New to Forum: 2 Months In

So I've had tinnitus for 2 months now (changes intensity when moving jaw) ever since I had a middle ear infection. Probably the worse ear infection I've had, and the first one I've had since I was very young. It was in the right ear and then moved to the left. Lucky the left ear recovered the same day but I've been left with tinnitus in my right ear ever since.

I have talked to 3 GP's over the two months. The first time I was told to wait for the infection to clear, second time i was told there was still fluid in my ear. But the third time I was told by ears look fine and the fact that it has stopped improving/ leveled off (improved until a few weeks ago) means it may stay. The third time I was seen by a doctor who has had tinnitus in both ears for over 15 years. I was booked in for a hearing test as well to see if my hearing is still good.

Is 2 months a relatively short amount of time to have tinnitus? I guess it has every chance of going.
Sometimes it makes me feel isolated, especially in silence. Other times I don't notice it for most of the day. Listening to music is still nice but sometimes when it's in quiet parts of songs the tinnitus creeps in. Headphone/earphone pressure amplifies my tinnitus.
Has anyone else had tinnitus as a result of an ear infection.

 

I'm not a doctor, but has anyone mentioned the possibility of TMJ? There are many posts about that causing tinnitus, and your statement above seems ti imply at least some connection between the jaw and your tinnitus (although the connection could be related to pressure changes caused by the jaw movement and fluid in your ear).

Yes. Most people, unfortunately, can take up to a year or two for their symptoms to go away. And, according to a study, there is a fairly high recovery rate.

@Bill Bauer wrote the following post discussing one such study https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/spontaneous-recovery-stats-over-70-recover-3-studies.21441/

Also, for some great, general information about tinnitus, I would suggest reading the following post

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

It is written my @Michael Leigh , and I would recommend searching out his other posts as you will find a lot of valuable information.

I recommend entering the phrase "ear infection" into the search field near the top of the page. I just gave it a try and it returned nine pages of posts. So, while My tinnitus was not caused by an ear infection, I can answer with a fair amount of certainty that many others here have, or at least believe, that theirs was caused by one.

Be careful with headphones, they can be dangerous for those of us with tinnitus.

In another post by @Michael Leigh he writes about headphone use and tinnitus:
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/headphones-and-tinnitus.12062/

That is very common. The tinnitus tends to cause many of us to withdraw. Try to continue doing the things you enjoy, and do not reduce your social activities. Tinnitus is difficult and can lead to severs depression, so you will need the support of your friends and family.

That is a really good sign. The fact that you have periods of time that you do not notice your tinnitus indicates that you should be able to habituate and regain a more "normal" life while you wait for your symptoms to stop (or in the unfortunate event that they do not, you will still be habituated and be able to live your life).

I wish you luck, please keep us updated on your progress.

 

Yes it's not that uncommon. Tinnitus generally subsides when the infection clears, but it can take a long time (ie weeks).

 

That would be good news, but the infection subsided long ago

 

Thanks for the info
I'e never had my headphones stupidly loud. There has been a few times where I have listened to music louder than I should for short periods of time. I usually keep my sound below 50% on my phone and 25% on my PC (PC has a strong amp). I do get a bit of loud tinitus straight after stopping music but it lasts a second at most and doesnt bother me. I didn' have noise induced T so I guess I should be fine if I'm not stupid with volume?

 

I would be careful. I have a lot of respect for @Michael Leigh, and I trust his opinion. He recommends that you avoid headphones altogether.

I use them on a daily basis, but I have had tinnitus my entire life and, for me there is a zero % chance my tinnitus will ever get better.

You are young, and your tinnitus is still very new (only two months), so your chances of recovery are very high. Between that and Michael's recommendations, if I were in your position, especially knowing how devastating tinnitus can be in the long term, I would not risk it. I know it is not the answer you wanted. I was a musician and I can imagine how frustrating hearing "don't use headphones" would be, and I am guessing based on your user id that music is an important part of your life, so "no headphones" is not the answer you wanted to hear, but try to consider the long term. using them now may be nice, but you may risk pushing your tinnitus from temporary to permanent. Please be careful and consider the potential long-term effects when making your decision.

 

Are you meaning never use headphones again? Or until this dies down. Oops I've been using them a lot since I got T and sometimes at moderate volume. Hope that hasn' screwed my chances

 

This is very common among tinnitus sufferers.

Be careful - headphones/earphones might interfere with your recovery, and even lead to an increase in volume.

Have you experienced Any improvements compared to how you felt six weeks ago?

Noises that healthy people don't even notice, can be devastating for one of us, whose ears have been compromised.

 

I am not an expert, I am guessing that until the T calms down, then very carefully. But, I am not a doctor so I cannot say without any certainty.

 

Yes it has got quieter since 6 weeks ago.
Played a 20-20000hz test to see if my hearing is OK. Used to get up to 17khz, but now I can only hear up to 16khz when its loud. I regret putting it that loud out of paranoia of not hearing it. But I guess I just couldn' hear it since its similar to my T. At least I hope that's the case.

 

If it has been getting quieter during your first two months, then chances are that it will fade a lot, or even disappear completely. It might take 6-12-24 months before that happens, though. Make sure not to get a secondary acoustic trauma.

 

Thanks no more stupid loud hearing tests then. Should I try a nasol spray because moving my jaw also makes a clicking / crunching sound in both ears. Could be pressure / liquid issues? I had enough liquid in my right ear to cause its pitch to change but that has passed.

 

Sounds like TMJ. I don't know much about TMJ.

 

I forgot to mention that i first noticed my T after pouring war olive poil in my right ear to reduce inflammation of my ear infection. My left ear didn't react like that when i poured oil into it. However my left ear had a very minor infection in comparison.