Are Earmuffs Really Needed? (Traveling / Flight)

Hey guys I'm having my first flight since tinnitus started.

I'm kind of worried but what worries me the most is barotrauma because in the past everytime I took a flight my ears used to hurt a lot because of the pressure.

Anyways... if my tinnitus comes from an "Endolymphatic nature" (Meniere's, Lyme's, idk), do I really need to buy earmuffs or would earplane plugs would work too?

Thanks!

 

Earplane plugs have NRR of something like 22 dB. Combining earplane plugs with Peltor muffs would provide you with good protection...

 

Cant you just chew gum the whole time

 

Obviously,
but i was wondering if the Earmuff are really important when flying (noise protection)

 

T is so personalized that i'm not sure that there is a specific answer for you. I think to be reasonably cautious is best, but i emphasize reasonably. If you are able to "pop" your ears then okay. Most of what I know of is when someone is ill and flying with T. I think if your cautious, then I wouldn't worry too much. If your inside a cabin of passenger airplane, the db is in the 80ish range. A ear plug with a 22db reduction brings you down to the volume of your typical home environment. Unless there is something specific, you should be fine.
Word of warning though, every time i put in earplugs it causes a temp spike in my T, because the earplugs restricts outside noises and focuses on your T. So if you do wear earplugs and take them out and have a increase, just know thats why.

 

I'm a frequent flyer and have flown with and without ear plugs and find there is no difference.

 

I can give my own experience.

Last few flights I have had I used noised cancelling headphones. They stopped any spike for me (incredible how loud it is when you take them off and listen) and also, for some reason, they stopped the pressure feelings in my ears. I think I only had to "pop" my ears twice on the whole flight.

 

That is good to know! Do you prefer noise canceling headphones to earmuffs? Can I ask what brand you use? And by any chance do you use them at movies or anywhere else?

I know they can be expensive, but I don't mind the cost. I just want to make sure they are better than using earmuffs.

 

I have the AKG N60NC. They are good, also nice and light and easy to carry round. The noise cancelling doesn't feel too extreme.

In general I just make sure I'm not around places that are too loud, planes are unfortunately an exception to the rule. Other than that I don't use any hearing protection. I used to use noise cancelling headphones in the gym and they worked really well, but regular use did give me a feeling of fullness in the ears, so I had to ease off.

It's a while since I was last at the movies, I have a big screen TV and surround sound at home which I often prefer. I like to view at leisure and control the volume or dynamic range. Last time I saw a movie at the theatre I was bothered by some of the louder scenes, it feels to me like either the speaker set up is not good in some theatres or the sound mixers don't understand proper dynamics. I don't think noise cancelling would work very well, it would probably make some quiet scenes too quiet.

 

Do you use them headphones just for the noise cancelling, or do you listen to music through them as well? Any spikes from listening to them?

 

Yes I use them for the gym now and never had any spikes. I always buy good sound quality kit, I use headphones for sound mixing. Much better as the sound is close to the ears and it's easier to hear the details.

I spike from earphones (can't use them any more) and often from speakers too. Headphones are good for me - they're my personal preference for listening.

 

@Tinker Bell, the Bose are considered the best in noise-cancelling technology. I have the Bose QC 20, which are actually earbuds. I use them without any music. The Bose QC 25 and QC 35 earmuff-type ones are supposed to be very effective, as well. They are all pretty expensive. Just stay away from the Bose Quietcontrol 30 as these are not as effective.

 

Thank you! I was considering a Bose pair. Do the earbuds fit well? I have tiny ears, could never find earbuds that fit me well. I was considering the headphones just for that reason but wasn't sure.

 

You can try them on if you have a Bose store near you. That's what I did. They kind of sit in your ear. Not pushed way in like earplugs. They work well for continuous low-frequency sounds. I've never used them on a plane but I wear them in the car and I prefer them to earplugs.

 

@Steve @TuneOut Do noise cancelling headphones like the bose qc35 actually give you protection like earmuffs and plugs? or do they just cancel out the noise without actually giving you any db protection?

 

Yeah, and wearing 4 or 5 pairs of earmuffs plus a diving helmet would provide extremely good protection, but that's not the question here. He wants to know if it's necessary.

I would say wearing protection (earplugs or earmuffs) is only necessary for medium or long haul flights. Now I tend to use earplugs in short haul flights too though, just to be on the safe side.

 

Frequent flyer here. My very unscientific, based on nothing but personal experience opinion:

I'd say it's 'borderline' on flights up to 3h, necessity for longer flights.

8h long flight was not super fun. No spike or anything, just that the constant noise was annoying.

Edit: I wear earmuffs on *all* flights because of my moderate hypersensitivity to sound.

 

I have been on two flights since my T, and one coming up in August.
All of these have been for work related and have only been close, so just around Europe where I live.
I've used earplanes plugs but I didn't feel they did very well, they didn't fit properly and I didn't feel that they blocked out the noise. I have borrowed my boyfriend's noise cancelling headphones and they have been very useful (SONY and Beats by Dre). Once the headphones was not working as it should and I had to sit through a 2 h long flight with only plugs (however they can not the inserted while ascending or descending so I still had to sit through 1 h without any protection). For me it was torture, I felt so bad and the anxiety was hitting the roof. But it was fine afterwards, but flying has always been an anxiety for me since T.

I'd recommend you to bring earplanes if you experience pressure a lot, some are just more sensitive to it than others. I also bought a Peltor X4 (being the second best in terms of db reduction) that are slimmer than the X5 and still have 33db reduction and great for low frequencies like an airplane. I have colored them in black so they look a bit less "eye catching" even if I don't give two cents about what people think. My ears tend to get really tired from the constant noise, and you should have something with you in case you feel the noise is tiring you out. I measured the flights, of course this was done on a phone so can be a bit too low/high but it was around 78-80db and that is still quite loud.

 

How do earmuffs compare to noise canceling headphones? Do you prefer one over the other for flights?

 

Earmuffs are a very simple device - some kind of foam and a bit of plastic to hold it together. Foam blocks out some of the noise, in the same way as earplugs do.

Active noise cancelling headphones are very sophisticated and (usually) expensive. Microphones 'listen' for outside noise and then your headphones play a sound that cancels out the noise.



Passive ear protection is my favourite. It's simple, reliable and have a constant noise reduction rating that I can use to roughly estimate noise exposure I'm getting.

Active noise cancelling is highly effective with some types of noise and horrible with others. No guaranteed level of protection. No NNR rating you can use for any calculations. But with some noises such as engine noise during a flight - their effectivness is beyond belief.

 

Ear muffs feel weird ona plane So much bass to hear inside them

 

I haven't used the earmuffs yet to be honest, I bought it after my last trip when the noise cancelling headphones was not working (and I realized that I needed something that would work without relying on technology, like they have to be charged and whatnot). Noise cancelling are really nice because it really shuts all the noise out, while you still hear voices clearly. Earmuffs will still allow you to hear all noises (including the engine) but simply lower the noise db instead of shutting them completely out like the noise cancelling one does.

 

Take a pair of earmuffs on your carry-on. If you don't feel like you need them then don't use them. If you have hyperacusis or reactive tinnitus I would recommend them.

 

If you read the posts here, you will see that many people find the double protection not enough to prevent permanent and temporary spikes. These people attend relatively loud events (e.g., loud pub), healthy people don't think twice about the noise at those places. Our ears had been compromised. If protecting our ears imposes a high cost, then I can see thinking twice about protecting our ears. Since that double protection is pretty much costless, then what is there to think about? The cost is close zero, the potential benefit (avoiding a possibly permanent spike) is priceless. You can't do much for your ears at this point, so why not do the little you could do?

 

Looks like I'm late to the thread party; but technically no unless on long hall flights as the noise in a plane is not considered at a damaging level.

HOWEVER; I have the Bose QC35's as I fly for work a bit and they are worth every dollar despite their extremely high cost and have since avoided spikes when flying.

 

Most people pay no attention to temporary tinnitus after a club visit...

 

I am not talking about healthy people. I am talking about a person with T. We do pay attention to spikes, as we never know whether the spike is permanent. Also, a spike is a signal from your body that something is wrong. It is possible that when one is not careful to avoid temporary spikes, one increases the probability of getting a permanent spike (or reduces the possibility of T fading).

 

Bauer, this thread is about flights, not loud pubs, not concerts, not going shooting, not anything else. The level of risk is different.

 

"Take-off and landing are the loudest moments, when noise levels inside the cabin can reach 105 decibels (dB). At cruising altitudes, noise drops to around 85 dB, says Pamela Mason of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA)."

This is the kind of noise you might be exposed to at a pub, and this is the kind of noise that many of us found out the hard way can hurt our ears.

 

What I meant was - most people don't care about tinnitus the way we do. They are fundamentally different psychologically (and maybe even physically) from us and any comparison is pointless.

Anyway, we are going really OT so let's call it a day... or move this discussion to chat if you wish