New Here — Could Somebody Help Me Please?

9 weeks tonight, it's been another mild week with only a couple of spikes before bed.

I've had periods where I don't actually notice my tinnitus anymore and for most of the time that I do, it seems quite faint. I'm hopeful that by this time next month this chapter will be over.

 

HI @Matty

I am pleased that the tinnitus is calming down. Whilst it's good to be optimistic something usually causes the onset of tinnitus. The most common is exposure to loud noise. I have read some of your previous posts on this thread, and see that you have been experiencing dizzy spells. This could indicate Meniere's disease as other members have suggested or another problem within your auditory system. If you didn't experience any dizziness no other symptoms besides tinnitus, then I would suspect the tinnitus is "Noise induced".

I advise you to make an appointment with your GP and get a referral to ENT for tests on your auditory system. Even if your symptoms subsides still go and examined at ENT. Please click on the link below and read my article: Tinnitus, A Personal View, that you might find helpful.

All the best
Michael

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/tinnitus-a-personal-view.18668/

 

@Michael Leigh I'm fairly sure it isn't Meniere's at this point. The dizziness was very inconsistent throughout this time and I actually haven't had one of those episodes in a good while now.

I'm also unconvinced that this was noise induced as it simply doesn't add up to me. If I were to get noise induced tinnitus surely it'd effect my right ear and not the left, considering the right ear had significantly more exposure to sound and my right ear is fine!

I've seen several doctors already and they mentioned fluid behind the eardrum and a retracted eardrum in the left, they didn't seem to want to refer me to anybody. I was given mometasone though, which I am still taking daily. I assume that whatever is/was wrong with my ear is gradually healing slowly and I'm just waiting for it to settle.

 

If your right ear was naturally stronger than the left (like most peoples is) then it's normal for the left to fail first. My Tinnitus may have started from in infection but combined with sound I would say. Like I've said before you have to roll a lot of dice to get tinnitus (or use a gun) it only has to happen once in your life to be one of the 10% or so that have it constant and over a life time.. that takes quite a few factors to get on that fatefull day.. I would try not to roll those dice again if I were you because when you are older it wont heal up so easily. (and your jaw and neck will be worse). Also as others have said being dizzy as far as the doctors are concerned is more concerning than Tinnitus.

 

@foam I'm certainly not taking any chances now - even if I don't think this was noise induced. I don't go anywhere where I'm exposed to loud sounds (not that I did before anyhow) and I've drastically reduced my headphone usage and volume, and only on the right ear of course.

The dizziness isn't really a concern for me now, it's been quite a while since I had a bout of it and I've gone back to my training without issue so far. I'm sure whatever was causing it has passed, and am confident that my tinnitus too is slowly fading away - it certainly seems to be getting progressively milder with each passing week.

 

Mine is also improving but veeeeeeeeeery slowly. I'll take an improvement over getting worse of course.

 

@foam I hope yours continues to fade as well

 

Headphones are one of the worst offenders for causing tinnitus, so you are right to reduce the volume and usage.
Best of luck

Michael

 

I just plugged both of my ears and genuinely could not hear anything at all!

Might be temporary but that's the first time this has happened, hopefully it'll be permanently gone in time.