Hi all, I've recently started suffering with tinnitus in my left ear; it's a constant tone of about 8 kHz that is nicely masked by white noise. I do a 300 mile round trip in the car for work up to 3 times per week and it's always much worse after the journey. I started to notice the tinnitus last summer. I had been doing the round trips for 18 months previously, and I've regularly done long trips for over a decade without any trouble. I don't understand what's changed. Last month I finally got a hearing test and it showed a distinct drop off at higher frequencies. I have an MRI scan on Friday. I've tried using ear defenders (intended for shooting) and foam plugs -- in each ear separately --but it makes no difference. Since it's incurable my questions are: * what could have caused it, and * why does being in the car aggravate it? Ta, Richard.
It's very difficult to say what causes it unless you know you were near an explosion or gun shot but even then not everyone gets tinnitus from those events. My opinion is it can be cumulative damage over time, sort of a perfect storm of ototoxic medications, exposure to noise and age related hearing loss or any number of other contributing forces unknown to us that all combine and result in tinnitus.
HI @rwb Many things can cause tinnitus including earwax build up and stress. The most common cause is exposure to loud noise. Typically, it is headphone use and going to places where loud music is played. Clubs, and concerts even the cinema. In the early stages of tinnitus the best treatment for it is to do nothing. If you just have straight forward tinnitus without additional problems: ear pain, dizziness, balance problems or deafness then to do nothing is the way to go. Under these circumstances, one shouldn't really see an ENT doctor too early, preferably 4 to 6 months is ideal. Within this time a person can habituate to the tinnitus and it's no longer cause for concern. Try using a sound machine at night by your bedside for sound enrichment. More is explained in my posts by clicking on the links below. Try to read them in full and not skim through them. All the best Michael https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/new-to-tinnitus-what-to-do.12558/ https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/tinnitus-a-personal-view.18668/ https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/hyperacusis-as-i-see-it.19174/ https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/is-positivity-important.23150/ https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/tinnitus-and-the-negative-mindset.23705/ https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/acquiring-a-positive-mindset.23969/ https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/the-habituation-process.20767/
