Loud Noises and Tinnitus

So sometimes on the way home from work when walking a loud truck or van will pass (very close due to having to drive in the cycle lane.... Roadworks smh)

Once or twice it's been load enough for me to think oh shit and want to cover my ears. I never end up doing so as it only lasts a few seconds at most. Also had some faulty headphones for some weeks after getting tinnitus that would go full volume for a split second every so often (10 mins) and give me a fright. Stopped using them within a week.

Also was round a mates who showed me his broken scooter bike that had no exhaust. Was quite loud for a good 20 sec but not enough for me to think o shit.

Will short exposure to louder sounds and really short exposure to ones like the inconsiderate fucking truck cause permanent damage.

Did an online frequency test before for my tinnitus and could hear up to 17.5khz and now can't hear much above 15khz at a reasonable listening volume. I'm not sure if that's the tinnitus or the fact I listened to my earphones (louder than usual but not stupidly loud) while I still had fluid in my middle ear.

So pissed off about this all because I was very responsible with noise exposure before my T as I valued my hearing due to music interests. I am annoyed with myself for my slightly inappropriate earphone use in the month after.

Bit of a ramble but would like some opinions about my use of earphones and the effects of the short exposures I talked about.
Thank you.

 

I am not sure whether or not it can cause permanent damage for someone whose ears have already been compromised. However, I believe that these noises might interfere with your recovery, making it less likely that your T will fade or even go away.

I would wear ear plugs in all of those environments that you had found (the hard way) to be potentially noisy. Possibly earplugs under Peltor muffs.

I would also stop using ear phones.