Hyperacusis — Should You Avoid Noise in the Beginning?

Hi,

Recently I've regrettably developed mild hyperacusis as a delayed onset from a concert that I attended a month ago (even though I wore earplugs), which also spiked my tinnitus, but didn't result in any hearing loss. Right now, even a single car or two that pass by me at medium speed sound uncomfortable to me. It started two weeks ago, but I feel like it's gotten progressively worse since then, along with ear pain in my left ear.

I've read that avoiding silence is bad for your hyperacusis, so I'm trying to retain the same volume in the music I listen to in order to retrain my ears and mitigate the hyperacusis without it getting worse. I'm wondering if this is at all a good idea considering that it's been only a month since my exposure, and if I should rather tone everything down for now with the potential cost of making my hyperacusis worse but giving my ears more time to heal.

Today I also started listening to pink noise, but am quite unsure about the volume level I'm supposed to use for this. Should I wait a month or two before starting this treatment or retraining my ears by bringing back my original volume levels? Any likelihood of recovery on my own?

 

If you have a sprain, should you avoid running in a marathon?

 

So you're saying that I should just risk the hyperacusis getting worse for now rather than start TRT already because my ears need more recovery time?

 

Are you actually getting professionally done TRT or are you self treating?
I have doubts on the effectiveness of self treating. I think for now you should limit your exposure to noises that make you uncomfortable. Experiment cautiously and listen to your body. For example, last night I tried using a certain kind of pink noise and it made my tinnitus louder. Now I know or not to use that particular sound.

 

Self treating because I personally don't feel like spending $5000 on some noise generators. I was planning another visit to an ENT doctor in case they'd have some advice for hyperacusis and ear pain treatment. Though I think I'll just have to remain patient for a month or two and see how it goes. If there's no improvement, I'll resume TRT.

 

Try to give your ears a rest for a good month and see how it goes. Listening to music, white or pink noise at low volumes is up to you, it should be ok. Be very careful about sounds over 80 dbs. Take into account that ordinary sounds and some sounds at home can go up to 80 dbs or more. The kitchen is noisy, the hoover, things like that, slamming doors.. be careful with that sort of things and of course when you go out. I'd wear hearing protection when leaving home, for a while. If you are new to hyperacusis you may have a good chance of recovery if you avoid making big mistakes.

 

Hi,
Just read your post about hyperacusis. Sounds similar to me. I’ve had Tinnitus for 3 years and mild Hyperacusis developed in that time. Iwent to a concert with mute earplugs( not fully in!) and paid for it with inceared T and H. I went for a cycle on gravel yesterday and the crunching sound was uncomfortable. I haven’t seen anyone about it yet snd just trying to avoid loud noises, occasionally using earplugs until I hopefully recover. I’ve pulled out of my next( and final) concert! Good luck with it. Might try some self treatment with pink sound.

 

@Jinxy Based on my own experience with mild hyperacusis, I would not expect it to just go away on its own. You have to first understand what hyperacusis is at a basic level: sound intolerance. And treating it requires re-introducing those lost frequencies to your auditory system in order to regain the tolerances. The best way to do this is to methodically start desensitizing you hearing. Here's what I've learned:

• Protect but don't overdo it - use ear plugs if you know you are going to put yourself in a compromised position - e.g., very loud bar, concert, loud sirens, etc.
• Start listening to pink noise - you mentioned that already so you're aware of its use as a treatment. I purchased pink noise from the Hyperacusis Network. Here are a few of the takeaways from their instructions:
  • Start listening to it at a "comfortable volume." The volume should always be low enough that you can hear everything else around you and even hold a normal conversation. They also recommend that it be slightly below your T (if you have T). This is so you don't delay habituation.
  • Listen to the pink noise via open-ear headphones - you need everyday sounds to desensitize your hearing so letting outside noise in is key.
  • Start slow - Hyperacusis Network suggests starting slow, but that totally depends on the severity of your H. Number of hours per day is also entirely up to you. Ultimately, the takeaway is that the more hours, the quicker the recovery.
  • Listen to it at night if you can - you can get a sound pillow or sound machine if your spouse / partner doesn't mind.
  • Don't expect a quick turnaround - it took me 2.5 months to see improvement after starting pink noise treatment and I am still not 100 percent there. I am much better, though. Do not give up. Many people do and their H lingers or gets worse. This takes time. There are no shortcuts.

One last thing: avoid silence. This is counterproductive to treating H. Many people develop noise phobia and their H either gets worse or lingers.

Hope this helps.

Cheers,
Ignacio

 

I never had the pain symptoms but I did develop sound sensitivity from standing next an ambulance before it started blasting it’s sirens.

I woke up and noticed that sounds would make me literally “jump” . Admittedly

Ever since then I struggled with high pitched sounds, car brakes were the biggest offenders.

In the end I just put up with it and waited for time to tell if I would get better. Although it can be a long journey , I believe a lot (not all) of people will improve.

I am one of these people and found that my tolerances after around a year and a half begun to improve to the point where I am a lot more comfortable around these types of noises. Although they still sometimes get me, I’m feeling better.

So for you I would recommend trying to expose doses of normal sounds and not to react negatively to them (I found this was the hardest to do). Yes, play pink sound at night (I put this on timer for about 3-4 hours every night).

Try that and see how you go

 

Avoiding sound is not the same as protecting from the potentially harmful noise. Some TRT enthusiasts will tell you that you should only protect from sound objectively hazardous (too loud for healthy population). I don't want to argue with that statement but I will tell you that: I got my T worsened and H acquired by the sounds that every healthy person would consider safe but were uncomfortable for me (I'm talking about sub 80db levels). If you feel irritated by a particular sound, it basically means that it's potentially harmful to your ears (my personal experience).

ps. What do you consider as TRT self-treatment?

 

Hey. Decided to log back in after quite some time since as per usual, people want to find out what happened.
Happy to say my hyperacusis is now gone. My ears no longer feel sensitive to any everyday sounds, and they don't cause me pain or discomfort (unless they're like legit loud sounds that I'd instinctively want to protect myself of such as loud construction work). I think it mostly went away by March and then sort of kept coming back a few times until April/May. I didn't have to resort to TRT. I just kept living normally and my ears recovered on their own.

Ear pain (unrelated to sound sensitivity / hyperacusis) is mostly gone as well. I had a spike of pain back in June after a concert, probably due to plugging my earplugs incorrectly, but it seems to have gone away by the end of July. I'm coping just fine with it now, and if it decides to come back up again, I'll probably visit an ENT doctor about it. Let me remind that it's very important to plug earplugs correctly (stretch your earflaps back whilst doing so and hold the plug after inserting it for a minute) to avoid further noise damage. What's equally important is the quality of the earplugs. Find out the specifications and make sure they're enough for what you're using them for. That's it.

 

if hyperacusis with pain is permanent and biomedical research does not advance rapidly, suicide is the best rational optional. do not be deceived by normie propaganda.

all enjoyment from life will be gone, don't let the benzo's control your thoughts.

 

Contrast that is very pessimistic attitude for someone who is just a month in.

There has been many stories about people getting rid of their H over time. @Michael Leigh is very knowledgeable on this subject.

 

Hyperacusis is treatable and curable in many instances with or without specialist treatment. It can improve significantly over time without treatment but there is no guarantee. If it is severe then specialist treatment with a Hearing Therapist/Audiologist should be sought. If hyperacusis doesn't improve/cure by itself then tinnitus will always be a problem. This often manifests itself as tinnitus spiking and a person who is oversensitive to sound. The solution is not to be hiding away from normal everyday sounds and overusing hearing protection. It is self- help or seeking professional treatment.

Michael

Hyperacusis, As I See It.

Some members have asked for my opinion on hyperacusis as they are finding it increasingly difficult to live with. They want to know if there is a way of treating this condition so that their life can become a little easier? Or whether it can be completely cured? For a few it has become so distressing they have decided to only leave their homes when it’s absolutely necessary. This is because of the fear of making the symptoms worse, by subjecting their ears to the hustle and bustle of everyday road traffic noise and other environmental sounds that we are all familiar with.

Reading some of the posts in this forum, one can easily see that certain people daren’t leave their homes without first checking they have their earmuffs and an assortment of earplugs in various degrees of attenuation, in readiness for any potential environment that they happen to find themselves in. The cinema, nightclub, restaurant, or on public transport. If money is no object aspiring to custom made moulded earplugs for some is the way to go. It can bring the added assurance they will be getting the best hearing protection. Whether this is true or not doesn’t really matter because it’s what the person believes and this helps to give them that peace of mind which is something many of us strive for at one time or another.

The above may seem a little extreme until I tell you one member provoked a lot of discussion here, when he mentioned having the air bag in a car that he had just purchased disabled in case it was deployed in an accident. I suppose the thought of 170 decibels raining down on his auditory system and the possibility of his tinnitus and hyperacusis shooting through the roof was too much too bear and is more important than a potential life saving device. As strange as this might seem, others have discussed doing the same thing elsewhere on the Internet.

I am not an expert in this field but do have the experience of living with very severe hyperacusis that was brought on with the onset of my tinnitus twenty years ago due to loud noise exposure. It was so severe; conversation with someone at times caused immense pain. However, it was completely cured in two years with TRT and having counselling with a hearing therapist. I wore white noise generators for 10hrs a day and used a sound machine throughout the night until morning for sound enrichment. My tinnitus had reduced to a very low level.

Some people believe hyperacusis cannot be cured and if treatment such as TRT works then it merely suppresses the condition. In the event of future loud noise exposure it will return and the condition will be worse than before. I believe it's up to the individual to take care of their hearing and not subject themselves to loud noise exposure. However, accidents do happen as in my case. I have previously explained in this forum that my tinnitus increased to very severe levels in 2008 due to noise exposure so won’t go over it again. To my surprise the hyperacusis did not return and has remained the same till this day, completely silent.

This summer I went onto the Brighton Pier and into the arcade. The place was a hive of activity and many people were using the slot machines. Music was playing and mixed with loud laughter so everyone seemed to be having a good time. I had my sound level meter and also a sound App on my mobile phone. Just in case things got too uncomfortable I had my noise reducing earplugs with me that reduce sound levels by 18 decibels. This was a test and not something I normally do or recommend anyone else to try.

The sound level in that place remained constant at just over 100 decibels. My ears didn’t feel uncomfortable and I felt no pain. I stayed at the venue for 30 minutes and then left.

The next morning my tinnitus was silent and I experienced no symptoms of hyperacusis. I do not believe that it is a good idea for someone with tinnitus or hyperacusis (or both) to wear earplugs or noise-reducing earplugs with filters too often, because it’s possible for the auditory system to become hypersensitive. In some cases it could make matters worse and cause a condition called phonophobia. This is literally having a fear of sound.

I used to counsel someone that had phonophobia like symptoms although she wasn’t diagnosed. This person had hypercausis that gradually got worse and at every opportunity she kept away from sound. This got so bad going out the front door because of the noise was a problem. Her ears couldn’t tolerate the sound of the microwave, dishwasher or the washing machine. She even complained of the sound of rain falling on her conservatory roof that was made of glass. Fortunately she has improved.

There is much discussion on this in the medical field from experts saying that the overuse of hearing protection isn’t good and therefore discouraged as it will lower loudness threshold and I completely agree with this. I think if one isn’t careful they can become paranoid over sound making their hyperacusis and tinnitus worse and I don’t think it’s healthy.

I believe the answer is to seek proper treatment. If TRT is unavailable then start using a sound machine by the bedside at night for sound enrichment. This usually helps to desensitise the auditory system. Try going out for long walks and getting used to everyday sounds instead of keeping away from them by staying at home. I don’t normally recommend anyone to use white noise generators unless they are under the care of a hearing therapist. However, if your tinnitus is under control and you have habituated but experience hyperacusis, that some call: Reactive tinnitus. Then white noise generators could be the way to go. Two should be used to keep the auditory system in balance and set the volume level low, preferably below the tinnitus. This will help to desensitise the auditory system and treat the hypercusis.

Hearing protection is important and does have its place. If I am going to venues where I believe noise level could become loud then I have my earplugs with me. Night clubs, parties etc. I would always use them at the cinema although I haven’t been to one in years. Reading some of the posts on this forum people say those places can be very loud.

When I use my petrol lawn mower or electric power tools for those DIY jobs around the home, I always use my ear defenders. I want to live life and enjoy it. Not to be living in fear of hearing a fire truck or ambulance siren coming towards me and I have to panic and quickly insert earplugs or reach for earmuffs to protect my hearing. I just think this is overkill.

Michael

PS: There is a condition called: vestibular hyperacusis. This is where the sound can cause a person to fall, lose balance or experience dizziness, and will probably require more professional help.

 

Wonderful! I’m glad to hear that you are much better @Jinxy !

Thank you @Michael Leigh for that very interesting and detailed account! I’m always interested in hearing how other people have managed to overcome their Hyperacusis.

For everyone else, I just wanted to add that I found it very beneficial to use podcasts (playing from my iPad speakers) as a way to continue using sound enrichment in my house. It helped change up the sound, while also taking my mind off of my T.

 

Hyperacusis — Should You Avoid Noise in the Beginning? - YES

You should find a balance between having sound around and avoiding the very loud noises, so its kind of complicated.

Best is trying to listen to sound or music at home, at a volume you feel comfortable with, and ALWAYS wearing hearing protection (earplugs or earmuffs or both) if you are out, as there may be very loud sounds of traffic, construction etc