Hi There — Tinnitus from Not Protecting Hearing When Hunting and from Using Headphones Too Loud

Hey all! My name is Jonathan. I'm 28, and have had tinnitus for a few years now. It's mostly related to unprotected ears when hunting and loud headphones. Just recently started getting worse. This morning was the loudest it's been for me. It kind of freaked me out. I do clench my jaw a lot so that probably doesn't help! Thanks for having me.

 

Have you been protecting your ears since you've had tinnitus? Do you still wear headphones, go to concerts, clubs, and shoot without ear protection? Look into a night sleep guard for your teeth at your dentist to stop the clenching. You could even wear it in the day time when you're at home so you train your jaw not to.

 

Do you have any hearing loss?

Any hyperacusis or noise induced pain?

May I ask if you also experience issues that you believe are jaw pain, aches or clogged ears?

 

I do now wear hearing protection when I shoot...however I still use ear buds to listen to music.
My jaw does stay sore and yes my left ear this morning felt clogged

 

I would stop all use of ear buds, and headphones as the audio is too close to the ears, and can cause additional damage.

Would also avoid shooting larger caliber weapons, and wear both earplugs, and ear muffs, both with higher NRR's. Also, consider not shooting for a while and see of the T goes away.

Take good care of your ears, as this has the potential to get a lot worse.

 

guns go boom

 

Did the jaw pain start around the same time as the tinnitus or over exposure to loud noise?

Were you diagnosed with anything?

Also be careful with ear buds, most of us here recommend not to use them as your ears heal.

 

Why not?