Mine Feels Like a 10 — Do Some People Have Tinnitus Way Worse Than Others?

Do some people have this way worse than others? Mine is like 3 distinct noises—and the high-pitched one is like a 10. I don’t really want to die, but this is making me crazy.

I’m a writer, & it’s been really hard to focus.

Taking CBD to sleep (but afraid if it’s making it worse). Anyone else get this scared? Also a doctor would no longer prescribe my old inhaler; she made me switch, and almost immediately—this new life of hell (HMO—fuck!).

 

In the future, try to avoid taking any medications that are on the list of ototoxic drugs:
http://hlaa-sbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Ototoxic_Brochure.pdf

There is still a chance that your tinnitus will fade.

 

Yea this thing sucks. It's hard to fathom in the beginning but it really does get better. It takes a little time. I'd get on magnesium glycinate, curcumin, omega 3 and ginkgo biloba ASAP. L-Theanine also helps with sleep!

 

Thank you. It’s been so discouraging, & I keep trying to avoid a panic attack.

 

Hi @Dyanne, I hope you feel better soon and get over the trouble that tinnitus is causing you. I totally think it's possible for you to live with it and still write and think in peace.

I don't want to discourage you with anything I say but I am feeling very bad about my tinnitus now also and maybe writing something about it will help (me or you). Please always be hopeful about your life and your ears...tinnitus even improves for some people.

I am sure there is a huge range of tinnitus severity...actually it is infinite as there is no top end...it can always get louder. Also from personal experience when I first noticed my tinnitus 22 years ago it was actually very mild, but now it is fairly awful...even considering that I don't believe I have it as severely as others. Yet it is very sharp sounding and awful, and seems to always get worse.

I also get very scared about it but some days I feel better about it, even though my tinnitus hasn't got better...but then I feel worse another day. It is the most difficult thing I've ever had to deal with, and I don't think anything I will ever face will compare to it. That is how I feel and I am probably right.

That being said, I guess somehow we have to become familiar with the sound(s) we hear and get used to them. Let us all not be afraid of tinnitus but with courage face this battle together...and may all of our tinnitus get better.

 

I'm writing this instead of sleeping because my tinnitus is keeping me awake. As bad as my tinnitus is, this rarely if ever happens to me. Just gonna have to deal with it, no other choice.

 

Dyanne: how long have you been suffering with tinnitus?

To answer your question directly: yes, I think it's safe to say that some people have it worse. Because we can only go by each person's subjective ratings, it's hard to ever know for sure, but most believe not all tinnitus is the same.

Three tones is pretty annoying - I know, that's about what I have when my tinnitus is acting up. Thankfully, when it's 'calm' the higher pitches often subside.

@Bill Bauer is right: you should be VERY careful about what meds you take from now on. Only a few cause permanent damage, but many - even some super everyday ones - can increase pitch and volume while you're using them, and for some time beyond. I don't know about inhalers - those would be corticosteroids probably - but it would be worth you doing some research there.

Most find that T does fade somewhat over time. I do a lot of writing for work too, and originally found it very hard to concentrate. But more recently things are getting better. Hopefully they will for you too.

 

Any idea what's made your tinnitus worse over time?

 

Yep, scared as hell. I do a lot of writing and really find it hard to concentrate. It's all made me crazy, too.

I have no idea how my tinnitus compares to that of others, except I do know that the tone(s) I have are some of the more unpleasant, i.e. very high pitched dentist drill/whining noise. Horrible, and in both ears with no let up. Also, having anxiety conditions makes it much harder to deal with. As for the actual noise level, I find it hard to compare.

 

Yes of course.

 

@MattS~yes, just continued exposure to loud (enough) sound...definitely that...although I am also quite wondering if the occlusion effect from talking while wearing earplugs has made it worse as well.

 

I've worried about occlusion too, have been playing around with various plugs, to get the best fit / lowest occlusion. Currently I'm mixing/matching filters from one set with the silicone plugs of another, because I found plugs that do a decent job of filling my entire canal.

I wonder if there is a thread on best plugs for occlusion. If not, maybe there should be, though I imagine everyone's canal will be different.

 

@MattS...that is good that you're experimenting with earplugs to see what works best for you, we have to take this into our own hands since companies aren't always (or hardly ever) addressing these issues. I like that you're interchanging the filters and plugs...that's the type of thing that I myself would do so it amuses me

I am gonna copy and paste this (so I don't have to type it again) that I wrote from another thread, which is not a thread about occlusion. My post was the only one talking about it. But maybe it is helpful in some way.


~For me the occlusion effect is far better with foam earplugs than with custom earplugs, which is why I usually don't wear my custom earplugs when I need to speak.

I own and wear custom "musicians" earplugs for different reasons, the ACS Pro type and Etymotic type (each have their own type of button filters and ACS can make plugs for either type of button even though their website doesn't show an option for the Etymotic type, also Etymotic/ER style earplugs are available through many audiologists and companies)...but again the occlusion effect is there and at times it has been somewhat painful to speak while wearing them. I believe this is partly due to the fact that they do not seal within the ear canal completely since they are relatively hard (silicone vs foam) and cannot press against the canal fully as a foam earplug can. Or possibly simply because they are harder and reflect the sound more. Someone needs to invent a custom earplug that is softer and conforms more to your ear canal...that is what I think.

Here are 2 companies I came across that try to address the occlusion effect with their custom plugs...I do not own and have not tried them, but I sure would like to. The ones from 64 Audio sound like a promising option with a pneumatically interactive vent (not that I understand it), and the ones from Big Ear I believe have a secondary channel and filter within the earplug. If I ever try them out (meaning I purchased them for myself), I will let the TinnitusTalk forum know what I think.

Here are the links...

https://acscustomusa.com/product-category/hearing-protection/
https://www.etymotic.com/consumer/hearing-protection/erme.html
https://www.64audio.com/product/Custom-EarPlugs
https://www.bigearinc.com/product/custom-earplugs-for-musicians/

 

Thanks Quiet waters - I've only been using the cheap non-custom ones to this point, but am going to look into all of these.

P.S. I think the occlusion effect occurs because plugs leave some space inside the ear canal where sound can both fill and rattle around. The foamies do better here, because they expand to fill up more space. Part of what I've been playing around with is 2- versus 3-flange plugs: the 2-flsnges are deemed "more comfortable", but cause considerably more occlusion. That's how I've currently led to my mash-up plugs: 3-flange plugs from one company with the better filter inserts from the 2-flanfe company.

But will definitely look into all these custom options - sadly, that's probably the way I should be heading to ensure future protection.

 

That's EXACTLY my experience. When I mention this to my audiologist I get "the look".

 

Folks, I have gotten some great information of this forum. And I have read some things where I just have to say "wait a minute!"

I have read that drug list before and it is loaded with medications that are prescribed every day by great doctors. A top ENT in Dallas put me on Diazepam to help with Tinnitus. It was the lowest dosage there is, 2mg. He said long term use would be just fine.

If you avoided every single medicine on that list there is a good chance that your GP won't be of any benefit to you one of these days when you are sick. If you tell him what you read on a forum he/she may ask you if you want to get well, or stay sick, or maybe die?

A very good doctor once told me that when you read the side effects of medications, which we all know is always very long, it is because there is the possibility that there was an isolated incident sometime where that med caused a particular side affect, for maybe only one person. Therefore the drug maker HAS to put on the label that the medication "CAN" possibly cause that side affect.

 

Yes, a 10. I don't know how many tones. A lot of people seem to get angry if you speculate that maybe yours is worse than someone else.

My tinnitus seems like several tones although it seems like many are more similar nowadays. Before I could recognize some sounding a lot different than other tones. It's still really loud and high pitched. It's really awful sounding. It makes it difficult to sleep and I believe it's causing and contributing to other physical health problems.

 

Hi Tex,

2 milligrams of Valium... that’s enough to mildly sedate a mouse.
Sounds like it worked, you are strong and I get the impression you are coping well.
Stay strong and be well...
Sincerely, and I mean that... Daniel

 

Of course it’s contributing to worsening your health...
It’s a vicious hell you are enduring.
What meds are you on now? If any?
Don’t bullshit... tell it like it is.
I care about you, and am very dubious about certain psyche meds.
Care about you... that’s a given...

 

@MattS I hope you discover a solution that works. I think you are correct about the occlusion effect, as well as maybe the harder surface of some plugs reflects sound more than the soft foam surface. I should reiterate that the custom plugs I have used do not solve the occlusion experience...I have not tried the ones that claim to address occlusion yet. I have noticed that when I press on the custom plugs they are much better-so maybe if they just had a better seal that is all that is required. Although I feel unless the plug is soft and somewhat flexible it will never be an ideal seal.

 

Yeah that's the bad kind... but even this kind has different levels... made mine worse 14 days ago by noise am in a new hell all over again.

Or maybe any kind can be bad depending on how loud and intrusive it is? I don't know.

I also have multi noise tinnitus so that is also a factor.

 

Not on any now. I stopped taking amitriptyline.

The tinnitus is just too loud no matter what I do. Several tones and it is a high pitch and high frequency (I think). I don't know how many decibels but some people seem to be able to measure. I suspect it's over 45 dB. Even if my tv is at 20 volume level setting, I still hear the tinnitus.

Both ears are in pain right now. Especially the left ear. Both ears don't feel normal. I think the left one has fullness although the fullness was worse yesterday.

I would try custom plugs but they are expensive here. However, since the tinnitus is so loud, it's quite awful closing off other sounds and isolating the tinnitus tones. I think you know what I mean? I don't know how people with tinnitus that is worse than moderate use plugs.

 

Yes wearing plugs or muffs drives me mad.

 

I hear what you're saying, but musician's ear plugs are quite tolerable for me when I'm out and about.

 

If I understood his reply accurately, he agrees with my sentiments: we weren't even talking about comfort or fit which is another issue. But, the fact that wearing hearing protection blocks out exterior noise and sounds so one is left only "hearing" their tinnitus. If the tinnitus is significantly loud, it's like another form of torture. Even though the tinnitus is still loud anyway, walking outside or doing something to 'mask it' IS SOMETHING. But, wearing plugs or muffs isolates the tinnitus so that is all you "hear."

 

When I first got tinnitus, I was immediately dealing with "reactive tinnitus", or perhaps more appropriately, "over-reactive tinnitus". I couldn't drive down the road without the sounds of the tires and traffic sending my tinnitus into overdrive.

That reactive tinnitus was much reduced while driving after I started wearing musician's earplugs. Of course it did leave me with somewhat louder "normal tinnitus". But it was much more bearable that the over-reactive tinnitus I had been dealing with without the earplugs.

 

Yeah, I understand that reactive tinnitus can make things worse and getting spikes from outside noise/loud sounds can probably convince people to use hearing protection more often even if it means isolating whatever their tinnitus sounds like at that time. Right?

I have minor fluctuations but I don't think my tinnitus is reactive anymore.