Emergency Ear Plugs

A young man on this forum said he went to a music venue and forgot his earplugs, so he had to do without and this caused a tinnitus spike. I've been in similar situations and since everywhere you go has toilet tissue, I got some, wadded it up and pushed it into my ear canals. It took the volume of the music down from painful to very tolerable and there weren't any tinnitus spikes.

 

It's certainly better than nothing at all, but don't expect earplug-like dampening or reliable way to avoid spikes.

Most venues around here sell earplugs, either at a booth or through a vending machine. Asking personnel (incl. bartenders) often works too. Usually they get them for free and are willing to give you a pair.