Can In-Ear White Noise Generator/Masker Make Tinnitus Worse?

I have an in-ear white noise masker. I've been using it to mask my tinnitus quite a lot recently. For 5 days I've had a new noise.

Could a masker make things worse?

 

NEVER mask your tinnitus COMPLETELY! You need to hear it in order to habituate. If you mask it COMPLETELY, your tinnitus will seem MUCH LOUDER!

 

Trouble is @annV I have plenty of other hours in the day to listen to this noise, but I'll take your advice.

 

Can I ask what in-ear maskers are you using? What model? Can you make their volume a little less so that you can hear your tinnitus above the noise it generates?

 

It's something I got 10 years ago and I don't know the model unfortunately. It has volume control so I can set it low.

 

HI @Allan1967

It is not advisable for you to use a white noise generator for a number of reasons which I have mentioned in my articles on TRT.

A white noise generator must be used correctly otherwise it can make tinnitus worse. Two should be worn to keep the auditory system in balance and you should be under the care of a Hearing Therapist or Audiologist that specialises in using this form of treatment. It is not as simple as some people think, to just pop-in white noise generators and think they will be of help. In many instances counselling is required when using them.

Furthermore, I do not believe it is the right time for you to be wearing white noise generators especially only one! The recent increase in your tinnitus has had a profound effect on you and it will for anyone; it is just not the right time for you to be using this piece of equipment. I have been using white noise generators for 23 years.

I advise you to stop using the WNG and use ordinary "sound enrichment" especially at night. Please remember, tinnitus should never be masked. By this I mean it shouldn't be covered up with a sound so that it can't be heard. Any attempt to do this, the tinnitus is likely to become worse and the brain cannot habituate to tinnitus unless it can hear it. When using white noise generators, the volume should always be kept slightly below the tinnitus.

Michael

 

Thanks Michael....I guess I may have made it worse for myself? Is it permanent do you think?

 

HI @Allan1967

I understand your situation and how desperate you want to find relief from the recent resurgence in your tinnitus. I felt exactly the same when my tinnitus increased in 2008. The ear is delicate especially when one has tinnitus, so you need to be careful and know what you are doing regarding treatment. Wait until you are seen at ENT, who will likely refer you to a Hearing Therapist once tests are carried out and find no underlying problems within your auditory system causing the tinnitus.

Try to calm down and read my posts in the links that I have sent you. Do not concern yourself with white noise generators or any other form of treatment at this time other than using "sound enrichment" which I have advised you on. Hopefully you haven't made your tinnitus worse just caused some temporary irritation which is making you feel stressed. As time passes this will improve. If you drink alcohol then I advise a glass of larger or wine in the evenings as this can have a medicinal effect making you more relaxed. I don't think it will cause any reaction with the medication you are taking. A glass of wine, brandy after 6pm helped me on many occasions, when I was going through a difficult time with my tinnitus.

Take care and try not to worry.
Michael

 

Why would you have been using white noise generators for 23 years...

...if you are already fully habituated???

Makes no sense.

Tell me @Michael Leigh... what does it feel like inside your self-deceiving mind???

Well... it is certainly possible that you made it worse. Unlike @Michael Leigh, some of us understand there is a difference between science fiction and science fact:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30178067

Quote:

 

Posit Science Corporation, San Francisco, California.

So this is the kind of bullshit you'll see in Tinnitus research. One of the authors on this paper has a financial interest in a company called Posit Science so naturally he's going crap on white noise because he wants to promote use of his products and he puts his argument forward and you may believe him.

Then, the ATA in their last edition of their magazine published an opinion by an audiologist who stated that all the studies that conclude while noise is harmful are done in animals and in the final analysis, there is no good evidence to support that white noise is harmful. But if you think about it for a moment you realize that there is no evidence to suggest it isn't harmful either.

The tinnitus field is knee deep in opinion, spin, pseudoscience and just plain bullshit.

 

White noise is by definition broad spectrum noise. Any noise at the right frequency and the right amplitude can impact your tinnitus negatively.

 

I’m wearing my in-ear maskers at the moment. What other choice do I have, I was out at the park and the tinnitus was so loud I thought something would burst. It’s either masking or... well going insane.