Does One Ear Become Twice as Sensitive to Noise if the Other Ear Is Covered? Do I Need My Own Bedroom Now?

[ECP]

Hello, I'm back after a five-month hiatus from TinnitusTalk. I took a break from being here partly because I had nothing new to share, and partly because I was dealing with a new and unrelated health concern that I needed to look into.

I had hoped my ear problems would stabilize and improve in 2025, but I experienced a horrible setback earlier this month, and now I don't know what to do. I was lying on my right side in bed, with my right ear pressed against the pillow and my left ear facing the ceiling. All the lights were off. My husband reached for something on my nightstand and accidentally grabbed the portable LED book light that was sitting there. It is the kind of light that has a spring-operated clamp for attaching to a book so you can read in the dark. Unaware of what he was holding, he squeezed the clamp open, then let go of it, causing it to snap shut less than three feet from my head. The snapping sound was so piercing that it caused instant pain to my unprotected left ear.

My right ear was the one that had noxacusis for the past two and a half years, but now, as a result of what happened that night, I have it in my left ear as well.

It's too early to tell whether this symptom spike will be permanent, but I am really scared. The tinnitus in both ears is much louder, with anywhere from two to four different tones going on at the same time, including musical tinnitus, which I had not experienced since last summer. The brain fog and suicidal ideation have returned too. Like many of you, I find myself making hourly decisions about when to put on ear protection and when to take it off, constantly weighing the risks of overprotecting versus underprotecting.

I'm not angry at my husband, but he is still wracked with guilt for erasing the two and a half years of progress I had made.

Here is what I would like to know:

1. If one ear is temporarily protected by something as simple as a pillow, does that make the other ear more vulnerable to pain? Is the brain making that ear listen more intently to compensate?
   
   
2. Short of wearing earplugs to bed every night, how do you protect yourself from injury while lying on your side? I have been trying to sleep on my back so that both ears are equally exposed to sound, but as a lifelong side sleeper, that has been really difficult. Right now, every noise my husband makes is painful to me, whether it is his snoring, the sound of him opening and closing the closet, or his footsteps on our creaky floorboards. In the past, I coped by lying on my left side to shield the right ear that had the noxacusis, but now that I have it in both ears, all I can do is press the pillow against both sides of my head.
   
   
3. Have any of you tried sleeping in a separate bedroom from your partner for a few weeks to reduce the chance of accidental noise triggers? This was actually my husband's suggestion, and I am still unsure whether I should try it.

 

[RocketJSquirrel]

Have any of you tried sleeping in a separate bedroom from your partner for a few weeks to reduce the chance of accidental noise triggers? This was actually my husband's suggestion, and I am still unsure whether I should try it.

Yes, most couples I know who are over around 60 years of age sleep in separate rooms. At some point, the need for quality sleep becomes more important than the desire for romance. Of course, romance can still happen, but getting good sleep can actually enhance it.

 

[ECP]

Yes, most couples I know who are over around 60 years of age sleep in separate rooms. At some point, the need for quality sleep becomes more important than the desire for romance. Of course, romance can still happen, but getting good sleep can actually enhance it.

Thank you. I have heard of couples sleeping apart for reasons other than marital strife, and I have always wondered how common it is. I wish that society would normalize the idea of married people having their own beds so that it does not seem like a sad anomaly.

I am going to give it a few more days and then consider new sleeping arrangements if this setback does not improve enough. We do not have a second bed in our apartment, just an air mattress, and no ideal place to put it on the floor for long-term use. If I go through with this, it will involve a lot of furniture rearranging and possibly shopping for a twin bed that I can call my own. As much as I enjoy shopping, this feels less like a fun activity and more like another dreaded healthcare expense.

 

[Yellowblue44]

Hello, I'm back after a five-month hiatus from TinnitusTalk. I took a break from being here partly because I had nothing new to share, and partly because I was dealing with a new and unrelated health concern that I needed to look into.

I had hoped my ear problems would stabilize and improve in 2025, but I experienced a horrible setback earlier this month, and now I don't know what to do. I was lying on my right side in bed, with my right ear pressed against the pillow and my left ear facing the ceiling. All the lights were off. My husband reached for something on my nightstand and accidentally grabbed the portable LED book light that was sitting there. It is the kind of light that has a spring-operated clamp for attaching to a book so you can read in the dark. Unaware of what he was holding, he squeezed the clamp open, then let go of it, causing it to snap shut less than three feet from my head. The snapping sound was so piercing that it caused instant pain to my unprotected left ear.

My right ear was the one that had noxacusis for the past two and a half years, but now, as a result of what happened that night, I have it in my left ear as well.

It's too early to tell whether this symptom spike will be permanent, but I am really scared. The tinnitus in both ears is much louder, with anywhere from two to four different tones going on at the same time, including musical tinnitus, which I had not experienced since last summer. The brain fog and suicidal ideation have returned too. Like many of you, I find myself making hourly decisions about when to put on ear protection and when to take it off, constantly weighing the risks of overprotecting versus underprotecting.

I'm not angry at my husband, but he is still wracked with guilt for erasing the two and a half years of progress I had made.

Here is what I would like to know:

1. If one ear is temporarily protected by something as simple as a pillow, does that make the other ear more vulnerable to pain? Is the brain making that ear listen more intently to compensate?
   
   
2. Short of wearing earplugs to bed every night, how do you protect yourself from injury while lying on your side? I have been trying to sleep on my back so that both ears are equally exposed to sound, but as a lifelong side sleeper, that has been really difficult. Right now, every noise my husband makes is painful to me, whether it is his snoring, the sound of him opening and closing the closet, or his footsteps on our creaky floorboards. In the past, I coped by lying on my left side to shield the right ear that had the noxacusis, but now that I have it in both ears, all I can do is press the pillow against both sides of my head.
   
   
3. Have any of you tried sleeping in a separate bedroom from your partner for a few weeks to reduce the chance of accidental noise triggers? This was actually my husband's suggestion, and I am still unsure whether I should try it.

Hi @ECP, did you recover from this setback? How are your ears nowadays?

 

[ECP]

Hi @ECP, did you recover from this setback? How are your ears nowadays?

@Yellowblue44, thank you for asking. I recovered from the April setback, but it left me with a worsened baseline of pain and sensitivity in my left ear.

I am still considering creating a separate sleeping area for myself, although it makes me sad. I can't decide whether a separate bedroom would be a prudent form of self-care and injury prevention, or whether it would feel like an acknowledgement of defeat. Noxacusis and tinnitus have already stolen so much from my life, and now these two conditions seem to be conspiring to drive me out of my own bed and into another room.

In August, I had another noise exposure that was even worse. I persuaded a doctor to prescribe a five-day course of Prednisone, which seemed helpful, as I was able to maintain the April baseline instead of worsening yet again.

I am losing morale, though. While continuing to deal with all the ear problems, my overall health has been eroding rapidly in other ways.

In March, I began physical therapy for a sudden onset of sciatica. Soon after, I started another course of therapy for chronic neck and shoulder stiffness. The stiffness was so severe that it traveled up into my ear and amplified the pain that was already there. I had never experienced a somatic component to my ear problems before, so I felt hopeful that this could be treated more easily than the noise-induced damage, which is incurable.

Unfortunately, the therapy exercises for my neck aggravated the situation and caused an acute injury, resulting in cervical radiculopathy on my right side. I tried to persevere with therapy rather than give up, but then the radiculopathy spread to my left side as well.

I stopped physical therapy for six weeks to give my muscles and nervous system some much-needed rest. When I resumed, I insisted on a referral to a second physical therapist so that one could focus on my longstanding ear-related issues while the other addressed the new neck injury. I felt it was important to make up for lost time.

I was elated when the referral was granted, but my excitement didn't last long. The therapist assigned to my ear problems gave me one very simple, gentle jaw exercise to do at home. After only a few days, it threw my jaw out of alignment and left me with TMJ. I had never even had bothersome TMJ symptoms before that exercise. I suspect the recent neck injury pulled my muscles, tendons, and ligaments so far out of alignment that it created strain on the previously functional temporomandibular joints. I can't think of another explanation for why my jaw gave out under such slight provocation.

Now my jaw hurts so badly that I can't wear my Peltor earmuffs for very long, and even my Loop earplugs cause pain.

My physical therapists have implied that some of my pain and anxiety may be caused by mind-body syndrome. While I don't dismiss that possibility, the knowledge doesn't stop the pain or undo the physical damage. I've already read multiple books on the subject and practiced the principles to the best of my ability, so I am weary of people recommending yet another book.

From the X-rays and the emergency CT scan I had earlier this year, I know I have degenerative disc disease, bone spurs, and some arthritis. I am now working up the courage to return to my primary care doctor for another evaluation through a physical exam, bloodwork, or imaging. As much as I want to continue physical therapy, I think it would be unwise until I understand my true risk of injury. For all I know, I could have developed cervical instability, a connective tissue disorder, or a systemic inflammatory disease in the last few months. If so, that must be taken into account as I attempt to rehabilitate my neck, shoulders, and jaw.

Earlier this year, bloodwork revealed two incidental findings: a primary immunodeficiency and slightly low ferritin and hemoglobin. Although I have no obvious symptoms, I was urged to follow up with an immunologist and a gastroenterologist. I also have a referral to sleep medicine. All of these appointments are scheduled for later this autumn, since earlier slots were unavailable.