Is All Silence Harmful?

[Jorboar]

I know when treating hyperacusis there's a fine line between too much sound and too little, and often times being in silence for long periods of time ultimately does not help the healing process.

However my question is all silence bad?

For example, say I'm at work all day and my ears are "tired" afterward, (I work in a deli with several fans whirring all day and it tends to hurt my ears by the end of my shifts) is it harmful for me to get home and sit in silence so they have an opportunity to rest?

Or should I try and always have some sort of soft noise around me at all times like music or white noise regardless of the state of my ears at any given time? Thanks!

 

[SilverSpiral]

I don't think silence is bad for your ears at all... if you've only had t and h since august shouldn't you be trying to have as much silence as possible in order to heal them?? I know audiologists said earplugs will increase sensitivity to sound, but still...

 

[bill 112]

Silence will NOT damage your ears whatsoever no matter what any audiologist tells you,trust me I've learnt through bitter experience.

Silence will actually help your ears heal,no sound going in means less strain on the nerves inside giving them better capacity to heal.
People sleep with earplugs in and don't get H,people wear earmuffs all day at work and don't get H,people live extremely quiet lives in the middle of nowhere and all that silence doesn't cause them to develop H.

My point is your ears have been strained or damaged by sound if it's noise induced and putting more sound through an already overly strained auditory system is not going to do anything beneficial for you at all.Protect your ears as best you can from here on out and you judge very carefully what they can and cannot handle but remember to never push them further than what they are able for unless you want a setback.If given enough time your ears could heal to some degree leaving you better off than what you are now,time and low levels of noise is the answer but I know not everyone will agree with me.Thats just coming straight from my own personal experience and a very sad and bitter one at that.

 

[Sen]

I'd say to avoid complete silence if you can. Listen to some kind of soft noise that you can tolerate like nature sounds or pink noise. When I'm in silence for too long I find myself becoming more sensitive to sound than normal.

Silence can't damage your ears, of course, so don't be concerned about that.

 

[Michael Leigh]

@Jorboar
The advice given in this thread is good. I also recommend you click on the link below and read my post: Tinnitus, A Personal View.
All the best
Michael
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/tinnitus-a-personal-view.18668/

 

[stophiss]

jorbear,
You have a fundamental understanding by the way you framed your question.
A couple of comments. Have your hearing tested. What is your level of T and H? You mention your ears hurt by the fans at your deli. To me, this sounds like classic H if dB levels of the fans is not excessive which they shouldn't be by design.
I would ask your question a different way. What is my best path forward given my line of work? Coming home with 'tired' aka hurtful years everyday is problematic. You need to change this trajectory based upon your current level of H. I hope you consider ear plugs to knock 20-30dB off your daily listening levels to allow your ears to heal. Otherwise this repetition will set you up for further injury.
So that to me is the signature point. Change your lifestyle now by not adding damage everyday. Then what you do at home is more optional provided you don't subject your ears to high listening levels.
Hope this makes sense and good luck.

 

[Lorac]

@Jorboar ,
I retreat to silence pretty often and I believe it helps me. I don't just sit and listen to my T and H though. I try to keep my mind occupied in the quiet. The world is a loud place and I feel that I get plenty of noise exposure by just trying to live my life, so I rest my ears when I can.
Even when I cut the television or radio sounds, there are still ambient sounds in the environment. The refrigerator running, traffic on the street in front of my house, dogs barking, etc. My injured ear reacts to all sounds and I do not use earplugs to try to block all ambient noise. I just choose to eliminate television and music when I am home alone.

 

[Rasmus]

I know this it a little bit outside the question ask in this tread, but can i ask what you all mean when you say H I guess when you say T you mean tinnitus im right?

 

[SilverSpiral]

I know this it a little bit outside the question ask in this tread, but can i ask what you all mean when you say H I guess when you say T you mean tinnitus im right?

T= tinnitus
H = hyperacusis

 

[Juan]

Sometimes it's good to be in silence. Listen to your body, just use common sense. The ears do get tired of too much sound, or of sound 24/7.