Life Robbed by Tinnitus, TTTS and Hyperacusis

Hey guys, I’m in a world of hell at the moment. Here’s my story for those who care to read.

At the start of January I got sick with some sort of viral infection, nothing too serious. A couple of days later, I was sitting in the truck at work (I’m a piano removalist), and I felt my left ear fill up, like liquid pouring into my ear. I immediately had a “wtf” moment and thought I must’ve had a build-up of wax or something in my ear. The next day, I went to the doctor, and he told me I had an ear infection and prescribed some antibiotics; no problem, right?

After about two weeks, I started noticing my voice vibrating to the left side and that full-ear feeling coming back. Finally, I got referred to the ENT, who rushed through most of my consultation, didn’t really instill any reassurance, told me a bunch of hypotheticals that she shouldn’t have done (Meniere’s, perilymph fistula, canal dehiscence), etc. I had a CT scan and an MRI, and both came back completely clear. I also had two audiology tests that showed a very mild high-frequency hearing loss. No tinnitus at this point.

One day, I went for a run, and when I got back home, I had a bout of vertigo and very loud tinnitus in that left ear; this happened twice. No one could tell me why. I have since stopped running and exercising.

Finally, I got referred to a great ENT in the city who diagnosed me with Patulous Eustachian Tube Dysfunction. I was relieved but still had a shred of doubt since he diagnosed me on the basis of my describing all my symptoms and a general physical exam of my ears, etc.

One day, I woke up and did this exercise I found on YouTube to relieve PET dysfunction, apparently, and this is where it all goes south...

I was blowing out my nose, blocking my ear on both sides, basically blowing pressure all over the place in my head. Within 30 seconds, I stood up and almost fell over from vertigo, and then the loudest tinnitus I’ve ever heard in my life started. I initially just thought, “Okay, this has happened before.” It’ll be back to normal in a couple of hours. Wrong.

It was Easter Sunday, and I had family over, so I had to sit through a family function with tinnitus and what I now know is called hyperacusis. Everyone’s voices sounded distorted, and S’s and F’s were piercing my ear.

I was absolutely convinced I’d blown my cochlear out. I promptly went to the audiologist the next day and got my hearing checked again. Pretty much the same result as previous tests. Got on the steroids prescribed by the doctor.

I came across Dr. Myriam Westcott, who specializes in audiology and hyperacusis and tinnitus; because I was desperate for an answer, I became suicidal over this. She diagnosed me with Tensor Tympani Syndrome and Hyperacusis. I’m going through the desensitization process, and I can do pretty much normal things, but the tinnitus is still very prominent, and it’s driving me insane. I broke down in the car before, I am so frustrated and want my old life back. I haven’t worked in 2-3 weeks; I feel like a shell of a human. As a musician, too, I can’t even write anything at the moment because the way it sounds to me at the moment is distorted and makes me more depressed.

Valium seems to help the tinnitus and calm me down, but I don’t want to become dependent on it. I'm just reaching out to this new platform, looking for similar stories and connecting with like-minded people who go through the same things I’m dealing with.

Much love to all x

 

I hope it resolves for you soon. I can't say I have much knowledge about this, but it seems like the best medicine is to leave it alone and protect your ears.

 

Welcome to Tinnitus Talk.

Don't worry about the hyperacusis, as it tends to fade over time, perhaps a year, for most people. I had hyperacusis twice, and both times it lasted for about 9 months to a year. TTTS also tends to fade, especially if you keep away from extreme anxiety about it. You can search the forum about TTTS as it is quite often reported and discussed.

Try to keep calm and positive that the body will need some time to heal your ear issues. Try to protect yourself from loud venues, but don't overprotect from normal sounds, as the ears need to harden from exposure to sounds.

Take good care. God bless your recovery.

 

I'm so sorry you're in this. You are another victim of a strange "viral infection" combined with what sounds like moderate sound exposure. Was it COVID-19? Did you have COVID-19 before? COVID-19 vaccinations?

I think all prior insults weakened your ears, and the sound exposure (truck - probably loud, diesel?) during the infection probably did you in. It seems strangely common now that people without a prior history of ear issues get a little bit sick, get some noise exposure - and then, boom, bad tinnitus, hyperacusis, and other issues start. This was my story. However, my noise trauma was pretty bad (air hammer without hearing protection under a car).

Now, as young folks go to the IMAX cinema and end up with terrible tinnitus a few days later, it is not normal; I begin to suspect many people got their ears compromised due to COVID-19 and/or COVID-19 vaccines. The vaccines cause a very strong auto-immunologic reaction. I believe in many cases it causes hidden ear damage. That's the thing about ear damage - it is usually hidden and stays hidden until a threshold is reached, and then an avalanche of issues can start.

Myriam Westcott seems to diagnose everyone with TTS; it's like her pet diagnosis. I would not trust her one bit.

 

This is very comforting to read. I’m experiencing hyperacusis myself. I’m 8 months in, along with tinnitus, & it’s driving me potty! But persevering, one day, it’ll get better.

 

The past me would've dismissed this, but now I increasingly think the same. It is entirely unexpected to get such complications after a mild infection. This shouldn't ever normally happen. It appears that COVID-19 and vaccines against it have had a substantial role in premediating autoimmune responses. It might also be that long periods of isolation and lockdowns made people more susceptible to previously common viruses.