself a top of the line audiophile-worthy setup to listen to music while I work. Expensive studio headphones, specialized DAC and amp. It was pretty good for a while, but then my DAC started giving me scratching sounds and I unplugged the whole thing and was just listening through the laptop plug. But then a month ago, I thought, I'll switch the plugs a bit and see if I can fix the scratchiness and get the setup working again. I plug everything back in, things light up again, and then, like an idiot, I decide to test my headphone setup by putting them directly on my head and pressing play to some techno music that was queued up in Spotify. What I hadn't noticed is that my amp was turned up, all the way up.

I blasted my ear with one of the loudest things I've ever heard. According to the headphone's sensitivity, resistance, and the output of my amp, it was around 130 dB. I have a hard time believing that math, to be honest, so it may have been less. But it was intense. I quickly turned it down, so my ears were only exposed to that sound for a few seconds, but immediately after I just felt this pain in my neck and was so incredibly thirsty. My ears didn't start ringing immediately, but things felt very off.

At first I was concerned about hearing loss. Did a few tests online, and it seemed okay? So I was feeling better, but my ears felt odd. And then the tinnitus started. At first it was mild. Got it checked at a clinic, and they said "Eh, couple of days, you'll be fine, you just have a lot of earwax." Then it just kept getting louder and louder. I've been through a few things in my life: heart attack, cancer. Heart attack actually wasn't too bad, and I was okay with the lifetime consequences of that, and the surgery for cancer sucked, but at least every day improved. This is just... something else entirely.

Went to see a doctor, and they cleaned out the earwax using a kind of irrigation thing, hoping that it was just earwax related, and they prescribed me Ciprodex. This actually just made it even louder, and it changed the tone for a few days.

I refused to take the Ciprodex, and then recently found out that Fluoroquinolone, which is in Ciprofloxacin, has an FDA warning for people with my specific genetic condition, and for people who have heart problems (along a bunch of other wonderful things it can do.) The warning is not for the ear drops, but I'd rather not play around on the off chance that this could rip open my aorta.

My doctor insists Ciprodex is super safe, and since my ear canals are quite red, that it must be some sort of infection, and that the tinnitus is just in my head, something I made up by imagining this is one of the consequences of the headphones. Not a whole lot of alternatives around, but I'm hoping that it instead subsides naturally. Still, every day, neck pain, headache, and of course, the tinnitus (and some hyperacusis, but actually fairly lucky on that front, minus when dishes clang together.)

So, I've been trying to still take the steps to get to the bottom of any issue, see if there has been hearing loss (audiologist appointment soon, ENTs are really unavailable where I am though), and just learn to not fight against the tinnitus and coexist with it. You all know how hard it is... It depends on how strong I'm feeling on a day to be able to cope with it or just wallow in regret. There's no point in wallowing though, we can't time travel and I'm just making myself miserable, so all I can do is live with it until it either goes away, gets better, or I get better at dealing with it. I have to not catastrophize, and not get too attached on how this wasn't there before. That this life now, this is early, and to go with the flow. But it's one thing to know this, and it's another to really be it.

So, that's my story, of how I got too hung up on sound quality, spent a bunch of money on something dangerous, and then didn't check the volume before pressing play, and now I'm here.

 

Thank you for sharing your story with us. It's unfortunate that you're experiencing tinnitus after exposing your ears to such a loud sound.

It's important to note that doctors, while they are knowledgeable about some aspects of physiology, are actually absolutely clueless about tinnitus and their recommendations should be avoided at all cost. I mean, after receiving acoustic shock they said it was ear wax? Seriously? It's unfortunate that they did not recommend you to pass a course of Prednisone, which in some cases can actually mitigate tinnitus and hearing loss. You're already one month in, so I don't know whether or not it's worth taking anymore.

It's also very important to note that some medications, such as the one your doctor prescribed, most often actually make tinnitus worse. It's always a good idea to research any medication (preferably on Tinnitus Talk). AVOID BENZOS AND ANTIDEPRESSANTS LIKE THE PLAGUE.

ENTs' advice is useless and counterproductive, tinnitus "specialists" (like Liam Stops Tinnitus, Julian Cowan Hill, Ben Thompson) are scammers and charlatans and should also be avoided.

Good news is that there's a very high-potential treatment coming out very soon, and Tinnitus Talk has a thread dedicated to it (Susan Shore's device from the University of Michigan) as well as the massive potential of Potassium channel openers.

Avoid electronic noise at all costs, that means speakers, headphones, especially earbuds, etc (for now at least). Protect your ears when you go anywhere even a little bit loud.

Your tinnitus is still new, and you have a massive potential of remission if you are careful enough.

Also, avoid Michael Leigh's advice. While some of it might be okay, like avoiding headphones, a lot of it is baseless nonsense.

 

I agree with your doctor. You probably created the tinnitus in your head after you started worrying about it. You’ll be fine. Give it time. Our ears are resilient and our brain has plasticity. Avoid loud noise but don’t worry about everyday normal noises.

 

What the hell is this supposed to mean? Tinnitus doesn't appear after you worry about it. It appeared because he received an insane acoustic shock. That has absolutely nothing to do with worry.

 

I see you are following in the footsteps of a forum member that I placed on ignore quite some time ago. Whilst you are entitled to your opinion of me and are not corresponding with me directly, I take a dislike to you constantly disparaging me. You have had tinnitus for only a short while and I have had it considerably longer and have helped many people by way of counselling and contributing many threads and posts to this forum. I assure you that I am not talking nonsense.

It is you that lack the knowledge and understanding of tinnitus, and have nothing worthwhile to contribute to this forum by means of helping people. Whilst I cannot stop your petty and childish behaviour like your sidekick, I can prevent myself having to constantly read it.

Michael

 

Hi @Audiofail -- Sorry to hear about ear injury and subsequent tinnitus. Regarding Ciprodex, I would avoid it like the plague. There are many stories on this forum of people getting (or exacerbating) tinnitus by using various kinds of drug based ear drops. Not only are they dangerous, but in most cases unnecessary since there are safer, non-drug alternatives.

There are a number of references on this forum of people using diluted apple cider vinegar drops in their ears [one story at this link: I Killed the Ringing. It Has Been 3 Weeks of Silence. There's also an especially INTRIGUING POST by a man who claims garlic mullein oil made a huge difference for him. -- Take care!

 

PubMed has data you can peruse (for example here or here).

Type "ciprofloxacin ototoxic" in the search bar and dig in.

 

I've spent over 7000 hours researching tinnitus and hyperacusis every day for the past 2 years, I've read and studied in detail every paper in existence on it.

How much time have you spent researching anything? You base all your opinions on your own experience which is coherently wrong. You cannot base your entire opinion on a select few cases that you might have helped, and disregard all the people who haven't helped or for which your advice made their tinnitus worse. This behavior is very narrow minded and counterproductive.

 

Hey, I know that wasn't aimed at me, but I'm not here to pick a side or start fights, I'd rather head out the virtual door.

@AnthonyMcDonald, thank you for your advice and your support, I do appreciate it! I agree that many medical professionals don't quite know what to do with tinnitus -- I get it, it's something that can be caused by so many things, and it seems like an incredibly stubborn problem to deal with. It's a tough nut to crack that we haven't even cracked yet, so I don't expect them to have an answer when even all the research and such doesn't even have a defined answer for them to give. For the medication, I agree to be wary. It's always the case of choosing trade-offs and no human can be entirely aware of everything for all medications, and in most cases they see no problem so they can only go from that, but it's definitely frustrating that the tools that we have are so blunt and often dangerous.

@Ziekfelt2, it's more that the tinnitus appeared and then I started to worry about it. I get that the mind is powerful, but I highly doubt that this is caused purely by reading and subsequent anxiety on it. I get that the anxiety worsens it, so I'm doing my best to be calm. Anyhow, if that's the case, I'm looking forward to it going away as I get more chill about it, I suppose.

@Michael Leigh, I'm sorry for the attacks. You've been tirelessly helping people through their suffering, and if it's worth anything, I did stop using headphones on your account, so thank you.

@Lane, thanks! I fully agree on Ciprodex. I get that for most it's safe, but it's in those exceptional cases where it seems quite dangerous and there's a weird disconnect between, "hey, this is first-line treatment" vs FDA saying "this is a last resort for those specific illnesses" (well, the non-otic route ones, so that could be the big difference, but still.) I may have to go the route of diluted apple cider vinegar drops (and definitely diluted, since there are indeed concerns on if it's too acidic.) Garlic oil is also interesting, although certain bacterias love garlic, so I'm a bit more wary of that one.

 

For sure, I'm actually not too concerned about ototoxicity, I'm more concerned about the potential neurological problems and the increased risk of aortic rupture for people with heart problems and connective tissue disease (source 1, source 2).

As well as a few more sources here from PubMed:

Effect of Ciprofloxacin on Susceptibility to Aortic Dissection and Rupture in Mice

Ciprofloxacin accelerates aortic enlargement and promotes dissection and rupture in Marfan mice

But I will say that there is a lot less absorption applying it through eardrops with an intact tympanic membrane, and that of course there's some potentially quite severe and permanent problems that can happen from an untreated ear infection, so, I don't know, likely all depends on your situation.

 

As far as I can tell, the sources you quoted are related to systemic ingestion of Ciprofloxacin, not ear drop application. The risk profile is different.

Ciprodex is often prescribed after tube surgery, when the tympanic membrane lets the drops reach the middle ear through the tubes. There are other studies about this specific use case on PubMed.

 

Please. No-one creates tinnitus in their head. Don't gaslight the poor guy. This is a horrible condition to deal with.

 

Hi my friend. I had the exact situation that created my tinnitus. It’s a hard pill to swallow but you will get there to some extent... I’m 15 months in after my volume accident and I’m coping better these days. For 8 months I was a shell of anxiety and regret but humans are very adaptable.

 

Thank you for your kind comments @Audiofail. I have placed the annoying individual that has been continuously disparaging me on ignore. This is a useful facility and something I will only use when I see no other option, as my purpose for visiting this forum is to try and help people not to participate in arguments. I will engage with anyone that wants constructive debate on tinnitus up to a point, even if they don't agree with something I write. However, I will not be drawn into a slanging match which I believe some people thrive on for reasons only known to themselves.

I am sorry to know the onset of your tinnitus was caused by a short loud blast of audio through your high-end headphones. I am an audiophile so understand how you feel, as I used to use top-of-the line Beyer headphones that unfortunately gave me tinnitus due to listening to music at too high a volume over a long period of time without realizing it. I haven't used headphones in 26 years. I still enjoy my music but listening to speakers through a very high quality audio setup. Please go to my started threads and read: Does Your HI-FI Sing?

If you decide not to use headphones again, please don't think you can't enjoy music in high quality because you certainly can. When a good audio system is set up correctly, music will sound much better through speakers I assure you.

Normally I don't advise people that have noise-induced tinnitus to use any type of headphones even at low volume but there are exceptions. I note that your tinnitus just started in January this year. If this is the first time that you have worn your high-end headphones and experienced tinnitus, there is a good chance that it will reduce to very low levels and possibly completely go away within 3 to 6 months. If this happens and you want to try listening to music again through headphones, then I believe it's possible, providing you do so judiciously and with extreme caution. Listening to music for no more than 30 to 45 minutes through headphones while keeping the volume low, then give your ears a rest, is probably a good idea.

Techno music that you mention in your post, I don't think is a good idea to listen to through headphones even at low volume. Relaxing soothing music such as jazz or classical for example might be a better option. This is just my opinion, ultimately the choice is yours.

Please go to my started threads and read: The Habituation Process, How to Habituate to Tinnitus, Will My Tinnitus Get Worse? Tinnitus and the Negative Mindset, Acquiring a Positive Mindset, Hyperacusis, As I See It. Please click on the links below and read my posts.

All the best,
Michael

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

 

Detailing all of the inaccurate, just-plain-wrong aspects of Michael Leigh's commentary is equivalent to listing all of the reasons why such TV Shows as "My Mother The Car" or "The Beverly Hillbillies" are not fully realized works of art.

What unfortunate, truly sad circumstances would drive a man who is just a retired carpenter to arrogate to himself the claim to be more knowledgeable about this condition than any Medical Researcher in the Ivy league (or Global) University System?

What a laff riot in calling your commentary "petty and childish". Who does he think he is? A hectoring schoolmaster out of a Dickens novel?

He is also unconditionally the very worst advertisement for habituation I have ever encountered.

When I contemplate all of the circumstances that Michael Leigh has unwittingly referred to regarding his own situation, I now only feel tremendously sorry for him. Tinnitus has turned him into what he is.

 

@Michael Leigh is like that persistent little crudlet that's stuck to your shoe. You think you wiped it off, but then you get poo smearing on your carpet all the same.

Unfortunately, he is not the only one, others out there think they are smarter then people who actually studied and are conducting research.

 

Studying and conducting research about any medical conditions is important, especially regarding tinnitus, if a cure is to be found one day. However, this will only take one so far. I have never claimed to be all knowledgeable about tinnitus and other conditions associated with it, namely hyperacusis, but I do have a lot of experience with both. This has enabled me to counsel and correspond with people affected by tinnitus and hyperacusis and from the feedback I have received over the years, I am pleased to have helped some people the way I was once helped.

Michael

 

There will very unfortunately always be unconditional supporters of @Michael Leigh, just as there were 917 followers of Jim Jones who willfully drank the Cyanide-Laced Flavor-Aid at Jonestown.

All you can do at this point is ignore these people.

I recently read an excellent definition of "communication"; it is the transference of understanding.

Try as hard as I may, I nonetheless cannot make such a transference in the case of @Michael Leigh as being Intellectually Respectable.

These @Michael Leigh adherents are apparently incapable of recognizing and internalizing the valid, empirically verifiable criticisms each of you have had the intellectual and moral courage to report about.

I sincerely believe that I would lose all self-respect if I went through the Looking Glass and thus regarded him as an Authority Figure. I remind myself that it is imperative that I not do so in order to retain a basis for Mental Health.

 

Cool. Clearly a lot of grudges among the forum regulars here, so I'll leave everyone to the ongoing forum war.

Thanks @Michael Leigh for the advice on audiophile gear; I'll let things cool off with my ears and let things heal for a few months but definitely glad to hear that in the future I can look at getting a nice Hi-Fi setup using speakers, something to look forward to even if the tinnitus remains for the long haul, with of course always making sure to take care of not overloading or hurting my ears.

For others that stumble upon this, I'll try to report back on how this progresses over time. At the moment, one month in, it's still constant, still very high pitched, but the loudness _seems_ to have improved, but I may just be getting used to it. Ear canals are still very red though, so probably ear infection doing its thing, and my general not super stellar health and refusal to take Ciprodex not helping that going away. But mentally, in a much better spot than I was a month ago. There's times I don't notice it when I'm focused, and when I do (which is still pretty often) I sometimes just do things like mentally try to put a rhythm to the tone, or see if I can shift the tone by focusing different parts of my mind or just let it do its ringing thing.

 

You said it best. That's what tinnitus has turned him into.

I have posted many posts contradicting some of his "advice" with evidence. One can search my posts. No point in repeating myself. At some point it really does become of trying something over & over again expecting different results...

 

Yes, I was wrong. Thank you for calling it.

 

You are welcome @Audiofail.

If this is your first experience with noise-induced tinnitus, as I previously mentioned, there is a good chance your tinnitus will reduce to a very low level or completely disappear over time. This can take 3 to 12 months, perhaps longer. Please try not to be be overly concerned about the length of time the healing process takes, because you will be going through the habituation process as mentioned in my posts on my started threads.

Please print the posts and refer to them often. This way you will absorb and retain the information. It is important that you start using sound enrichment, especially at night, using a sound machine by your bedside. More information about sound enrichment is on my started threads. Taking things slowly is the right approach and I am pleased you have decided to do this.

If your intention is to become a serious audiophile, there is only one way to avoid costly mistakes. Please print my thread: Does Your Hi-Fi Sing? Find a good Hi-Fi dealer and book a demonstration to hear a system comprising of amplifier, speakers and whatever source components you intent using: CD Player, Streamer etc. Please consider auditioning (listening) to a valve/tube amplifier. You will find as most audiophiles do, they sound much more musical and smoother to the ear without any harshness in the midrange and treble frequencies, than most solid state amplifiers.

You don't have to spend huge amounts of money to get good quality sound. To obtain this, system matching and cables are crucial if you want the Hi-Fi to sing.

Wishing you all the best,
Michael

 

Quick update, this is month 2, still ringing endlessly but it seems to have quieted down a bit, save for the time that a car alarm went off next to me and then the inside of my ears hurt for two days, but I was good again after.

Psychologically doing pretty good, although there’s definitely some harder days. Noise sensitivity mostly went away after a Tobradex treatment. May not be related to it, but timing coincided. There’s still some things that are too much (toddlers man, they just scream constantly) but I try to be exposed to a reasonable amount of sound and that’s helped me.

I tried to stay away from all speaker sounds and sit in mostly silence for a week, and it actually made it worse for me. So now I’m back to having music on at low volumes constantly and that helps for even when I step away.

I haven’t been particularly healthy or anything: espresso every morning, lots of takeout food, not really exercising other than the occasional walk. So maybe I would have a better chance if I was nicer to my body.

One thing I started doing is massaging behind my ears, like where the jaw ends, on both sides and that seems to help. Maybe it helps with blood flow; God knows my circulation is junk with my cardiovascular situation and the meds I take for it.

ENT appointment soon, not expecting much, but worth a shot.

I’ll keep on updating next month.

 

You are in the early stages of noise-induced tinnitus @Audiofail and recovery will take time. It is important that you are examined at ENT so try not to be so negative. If you read the posts that I have advised, it will give you more understanding about tinnitus and the habituation process. It is something that takes time and cannot be rushed. Try not to deliberately immerse yourself in sounds when at home, because this isn't the correct way to use sound enrichment. The idea is to have relaxing music or nature sounds playing in the background, and you should only become aware of the sounds when you focus on them.

Try to go out every day for a little while, so your auditory system gets used to normal everyday sounds. This takes time so be patient and read my posts.

All the best,
Michael