Constant Low-Frequency Rumbling Alongside Long-Term Tinnitus

[holzbee]

Hi. I'm new here. I've been a long-term sufferer of tinnitus. I think I first noticed the whistling, high-pitched sounds about 5 years ago. Since then, I've had various other symptoms, including fluttering in the ear, clicking, pain, autophony, and now a deep, loud rumbling or drumming sound.

I've actually had this before, and for the longest time I thought it was a car idling outside my bedroom window. One day, already feeling exacerbated, I went to open the curtains to see who it was and tell them to do one, only to find the street completely empty. That's when I realised it was coming from me.

Over the last 8 weeks, the rumbling has become constant, and I mean constant. 24 hours a day, non-stop. It varies in intensity, but it's often loud enough to drown out almost everything else. As you can imagine, I'm not feeling especially great about this, particularly as I'm in the UK and my ENT referral may take 6 months to get anywhere.

Does anyone have any coping strategies they could share?

 

[Sydnears]

The only good thing I can say about low-frequency tinnitus is that it is maskable. Use deep brown noise or red noise. Some people find the starship noise helpful. Mine is also constant, and I find it horribly intrusive, so you have my sympathies.

 

[Meinz89]

Hi friend,

I'm a relatively new sufferer of tinnitus for about 9 months now. I got it when I was 7 weeks pregnant and had hoped it would resolve postpartum, but alas, it persists. I, too, had the same tone/quality of tinnitus for the last 8 months.

Just last week, a whole new tone appeared and is exactly as you described. I, too, have a low rumbling, car engine-like sound in the back of my head. While my usual tinnitus is mostly in my left ear, this feels more in my head. It comes with a rather distressing vibration sensation in both my head and ears. Do you also have a vibration feeling?

I had just started to feel like my usual tinnitus was familiar and I understood how this behaved, until this low-frequency rumbling began. Now I feel like I'm back at square one and in the same tinnitus distress I was in 9 months ago when it all began.

While I don't have any strategies myself, I just wanted to share that I am going through something similar. My hope is that just like some of my other tones came and went, maybe this will fade eventually, too. Have your tones and odd auditory issues faded in and out throughout your journey?

One thing that helps me is telling myself that this is just a season in my life and not my forever. The brain will habituate eventually, even if it takes us a long time to get there. I joined another forum where a woman shared that she had this exact type of tinnitus, but now, 3 years later, she's fully habituated.

Keep me posted on your journey. I hope someone in this group may share some positive insight or strategies on how we can better manage this shitty, low-frequency rumbling tone.