Could My Tinnitus Be Caused by Earwax Blockage? How About Stress and Bad Sleep? Or Multiple Factors?

Hello everyone!

Firstly, I want to send my support to all of you, we are all here together, it's just a stupid sound.

My tinnitus started a few weeks ago, at 5 PM and just suddenly, ringing in the ears, or better to say, whooshing, hissing sound and in one ear only.
Together with that, when I put finger in that ear (right one) I can hear my heartbeat, but I could hear similar heartbeat long before the tinnitus started.
Anyway, the sound of heartbeat is loud, I can almost hear the blood going nearby.

Days and weeks before the tinnitus started I had a problem in that ear (cerumen, some white substance, looks and smell like it's some bacteria (candida maybe) but it all went away after a few days of hydrogen peroxide 3% ear drops.
Sometimes I would mess too much with that ear, because of cerumen (or infection) where I probably push cerumen deep inside and create earwax, but the thing is, there is no pain, no feeling of fullness in that ear.

When I open my jaw wide enough, I can hear a pooping sound (a few 'poops') in that ear (and not in other ear, or not that loud).

I don't really have a stressful life or a job, IT - 9 to 10 hours a day.

The problem, other than the earwax, is I slept really little for much of 2020... 6 hours or less on average on workdays, falling asleep at 1 - 2 AM and getting up at 7 AM.

I am sitting too much in front of the computer. But I'm always having nice long walks. No workouts.

When I massage my neck for 5 minutes, especially the part between neck and skull and near ears, my tinnitus lowers from 5/10 to 1/10.
Interestingly, while my tinnitus (whooshing, hissing sound) is not loud, I could hear it also outside if there is not much noise and if I focus on it.

I don't have problems with sleeping because of tinnitus, I do not need any help, I'm sleeping better than ever because I cut coffee and I am now in bed by 10 - 11 PM already.

I'm also working as normal.

My tinnitus frequency is definitely changing, sometimes I think it's almost gone, but then it's louder in the evening.

But the tinnitus is still there, maybe not that loud, but it's affecting my everyday life because I am thinking about it maybe too much.

So, what do you guys think? Before going to an ENT...

1. Could my tinnitus be caused by a regular earwax blockage (even if I don't have any pain or hearing loss)?
2. Could my tinnitus be caused by multiple factors, not just a single one?
3. Could my tinnitus be caused by some amount of stress + bad sleep for months?
4. Is there a difference in tinnitus sound if it's from hearing loss or from e.g., neck problems/earwax?
5. If the tinnitus frequency is changing, would that mean that my tinnitus is not caused by hearing loss?
6. If massage helps my tinnitus that much, could it be connected to jaw/neck muscles or arteries? Or does massage help everyone's tinnitus?
7. If my tinnitus is caused by the earwax, would it go away on its own after removing the earwax with hydrogen peroxide ear drops (they say sometimes it takes two weeks)?
8. What is everyone's opinion on Liam Boehm from Liam Stops Tinnitus?

 

Welcome!

No. Earwax doesn't cause tinnitus. It might bring up / amplify tinnitus that was barely audible before.

Have your earwax removed.

Not really. There's a triggering factor usually.

People have reported getting tinnitus from stress.

Not really.

Tinnitus frequency can change, vary and fluctuate even if it's caused by hearing loss.

You very likely have some hearing loss. Everyone does. It might not show up on an audiogram but then it's called "hidden hearing loss".

Massage often helps tinnitus temporarily. Stiff neck and muscles can make tinnitus seem louder.

Like I said, your tinnitus isn't caused by earwax. But if it was made worse by earwax, it might return to its previous level, which was barely audible. You should have that earwax cleared.

Scum scammer, exploits sufferers. He needs to get COVID-19 and die.

 

@ajc

Thanks man!
Really nice answers.

How are things for you?
Did you learn to live with it?

Basically, my tinnitus has not been that loud in the recent days (most of the time), so I am sleeping, working all good, but once or two times in a week, it gets louder for a bit, or even everyday for an hour or so.

 

Since massage helps a lot, I would suggest you look into Rolfing which is a bodywork series designed to restore structural integrity to your body... think posture. When your head is properly aligned over your shoulders and muscles are balanced and relaxed, everything functions better.

I was a practitioner for over 20 years and retired a few years ago.

 

I have a buddy who began suffering tinnitus half a year ago. Nothing too bad and his tinnitus was first in 1 ear. Eventually it got to the point where is was stressing him out a ton. I told him that an ear infection he had earlier this year could be the cause. I also asked him to analyze both ears while they are plugged and he found a small tinnitus tone in his other ear as well.

He went to see an ENT and in the much worse ear they found a massive glob of earwax with visible fungus developing in the middle of it. He had it removed and now both ears feel the same. Very very quiet tinnitus that is almost unnoticeable.

We suspect that the earwax acted as a sort of earplug and therefore isolated his ear in silence for a long time and then made his tinnitus tone come about much louder.

 

I still have tinnitus, after 8 months.
But I am almost used to it.

Only on some days I get a tinnitus spike.

Why is that?

Can food affect tinnitus?