I Think I May Have Hyperacusis

Hey all, I was wondering, those with H, what is it like? I think i might have H but im not sure. When i first got t i was slightly sensitive to sound, and my ear would get very stuffed and burn, that was months ago. Sometimes when I hear certain sounds its almost like I feel it in my brain, like a shock in my head, is this H? Usually its a sudden sound, it makes me jumpy almost the feeling you get when someone startles or scares you. Its not really in my ear and not really painful exactly, again i more so feel it in my head. I would like to add, i can be near things that are pretty loud and not bothered by it.

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

 

Very mild H maybe. 40% of all people with T have some form of H too. If you can be around loud noises and not be bothered about it I wouldnt worry about H though. You know when you have H.

 

Thanks lapidus. I have a feeling it's more related to anxiety and being startled easy for some reason.

 

I agree with @lapidus You may have mild hyperacusis. It's interesting that it developed recently, however, and not concomitantly with your tinnitus.. Presuming you've not had additional insults to your auditory system--noise or chemical--I wonder if the hyperacusis could be a side effect of your AM 101 treatment. Perhaps, in diminishing your tinnitus the drug has the untoward affect of engendering hyperacusis in some individuals.

If your sound sensitivity continues, you should report this to the AM 101 investigators. That said, mild hyperacusis is very easy to handle. Whenever you hear a noise that makes you want to cringe, tell yourself it's only a noise and move on mentally. Over time, you may still have minor sound sensitivity, but you will no longer respond to it. That's how I am. I have minor hyperacusis and the oddest sounds used to startle me. Now, however, this never happens and I can even run the garbage disposal with impunity!

 

Yeah, but it could also be tensor tympani syndrome. It's sometimes caused by anxiety. When these sounds happen. Can you feel something in your ears? Like a twitch or something?

 

@jazz thanks for the comments. I will let am101 know if it continues. @lapidus . I had tts seem to have that part under control at the moment.

 

@jazz actually I had these symptoms with t onset. But they dissipated over time so I'm inclined to think it's not am101. I'll still let them know.

 

Hello, I have mild Hyperacusis, not too long after T, I ignore it , and it seems to get better, some people on the forum said it will go away..Hang in there!

 

@cullenbohannon, you do not sound like you are describing hyperacusis. I’m basing that on your ability to be around pretty loud sound without being bothered by it – something which would be impossible for someone with hyperacusis. More likely, you are describing what you suspected – that is, an initial anxiety around sound. It isn’t unusual for tinnitus sufferers to respond in that way, particularly at first, due to concern that exposure to some sounds may exacerbate tinnitus.

I don’t believe these symptoms are connected to your tensor tympani muscle or to AM 101 treatment.

A loudness discomfort level test can be a very useful tool to help a neurotologist or audiologist determine whether a patient has hyperacusis.

Four different studies report that 40% of patients examined in a tinnitus clinic were also diagnosed with some degree of hyperacusis. A study by Andersson and others puts the number at 60% for patients whose main complaint is tinnitus. In the same study, the authors reported sensitivity to sound tended to develop over time.

here2help

 

Thanks very much for the response. I'll see how it goes and I was thinking about seeing someone if things continue I'll look into the ldl test.

 

ok let me jump here..cause if what cullen is describing doesnt sound like H then what do I have?! I am in a very horrible setback and my symptoms are just like his. They were also like cullens when I was tested by audiologist who confirmed I have/had moderate h.

Yes the sound in head, like a shock..almost feels like it knocks you in head..weird symptom. ...yep I know other with h who have described that too..mine did go away as i got better but now I am back to SQUARE ONE! !! and in fact feel worse!

I.also have tts that is once again terrible and my tolerances are crap...startle reflex and tinnitus increase..its all just bad..dont know what caused this setback either..

no I ain't so breezy these days either. ..sick of this h madness..

 

@Street Spirit That is a strange symptom, Thats why i was curious , mine seems strange for example if i have the ac running which can be pretty loud the noises that cause those sensations have no effect on me, but when im in a quiet room, i get it. Is yours the same regardless of the situation? Do you always get the kind of shock feeling? Anyway sorry your not doing so hot, hope you'll get better soon.

 

I do feel the same as you and I call it H. loud music won't bother me at all, but single sounds will bother me as I just receive them amplifyed in my brain.I do agree with the theory that since T comes from some hearing loss the brain raises the volume to the sounds and that's why most of ppl with T have H also . and now that I'm thinking I think I had H before T.

 

Yes Cullen same for me. I turn a fan.on.to dampen the effect of those impact sounds..as I call them and then then they have no effect....just take it easy with your ears for awhile. .

 

Yeah that's the same here. If I'm in a silent room and hear an impact sound, no matter how low it is, it's uncomfortable and sometimes painful. But if there's backround noise it doesnt effect me the same.

 

Thanks for the responses everyone.

 

Continous (non harmful) sounds cause me extreme discomfort and pain. For example: computer fans, A/C, shower, vacuum, car idling, radio, wind. I don't know if this is a hyperacusis or someting else.

 

Hi Cullen,

I know exactly what you are experiencing regarding the brain zaps. I would get the sensation you are talking about not around sound but upon walking into a really quiet space during my first 2-3 months of tinnitus; mine went away around the 3 month mark I guess; it didn't happen that often, probably not even once a day on average. I don't think this is hyperacusis; I'm not sure there is even a term for it as its not really reactive tinnitus either; I think it's just a symptom caused by an auditory cortex in overdrive... hopefully it vanishes for you.


-Matt

 

That's strange, maybe tts plays a role in that.

 

Thanks matt. Yea mine went away before I think recent stress triggered it again.

 

I think you are right. I have many TTTS syptoms. I just was not sure if this is part of it.
My symptoms have gradually improved over the years. I think time is the best healer like many people say.

 

Cullen.....Good thread. Sorry you are reporting it of course.

However, to me this whole "Hyperacusis" issue is still very unclear, and I've been trying my best to see what an accurate description of it is for some months...c/o this Forum, and elsewhere. It's somewhat all over the map! Admittedly a confined map, but still a WTF??? to me.

For instance...What is the difference between "Reactive T" and Hyperacusis??? They seem like bedfellows in my case. A loudish, highish frequency sound (like that high tensile fencing wire I described in a post that 'sproinged' back and hit a metal fence post near my ear with a sharp "Bing!" sound ) feels like how you describe the effect, but also makes the volume of my T jump up for about 5 to 10 seconds (sometimes longer, depending on volume of trigger) then it slowly comes down.
It does not "hurt" in the same way hitting my thumb with a hammer hurts, but it "hurts" in a weird internal, nerve-feel, zap, kind of way...and it's not anxiety! It's automatic 'physical'. Immediate.
If this kind of zap is too big, like a kid in a store suddenly screaming a few feet from me, (and I did not have plugs in, or were low dB plugs in too loosely)...I can sort of get a "knocked out" feeling and get disoriented for a short while. It's sort of like classic "shock", and may last 10 seconds or more, or until I feel like strangling the source...by which time yeah, then the anxiety has kicked in! Because I'm wondering: "Shit, shit, shit...is this going to go down??? My T is up, and no I can't take it if it is even more!!! Yadda, yadda, yadda....I'm sure all you T + H folk know this one!

So back to H description....I don't get what the "pain" aspect with H means? Is what I just described above "pain"??? Or is it something else???...Does 'proper' H have to give you a lasting physical "Ouch! Ouch! Ouch" type of pain; or headache; or earache; what???

Whatever...FOR SURE I know there is T that just stays a T at a constant volume and is not "reactive" as I had that for the first two of my four levels of T. Yeah I would protect then out of common sense in loud environments as had a 'feeling' it might make my T worse, but it would not spike or hurt at stuff like what happens now.

So I have presumed this is thus "Hyperacusis"...both because of this T reactivity, and because I know darn well I could handle dance classes, and parties, and dinner laughter, etc. with pre 2006 'stable T'. This 'unstable T' and lower tolerance to marginally loud sound must = H....or does it???

Sorry a bit long here, but describing this stuff is "complicated". However, I have a feeling others are in similar condition to me on this one.

Best, Zimichael

 

@Dr. Hubbard and Dr. Nagler touched on this before.
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/hyperacusis-vs-sound-sensitivity.4733/

 

Cullen...hey thanks for that link.

However, either I'm just dense and have brain spaghetti or it's not describing quite what I mean, or what I have read others write up.

Yeah, I totally agree that this is an OK description for 'generalized' H: Every authority in the world except one defines hyperacusis as a type of sound sensitivity wherein externally-generated sounds well-tolerated by others sound uncomfortably loud to the affected individual.
I mean, who could argue with that.?! It's so wide in scope that it covers it all.

But what about this "ear pain" stuff that is mean to be "hyperacusis"? Is 'uncomfortable' = 'pain'??? And then there's "reactive tinnitus"...what is that??? Is that "Reactive Tinnitus" (is there such an 'official' thing in the terminological halls of great auditory wisdom?) or is it just "hyperacusis"???

Duh...I'm still not "there yet" obviously on knowing what the differences are.

Thanks, Zimichael

 

I know exactly what you mean, I was hoping to have a better understanding of H and all the things that get associated with but im more confused now then i was before

 

What I feel in my ears is like a flinch or something.

 

For example for me ill watch something on my phone and i get the zapp time noise, then ill play it again and again and nothing happens , eventually i dont get the zapp. STRANGE STUFF. Hopefully the more people bring up there experiences we can get a better understanding of what all this stuff is.

 

I use to get a flinch, still do but not as much anymore, this is a weird feeling but it went before, hoping it goes again soon.

 

Cullen... As I have said before. If there are tinnitus researchers out there of any stripe and they wan to know what the hell it is they are taking on and trying to understand, they will get a BROAD AND SOBERING EDUCATION reading all of our threads and observations.

Reality v. Theory.

We need a cure so we don't have to keep squirming through this mud!!!

Hey, take care Cull'.

 

Cullen this is my honest opinion here reading and judgeing by your symptoms,you on the face of it have H and what appears to be acoustic shock syndrome(extremely startled by sudden noises)as I have this also and believe me when I say its not down to any anxiety or stress its a real condition and is often accompanied by T or H.I was sitting in a quiet room the other day reading a book nice and calm when the top of my bottle of water popped and I nearly jumped 10 feet in the air and this happens quiet regularly,when I done the B.A.R recently
they could see a huge wave of activity after sudden unexpected noises so its not an anxiety problem its a phsyiological problem which was best described to me as over excitable sensory neurons over reacting to a benign stimulous.Either way I believe autifony will be hugely benefical in this.Best wishes Bill.