Greetings from Nova Scotia — Chronic Itching in Ears for Years, Tinnitus for a Couple of Weeks

Hi there, I'm from Nova Scotia, Canada. My tinnitus started about 3 - 4 weeks ago. It's driving me nuts. I hear a sound like a generator, or a motor running, continuously in both ears. Over and above that, a thousand birds are singing. When I speak, I hear myself twice... and when others speak to me, I hear them twice, but vaguely, through the overarching din of the generator and the birds. It's made worse by the inane music that plays in the grocery store, the T.V., the noise of the car, and basically any constant level of sound played for a long period of time. When the sound stops (for example, when I park the car and turn off the engine) I can still hear it, and it blocks out people's voices, etc. It's like a constant reverberating vibration that never stops, day or night.

I have been suffering - for years - with chronic itching in both ears. The doctor prescribed a hydrocortisone lotion, which helped a bit, but not really. So I've been managing it myself by various non-doctor prescribed methods, including poking q-tips covered in hydrocortisone cream deep inside my ears, pouring hydrogen peroxide into my ears, and attempting to scratch inside my ear with the end of my reading glasses. If I could fit a screwdriver or a Dremel tool inside my ear canal, I would probably use that as well. Needless to say, I have not told my doctor about any of these activities.

Does anyone else suffer from this intense, maddening, unrelenting itch? It never stops. And I have a feeling I've somehow damaged the interior of my ear canal, or even possibly my eardrum, by my constant search for relief.

Well, that's me. Have at it, folks.

 

I had an itch that started around when my tinnitus started and has stayed with me on and off ever since. I sometimes wonder if the itching came on from swimming.

 

Hydrogen Peroxide is known for really calming tinnitus and is pretty benign, so I think we can rule that one out... Some people even say a little Hydrogen Peroxide in the ears for a few weeks straight will cure tinnitus. I haven't tried that yet.