My Tinnitus Started with Being Really Sensitive to Sounds

[Pamela7]

Hello all! I haven't been diagnosed, but I am quite certain I have tinnitus. It started with me being really sensitive to sounds. Like noticing white noise I hadn't heard before. This fall I noticed that I was hearing crickets at night going to bed. I started getting concerned when I realized the crickets were no longer active (it was fall).

Now I have fullness in my ears, ringing and occasionally I will swear there is a faint radio in another room, which totally freaks me out!

Has anyone else experienced this!? It's like I cannot make out the sound/music/words. I notice it more when there is a fan running - It's so faint. Otherwise, it's just fullness and ringing.

I am thinking this could be a side effect to my meds or anxiety related.

Can anyone else relate?

 

[billie48]

Welcome to the forum. It is quite common for a new tinnitus to morph into different symptoms, such as changing from a single tone to multi tones, develop cracking or peeping, or even jumping ear. This is because the neurons are misfiring and are in agitated state when our ears are so unstable. Some people even develop musical hallucination such that they can hear a song. In the following video the famous comedian David Letterman and William Shatner were talking about their own tinnitus in a 1996 show, when Shatner as the spokesperson of ATA even said a lady would hear the national anthem and would rise and salute. Lol. Anxiety and stress tend to make the symptoms worse so it is best to remain as positive and calm as humanly possible. If you need masking the ringing to stay calm, then go for it. Anything to keep away from too much thinking about the ringing, as nervousness tend to make us function in fight or flight mode when the ringing will be most intensified as it is considered a 'threat' by the limbic nervous system.

Take care. God bless your recovery.