Ear Wax, Is This the Cause of My Tinnitus?

Hi all, I have been experiencing a horrid high pitched squeeling/whistling in my ears and head for about 11 days now, I went to the doctors and he looked down my ears and told me they was full of wax, and told me to take some ear drops to break it down then go back and see him.

Basically my question is this, is my tinnitus because of my ear wax? My mom and brother have looked down my ears and they was shocked how blocked they are. I've been taking the drops for a few days now but I still have this constant screeching in my head and it's making me depressed, sad and I hate saying it but I've also been feeling suicidal. I'm not trying to be dramatic but I don't see how I could possibly go on living with this for a long amount of time.

Has anyone here ever had experience with wax build up and tinnitus?
Is it possible once my wax breaks down and I get my ears back to good health that this horrible sound will go?

Thank you in advance.

Jdan

 

Yes earwax can cause tinnitus.

 

@JdanHber I'm pretty sure it can be the problem. I had the EXACT same problem as yours, ear wax accumulation and ringing in the ears. Only in my left ear though, and that was the ear in which I had excess wax accumulation. I'd been to the ENT two days ago, and got the wax removed by micro suction. It was done in 2 minutes. And my left ear has become better now, I can hear excellent as there is no blockage currently. And the sound, I can say it has reduced about 80%. I do hear slight sound, but the problem is, I'm not sure if it's tinnitus or the normal sound that most humans can hear(I'm pretty sure I used to hear this type of sound ever since I was a child, only in silent environments. It's the same osund, but a little louder. I don't know whether it's actually tinnitus or the normal sound which I'm concentrating on). Go get your wax removed asap and let me know what happens.

 

Thanks for your reply, I've been taking some olive oil based ear drops to soften and loosen the wax, I'm going to the doctors tomorrow to see what they say, I will post back when I'm back.

Thanks again!

 

Hi I`m new to this site and been having the same problem with the wax my T was loud but using olive oil for 5 days to soften the wax ,went back to ent to have my ear hooverd out and I can say the noise is a lot better now than it was but don't over do the oil as it can make the wax to sticky to come out on it`s own hope this helps
cheers Ray

 

@JdanHber; As Ray said above, don't use too much oil. It's better to goto the ENT with a clear dried ear. They use a solution to soften the wax if needed. My ENT used a few drops of hydrogen peroxide and softened my wax(my ear wax was ROCK hard!) and removed it. It was a total painless procedure, hope yours goes the same. Good luck!

 

Your noise completely reduced after removal of wax? Or is there a very slight sound that still exists?

 

Hi insane_ inspiration --- my noise reduced in volume after the ear hoovering, I still have the T but its really quiet now so i put it down to the wax

 

Same with mine. The intensity is reduced but still exists. It's very quiet now, I hear it only in the late-evenings after all the normal city noise decreases. My T is only in my left ear. What about yours?

 

Hi insane_ inspiration----- mine is mainly in my left ear but this might sound weired but I cant pinpoint where it is coming from its all over my head. Now the other week I had a tooth out at the dentist and while I was sitting in the chair as the numbness started to take effect my T went completely silent this lasted for about an hour or so until the anaesthetic wore of . Now I have heard that lidocain has the same effect on T and if you google it there is loads of stuff about it

Ray

 

@RAY That is not weird at all, I had the EXACT problem with mine initially; couldn't find where exactly the sound was. I had even started a thread here asking if noise in head was possible, as that's where I thought mine was coming from. A few days later, early in the morning when it was completely silent, I concentrated over it and found out that the sound as coming from my left ear. However, like in your case, it is quite common for people to hear their T as though it's coming from within their head. How did your T start btw?

 

Hi this might sound silly, but I came home from work one night and bent down to take my work boots off and instantly I had this sudden deafness in my left ear, it felt like a big pressure build up in that ear and could not hear a thing . Anyway had hospital apps and doctors apps, hospital put me on steroids ( prednisalone) for a week which returned my hearing to what it was but the downside was it left this ringing in my left ear mainly but over the years the noise has gone all over my head . It don't bother me much now but its still a bloody nightmare when all you want is silence.

Ray

 

Damn. That's sad. Exactly, the concept of silence is gone! That's the worst part. The days can be fine, you may go out and the surrounding noise drowns the T. But once you put your head down to the bed, that's where it sucks. How long have you had your T?

 

Hi had this damn noise since December 2000---- getting used to it now ?

 

Whoa, you've had it since 13 years? I'd like to ask you, if you were to rate your T on a scale of 10, how has it changed from 2000 to 2013? Ignore the occasional increases due to some reasons.

 

Hi Insane. Well at the start when I lost my hearing it was LOUD but as the steroids began to kick in my hearing started to come back it to a very low hiss on a scale of say 1-2 out of 10 -- but here is the rub-- as the years have gone by the noise has got a lot louder and the tone has changed to a pure single tone to a scale of say 7-8 out of 10 it don't bother me that much as I said earlier, I suppose ive got used to it really , ive got no other options but to ignore it otherwise I would go mad. So whats the choice ?

Ray

 

That's true Ray, the best thing you can do when you've got the T is ignore. The phrase 'Ignorance is bliss' really does hold true in this case! Anyway, I hope they find a cure for it soon. Take care Ray, have a fun week ahead!

 

Hi all just thought i'd give you an update on my situation

After coming on here and reading peoples stories and experiences I felt alot better knowing I wasn't alone in going through this. I put my faith into it being down to ear wax as to why I had tinnitus and just kept taking my ear drops.

I went to see the doctor on Friday and he told me they needed to be syringed and booked me an appointment with the nurse for today.

Over the last 3/4 days some of the wax started coming out on it's own, and I seemed to notice that the squeeling noise in my head/ears went down some what, would only be on the left side of me my head and I felt like I was learning to cope and deal with it.

Came back from getting my ears syringed about 2 hours ago, and I can honestly say I feel great, alot more positive and the tinnitus is barely noticeable at the moment.

I really hope that it's behind me and I can move on from what I consider to be the worst couple of weeks of my life.

My heart goes to people who have tinnitus for a long period of time and as bad as or worse than the tinnitus I was experiencing.

I really feel for you people more than you think as it must be absolutely horrible. Hopefully mine will go completely now, I still hear some but its dull and I can live with it.

Thank you for reading and replying, this forum helped me way more than I expected

Jdan

 

Hi Jdan
Well that's good news, best I've heard all day, when the noise drops its surprising how it lifts your mood , just one option you might like to consider next time your ears ever need syringing again I always go for the micro suction its said to be a lot safer than syringing I have heard that syringing can even trigger or aggravate tinnitus. Good luck

Ray

 

Jd! That is great news! Hope it goes away completely or stays as low as it is now. Just give it some time and you'll learn to handle your T more comfortably. Take care!

 

Hi guys, I need some help and found this thread while searching. I have been experiencing the exact same as the original poster, totally the same story!

I have been using olive oil to clean my wax for 4 days but my syringing isn't for another 15 days!! I had no instructions on how to use then so I've just been doing two sessions a day with a full pipett??

The noise is a 10 for me and I cannot cope anymore. Went the walk in centre and they said their policy won't allow them to syringe if a person has tinnitus??

So the other place I've booked they will I guess?

I was worried this was permanent! I've had blocked ears before but that was different , I just went deaf, got syringed all good, but this time I can hear perfectly except for this super loud screeching tinnitus!

I really need guidance on how to use the olive oil properly?

Oh another thing, listening to rain sounds on YouTube relieves it a little.

Thanks

 

Please don't use oil, you might cause an infection, it's not good at all for your ears. Better get ear drops for wax removal from the pharmacy... but the best would be to see an ENT at let him remove the ear wax, because you seriously can damage your ears if you try to remove the wax by yourself. The ENT can either use water/syringe it or use a air suction tool or do it manually.
But to be honest, usually ear wax doesn't cause a sound like yours, so I don't think it's the wax. Otherwise residual inhibition (the rain sounds on yt) wouldn't relieve it. What somehow could be, is that there might already be an infection going on. have you used q tips too in the past? that also might have done damage, so please go to a doctor soon.

 

My gp prescribed the olive oil? It's what they prescribe to deal with wax, which is what I have, I was examined by her and told I have wax and is causing the noise. (I've seen two different docs now both said its wax on in depth examination and to use olive oil to treat it more) I've never used q tips or put anything in my ears, the docs also determined there is no infection of any kind, just lots of wax.

My issue is EXACTLY as the poster has described, 100%. I was just pleased that I found someone going through the same things. The rain from YouTube doesn't releive it but it does make it less noticeable.

Maybe I wasn't clear in my post, but I have an appointment to get it removed but its not for 15 more days. And wax DOES causes the noise, or can cause the noise, google it if you don't believe me.

I was asking for help with the dosage levels and frequency of olive oil I need to use to soften the wax to enable the ent to remove it in 15 days, also the poster used olive too, ear drops can causes irritation according to some practitioners.

 

Also a family member has bought some OTEX which is hydrogen par oxide, that sounds scary to use in my ear as it even states not to use it if you have tinnitus, HOWEVER it does NOT say to use it if ear wax is causing tinnitus. I believe the wax is causing it as most docs have concurred (3 of them) but i simply cannot cope for another 14 days of this!!

 

That's a lot of time. Some ear wax removal products suggest a maximum of 4 days because they cause irritation to the ear (sodium lauryl sulfate, potassium carbonate), others are less aggressive, like castor & turpentine oil, salty water. If they cause irritation to your ear (a burning sensation) or increase your T you should stop immediately. If you suspect a burst eardrum you should avoid all these products. Sometimes the skin is so irritated they may prescribe drops of a topic antibiotic to prevent infections (ciprofloxacin for example, which shouldn't be a risk topically).

An ENT has other means of removing wax than syringing. He can scrap the wax directly with a curette. If he is careful, it's going to be less aggresive than syringing.

 

i don't know where people are getting their info from but i will tell you where i am getting mine = my doctor, actually from 4 separate doctors now.

They all said 10 days of olive oil treatment. i have started to use the OTEX on advice of another doctor as well.Just to reiterate, i don't have tinnitus as a disorder i have tinnitus as a result of ear wax. Scraping is dangerous and ONLY used in an extreme situation, it is safer than scraping by a long, long, LONG way.

I only have ONE paranoid fear and it is this:I use the oils i have and the wax comes out and i still have the tinnitus sound, and then they refuse to syringing because they can't see any wax. It IS wax causing it but it might be a small amount deep in the ear or on the eardrum.So i don't know if i should stop as result of this potential issue (or indeed paranoid fantasy)

 

zeo, I'm sorry but it's you who asked for advice on this board but whenever someone answers you just say "no you're wrong, my doctors told me this or that". I mean it's good that you trust them, but why would you come here then and ask for our opinion on how to use the olive oil? just pick up the phone and ask your doctor(s) because clearly what we are telling you, is not what you want to hear or what seems to help you. on this board we suffer from real, non wax related Tinnitus so I would think that a general ENT board would be better for you. Keep in mind, that we really only want to help you, because we do know how it feels to live with the damn noise in our ears.
again, many of us don't think ( from experience ) that olive oil is not the best way to go, because it can cause infections if your ear drum is damaged. because your ear canals are blocked and no doctor can see your ear drums at this point, nobody knows if that's the case. Plus, because noone knows what's underneath the ear wax, nobody can tell for sure that the noise ONLY comes from the ear wax build up or maybe an underlying infection or god knows what. that's why I would do as frohike said and stop the oil treatment and try to find another ENT who will clean your ears immediately, because if you say you can't wait another 14 days and the oil doesn't help after 4 days, it obviously needs to be done now. I hope you understand that we really want nothing bad for you and we are just trying to give good advice from experience!

 

The thing is, from my own research and 4 doctors medical opinion, doing ANYTHING else other than olive oil to start to soften the wax is seriously putting yourself at risk!

I have had my ears examined 3 separate times now and they have each determined that there is no infection, only wax. You're advice is welcome but yes, i am going to trust the medial opinions of 4 doctors over people on this forum. I had only seen one doctor face to face when i made my initial post, i have since seen others and talked to others at length since making it.

I am the type to get paranoid about things and think things like this are a permanent issue and going to last my entire life, when i found this thread it made me realise that there is hope or rather that i was just being OTT.

I was told by my primary physician that other drops can cause the irritation and infection of which you're referring to and that olive oil in an ironic/amazing twist is the medically approved course of treatment. Then once its soft enough syringing or suction is done.

Olive oil, the type bought from chemists is pure and without risk of damage.Even the thread starter used olive oil based drops, mine are prescription drops and not just some random crappy olive oil from the supermarket! (even though it is the exact same stuff, I'm just not taking any risks.)No ENT in this country will perform ear syringing until AT LEAST 7 days of oil treatment are complete, they advise 10 however (moreso in hard wax cases such as mine) i am based in the UK before you ask.

I actually just chatted to a doctor a few hours ago on the phone, i explained the entire story and included elements from people on this forum, the answers i got were still the same as before, continue with the oil (and that the oil is totally safe) but not much can be done 100% until its syringed (the earliest appointment with the NHS is in 14 days time) perhaps you are all based in the USA r something and the guidelines are different out there, or perhaps your olive oil is different or hell, i don't know!

 

Then as I said, just call your doctors about how to use the oil, because as you said, you trust them more. Let's keep our fingers crossed that the Tinnitus will be gone as soon as the ear wax is removed. please report back after the removal,ok?

 

I have done, i should have updated that post with the info but i had got sidetracked! They said just fill the ear and leave for 5-10 mins, 2-3 times a day for as long as possible. (7-10/14 days)

Also i would love to hear or see some evidence of people or cases that have had problems using olive oil and as a direct result of using it had it cause issues, because in my researching and questioning of doctors I've never heard of such a story.