Anyone Else Have a High Pitched Pulsing Sound?

Maybe this should be in the pulsatile tinnitus section, but I feel like it doesn't meet the usual pulsatile parameters of a whooshing or the sound of a heartbeat as pulsatile tinnitus generally presents itself as. It also started directly alongside my quieter, more stable tinnitus.

For the four months I've had tinnitus, the worst and most intrusive sound has been this very high pitched buzz/hiss that is in sync with the rhythm of my heartbeat. It's more or less always there, but lately I've had days where the intensity is less and even fewer days where it's pretty mild except in a quiet room. However, even on my better days it's completely unmaskable when outside surrounded by birds, crickets, wind, etc.; only masked by the shower or a running faucet. Noise from fans, people talking in groups, music, television, and riding in the car cause it to react or compete. Sometimes I think overall that it's been fading ever so slightly during the last four months but then there are days where it's "hell level," like today.

I've been to a few doctors and they've all brushed it off as unimportant due to the high pitched nature of it. Does anyone else experience this and has anyone had it fade over time? Some days I feel like I'm handling it better but generally I still struggle substantially and have moments where I feel like I'm at the end of my rope or level of patience. I don't think I've cried more in my 31 years than I have over the last four months simply due to the stress, depression, and exhaustion of all this.

 

Have you considered hearing aids with maskers? Or bone conduction headphones streaming masking sounds?

 

Yes, I’ve gotten to that point where I feel like I need some relief and have an appointment with an audiologist next week.

 

It sounds similar to what I've been dealing with for the past 4 months too. Mine is high pitched (electrical) kind of surges / oscillating. I'm not sure it's always in sync with heartbeat but feels close at times. It's reactive like yours too and I've cried just about as much. All I can say is your not alone. It's miserable and hopefully we can get used to it (although it feels impossible at the moment).

I've taken all kinds of drugs and supplements, seen loads of doctors. There's nothing that's helped besides getting prescribed some sleep meds to get more than 4 hours a night.

Hit me up if you have any questions. I'm sorry your dealing with this horrible disorder too.

 

Perfect way to describe it, except mine is definitely in sync with my heartbeat. I have days where the pulsing is mild or even absent and these seem to be getting a little more frequent as time goes on. But it’s never more than one day before it comes back and pulses to hell.

I hope things start to fade for you soon. This is misery.

 

May I ask you what kind of sleep medicine? After sleeping slightly better, last couple of weeks (I don't even know, everything has been such a blur for 10 months) has been tough again. Two days ago I cried in joy after getting 4 hours of sleep, almost uninterrupted, but then it was followed by a night with literally no sleep. I take Frontin (Xanax) as needed, but it's not really effective. Wanted to have Mirtazepine prescriped, but as I was leaning on the idea, all these horror stories about withdrawal from it kept popping up on the support thread.

 

I'm taking Clonazepam at night for sleep. I held out for a long time, but 4 hours of sleep wasn't cutting it. I've been on it for a few weeks and I'm getting 8-10 hours sleep. I think the tinnitus hasn't been as aggressive, but I worry about tolerance and dependence. However, I just couldn't be a zombie anymore. I've had few days feeling normal days since starting it and decided I'll deal with getting off of it once I'm doing better.

 

Thank you, Capstan.

 

I have a similar tinnitus but I can modulate it with thought/breath if that makes sense. So when it’s going EEEEEEeeeeeeEEEEEEEeeeeee I can kind of slow that down if I relax and it becomes more stable.

Mine is also very reactive / I have distortion - the air conditioning is this harsh blow torch on my ears.

 

I also have an extremely high-pitched tinnitus tone which pulses a bit. I think it is in lockstep with my heartbeat, though it's hard to tell as the sound is near the audible threshold and is thus hard to pin down. This is in contrast to other tinnitus tones which are definitely stable.

I've read that pulsatile tinnitus may sometimes have an underlying physical cause. I'm wondering if any of you have had any kinds of tests, e.g. an MRI, to rule this out. I personally have not, because my tinnitus started after an acoustic trauma, and the odds of my having another physical cause, which started around the same time as my acoustic trauma, seem astronomically low. I am also worried about the noise exposure and potential negative effect of the MRI contrast agent on my tinnitus. But I'm curious if you've all had any tests like this.

 

This is exactly what I have now 5 weeks in and I'm really struggling with this particular sound and how reactive it is to other sounds. I have described it as pulsating crickets/cicadas, but a hiss sounds maybe more appropriate. It's definitely in sync with my heartbeat and I don't understand why it would react to sounds as if it competing with them, raising over them if there's possibly a vascular issue. I notice it more when sitting in bed. If I stand up it's less prominent, but I don't believe it's somatic as I can't modulate it in any way and if I turn the fan on, it starts revving up and getting louder over the fan even if I'm standing up.

Sounds outside, with the windows closed, will set it off too but a lot of times it's just there no matter what I do. It's there every morning as I wake up and seems to calm down a little when I go to sleep, but not always. It's the sound I hear 90% of the time, but sometimes it will change to pure tone ringing, a metallic angle grinder sound, or the same type of hissing at a lower level and without the pulsing where it starts to sound more like static.

My tinnitus started with ringing only in one ear, and now this pulsing is in both ears/head. I haven't had any tests done because I can't afford them other than a hearing test when in the first few days (very mild high frequency loss around 8,000 Hz, but one doctor said it's so borderline it's not even a loss). I haven't done the test for frequencies higher than 8,000 Hz. Because my tinnitus started after a microsuction/irrigation, I don't think an MRI or anything would find much anyways if I could afford it.

Worth noting, I have pain hyperacusis, so I rarely go out, only for groceries. No audio, no TV, no music, etc. Pretty miserable existence for now. I have wondered if this pulsating sound is related to hyperacusis, at least in my case.

 

How are you doing, Capstan?

I think I have the same tinnitus like you

I cannot mask it unless I'm in the shower.

Anything worked for you? Are you still taking Clonazepam?

Wishing you the best!