Hi, My Name is Krisstina

I've never posted in forums before so please forgive me as I am learning the ropes.

My name is Krisstina. I am 30 years old and a Mom of 3 little boys.

On May 24 I woke up to muffled hearing in my right ear and it stayed like that all day. I was able to gently clear my ear a few times that day. Finally, late that day my ear cleared but there was a ringing so I told my husband who completely ignored me. I got our baby to sleep and went to bed thinking it might be gone in the morning. Nope.

About a week later my Mom took me to my PCP and he said it could be nerve damage but maybe just allergies. So he took me to keep taking my allergy medicine and nose spray and also use saline spray 4 times a day.

A week later, my left ear started ringing. Called my PCP asked if I should see an ENT and he suggested taking prednisone 20 mg for 6 days and to just ignore it. It did help calm the ringing but it's hard to ignore it. It's a high-pitched ringing in my ears. So loud that I had to sleep with my phone next to my head for white noise and I can still hear the ringing over top of my phone.

A few days after starting taking the prednisone my right eye started to hurt so I waited a few days and it was still hurting I thought it was just a migraine so I called the doctor and asked for some migraine medicine not knowing what I know now. Don't take aspirin and don't drink caffeine. I took one pill for what I thought was a migraine ended up with ringing in both ears and still had the eye pain. So I called the doctor and told them what happened when I took the migraine medicine and he asked to see me so I went in and he told me that I had a viral infection and that it should go away in a few months.

I ended up going to the ER for A lump in my throat and burning and itching ears. I had ear infections in both ears and possibly a swollen lymph node. Took ( antibiotic ) Azithromycin for 5 days 250 mg*.
Went to see my PCP a few days later because the lump in my throat had not gone down. My ears were better in the itching and burning department but my ears were ringing really loud and I didn't know what to do. So again my PCP prescribed prednisone 20 mg for six days.
Seems to be better when I take the prednisone but as soon as the prednisone wears off it comes right back.

I spoke with my PCP yesterday and he recommended seeing an ear nose and throat specialist for my ears. As for the lump in my throat he think it might be acid reflux so now I'm taking acid reflex medicine and we'll see how goes in a few days.

Here I am almost 8 weeks into my tinnitus and I still don't even know why I really have it. It seems like my ringing will never calm down and it's so hard to deal with this when I have three children to take care of.

Any advice? I have no idea what I'm doing. Still new and learning about tinnitus.

 

I have hearing loss and tinnitus as a result of a virus. I thought it was nothing more than a cold and that my hearing was just a bit muffled. My general doctor prescribed an antibiotic, but once I saw an ENT and audiologist we realized the extent of my hearing loss.

Definitely see an ENT. Are there any teaching hospitals near you? I've seen multiple ENTs and the ones at teaching hospitals were amazing. Much more knowledgeable and one was an actual ear specialist who only treats patients with hearing concerns.

That said, one of my local ENTs was wonderful too. Regardless of who you see, call and urge them to see you ASAP. With everything you're dealing with healthwise, it would be valuable to rule out any hearing loss and get their input.

I've had a lot of testing in the last five months, it can be a bit overwhelming trying to uncover what is wrong when you're dealing with multiple concerns.

My tinnitus is very high pitched, too. I thought people were crazy when they told me to listen to cricket sounds, but they were right. It's not as high pitched as my ringing, but it seems more effective than white noise. I play it just under my tinnitus. You should still be able to hear the ringing to help your brain adapt to it.

And not all cricket sounds are the same! It took me some trial and error to find one that works for me. I use sounds from an app called ReSound. Maybe look into a sound pillow, too. I bought one on Amazon that's just a small foam device that can slide into your pillow and connects via cord to your phone. I preferred that over using just my phone.

A lot of members here use sound machines. I bought one, but I didn't like the sound options. My audiologists actually recommended the ReSound app because you can customize everything.

Being a parent and dealing with tinnitus is not easy. My tinnitus rings louder to a lot of sounds, including my kids' laughter. That breaks my heart a bit, but honestly I'm trying to pull strength from just how much my kids love and need me.

Sorry this is so long, but I wanted to give you lots of support! I feel like I'm on a similar path to what you're experiencing now, don't hesitate to reach out if you have any questions!

 

Thank you so much for replying!

It's very sad when I have to ask my kids to be quiet. It makes me cry.

I'll have to look into a teaching hospital near me. I will try the cricket sounds too. Right now I am co-sleeping with my almost 11 month old so I'm not sure if it will effect his sleep.

Thank you again! I'll take any advice I can get.

Do you or anyone use earplugs?
Sometimes I feel crazy wearing earplugs in the house while my kids are playing but I just started doing it.

 

They have a ton of relaxing sounds on your phone in the app store find the one you like the most and use them most are free and if your worry about the baby you can get a pillow speakers too they work great they help me a lot at first also put a fan in the room with you that will help also best of luck

 

Hi there, if you read my started posts you'll see my story...it took 2 months for my T to settle, it was a very alarming high pitched ringing and I didn't think it would change, I still have it but it's been easier since the volume has gone down. I def recommend seeing an ENT and getting several opinions. Cricket noise really helped me, if you search on YouTube "crickets tinnitus" on YouTube they have an 8 hour long video...I used that along with Spotify. If you need someone to vent to message me! I know with this T it isn't easy...

 

I know that feeling. Children are naturally loud: they laugh, they cry, they shout. Most very young children do not understand the concept of inside versus outside voice.

I came home early from an appointment and my kids were playing a game with their babysitter. They did not realize I was home yet, and listening to them talk and laugh made me realize just how quiet they act around me.

I only use earplugs for certain sounds or in very noisy environments. I have hyperacusis and my audiologists cautioned me that overprotecting my ears -- by wearing earplugs in safe noise levels -- can make it worse. I use a phone app to measure sounds. It's not perfect but gave me a good gauge when I felt overwhelmed in the beginning. In my home, I wear earplugs when vacuuming because the high pitch irritates my tinnitus. Yet my large stand mixer doesn't and the volume falls in the 70 Decibel range so it's safe.

 

I wonder sometimes if I did that to myself for wearing a earplug...I thought I was doing myself a favor then I had hearing sensitivity for a week and it was torture

 

Honestly the hyperacusis bothers me more than tinnitus.

A family member with tinnitus explained earplugs best to me. They recommended thinking of them like sunglasses. I have very sensitive eyes. I wear sunglasses, but not all the time. If I started wearing sunglasses outside at night and all around my house during the day, my eyes would be more sensitive -- not less sensitive -- to light once I removed the sunglasses.

Of course I wear sunglasses when I should, but I'm careful to not overuse them. I take the same approach to earplugs.

 

Just an update...

I think my T has finally settled. I haven't had as many spikes. Some days it is a little louder than others but I try to distract myself and not think about it. It doesn't help that my 11 month old now screams randomly but I'm hoping it's just a phase.

I'm going to see an ENT Aug 21 so something to look forward to.

Thank you again for helping me out in a time of need and I hope all of you are doing well.

 

Do your ears feel full? and have pressure? It could be as simple as your Eustachian tubes being plugged and not equalizing the pressure in your ears. I don't think you have anything permanent, it will just take time to sort itself out.

 

Hi!
My right ear just started to feel full a few weeks ago and also some days makes a crackling type noise but I just thought that was because of allergies. My left ear doesn't feel different at all just hear the ringing.

I'm not going to lie, it would be great if it did go away but I'm not counting on it.

 

My ears felt full and on was crackling, so I bought this:
https://www.amazon.com/Eustachi-Eustachian-Tube-Exerciser/dp/B00XQBR6GQ
It really does help my ears fell less full, and after a few uses the crackling stopped.
I think it helped with my "humming" in my ears to equalize the pressure
I think it will go away, it just will take time. The fact is most tinnitus is temporary, and resolves itself in time, but it may take months.

 

Please see this page from the authors of this site.

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/panic/

Especially helpful is the second paragraph when they state for the vast majority of Tinnitus sufferers it is only a temporary condition. It just takes a long time for it to fade. Stay positive and I'm sure everything will be fine.

 

Thank you I'll have to get one and try it!

 

Thank you! I'm more hopeful now