Noise Induced Hissing (Acoustic Trauma from a Wedding)

I had an acoustic trauma from a wedding in October. 2 weeks later, when waking up, there was a sudden reduction in hearing and tinnitus started right away. The hearing was back to normal 1 or 2 days later. Initially the tinnitus would switch between hissing and the high pitch eeeee sound. Now it is mostly hissing. The hissing increases with sounds like AC, high volume tv. If everything is quiet, it's not so bothersome. However it goes crazy when I'm outside and keeps going up and down. I am dreading going outside because of this. But I try to keep regular normal sounds around the house to avoid hyperacusis.

Would like to hear your thoughts. All I hear from ENT doctors is just wait. I can deal with it while I'm indoors but outdoors is just torture Anyone with similar experience? All support is appreciated. Thanks.

 

Was this the kind of wedding where guests shoot AK47 to the sky to celebrate?

 

No, just loud music in a medium hall but I was sitting near the speakers.

 

I suggested the steroid shot, but my ENT wouldn’t do it because no hearing loss was found.
I still disagree with this... and have thrown him into the dustbin of idiot medical people.

Are there ANY competent ENTs? Doesn’t seem so.

 

It's now 40 days since onset. Nothing has changed. Same level, not the slightest reduction whatsoever. Should I just surrender to the fact it's permanent and those synapsis are dead. Is the fact that tinnitus started 2 weeks after the trauma an indication that my tinnitus is unlike other noise induced tinnitus? Adding to that not receiving any medicine at all. I had hope at first because hearing is normal but now I need to face reality. I'm not seeing any success stories similar to my case. I can accept the consequence of my stupid decision to go to that damn wedding. Just need to adapt my life to this new reality.

 

Please, can anyone help? Do you think I'm overreacting?

 

@Svensk I saw an ENT and ultimately got on a steroid on about day 12. I recall the doc said it needs to be taken in the first 30ish days. If you can't get a prescription or shot, then....what I did to continue my journey was to take another corticosteroid, that being Flonase, actually a generic. You quirt it low in the nose near the Eustachian tubes (not "up" to the sinuses), and then optionally do the valsava method to help move it along the Etubes.

You might read up on other steroids you can get OTC and how to apply and decide for yourself, but that is what I did.

 

Everyone is talking about the steroids. Are there cases where steroids were not prescribed and people with noise induced tinnitus got better? Aren't steroids to prevent further damage? But if hearing is normal, is it still needed? With every one of these posts about steroids, I am starting to have suicidal thoughts.

 

In your country a prescription is required to get prednol (steroid pills) from a pharmacy? If not, you can buy it yourself and start with 80 mg protocol, for 15 days with decreasing dosages everyday. When my T started I couldnt understand that it was due to acoustic trauma and since there were no hearing loss any ent doctor prescribed me steroid despite my insists.. I would like to have tried this in the first 2 months after the onset..

 

There is a thread in the "Treatments" section on this website about steroids/prednisone. From what I've read online the evidence that steroids works for noise induced tinnitus is very unclear, even if taken immediately after the trauma. Read about it and make up your own mind if you want to try it. I don't believe that prednisone is a magical cure for tinnitus, but for sudden hear loss with tinnitus that is not from sound trauma it might work if taking within a couple of days. I don't think you should take your own life, it might get better with time, some people here claim that. I have only had tinnitus for three and a half weeks so I don't know if that's true yet, but don't give up hope!

 

Please don't feel bad, plenty of people don't get a steroid. Read the Success Story section. I took a look and the first 3 I clicked did not mention steroids. But as well, you do have options. I tried to give you one. Hang in there.

 

I've reached the conclusion that my tinnitus is permanent. This is based on the experience of other forum members who displayed similar symptoms and had it for years. Anyone who stood near the speakers for extended time would afterwards have muffled hearing which sets off tinnitus. This tinnitus is reactive, high pitched and is usually lower in the morning and in the quiet when no background noise is present. Masking doesn't help as it only exacerbates it. Sleeping isn't severely affected. These members like me were assured by their doctors that their tinnitus would go away wrongly thinking that their damage was like other concert goers without realizing that no, these are different. This type of tinnitus doesn't get better with time due to its reactive nature. So even habituation is not possible.

I've become so indifferent to everything. My family depends on me and it's difficult to stay strong and be happy when I'm broken inside. It's difficult to enjoy life when you know that whatever you plan to do, this nuisance will always be present. Not to mention that when you face other problems in life, you have this on top of it. I now need to take precautions in everything I do not to make it better but instead not to make it worse. Now, I have to spend my life between "good" and "bad" tinnitus days. I understand that these feelings are usual the first few months and later move on.

Sorry for this depressing post, I'm now at a very very dark place in my life and what kills me is that it is affecting my family.

How does a person adapt to this new awful reality.

 

Most of us have been where you are and even though I don't know how bad yours is, most of us do adapt and habituate somehow.

For me, there has never been one solution to adapt, but time just makes it happen. I still hate it a lot and especially during periods with "spikes" or when it's become permanently worse.

Most likely, you'll get through it. Just hang in there.

 

Yours is very similar to how mine started. Very reactive tinnitus always competing to sound louder than anything around me. It settled with time. Just try to avoid loud sounds. Sudden loud sounds are the worst in my opinion.

May I ask you what have made yours permanently worse and how would you describe that worsening?

 

I'm in the same dark place as well, I totally understand.

I agree, you don't want to drag others down with you but at the same time it's impossible to put on a good face. My depression has gone off the charts from self-guilt for going to the concert that ruined the life I was living and enjoyed. You're 100% right; the anxiety of having to manage your new, awful condition on top of the additional curveballs life will inevitably throw, is also debilitating. I am constantly battling anxiety attacks. I'm just hoping and praying that time brings healing. We are powerless to do anything else but wait and avoid more noise.

We're in it together.

 

Loud music/noise with not enough protection... It caused a louder tinnitus and a slightly different ringing.

 

Was it concert with earplugs?

 

No. The last time was at a party with a DJ. The volume was apparently louder than most places. Also, on another occasion I was at a hockey game with my lower filters in my earplugs, and there was a fire alarm...

 

Hi @Svensk.

I can relate to so many of these feelings. I have loud, hissing and ringing noise-induced tinnitus that was caused by a neighbor shooting off 3 LOUD M80 fireworks on the 4th of July. It has been 2 weeks now. I couldn’t tolerate Prednisone so never took it. It is destroying me and every aspect of my life. I am filled with daily anxiety and depression since I hear it all day/every day. I have a family that needs me and this is bringing everyone down.

Has anything improved for you since the early days? Really hope to hear back.

 

I can't understand why my tinnitus is severe?

I hear it all the time, in silence and in noise non-stop for 10 months now, same irritating tone in left ear.

I read of people clubbing for years and going to many concerts and only hear theirs in the quiet or can mask it with a fan. Mine is bad in the quiet and worse with a fan. I only went one time to a god damn wedding and that was it, it's like I committed an indefensible crime to have my tinnitus so different from the regular.

I don't have hearing loss, I can actually hear the frequency of my tinnitus if played into the ear, no hyperacusis. Just don't understand why mine is so bad. People say it gets better with time but I'm not seeing that, it's the same as day one.

I can't bring myself to the fact that this is with me permanently.

 

Thought I'd check in after 2 years of getting tinnitus from an acoustic trauma. I would've loved to say it's gone but sadly no. However I'm not as affected by it as I was when I first got it. I guess my brain just got tired. I try to avoid loud noises but if they happen they happen. I don't panic like I used to. What helped during these years was using an MP3 that played a masking static sound courtesy of myNoise.net because my tinnitus is high frequency and that was the only sound that covered it. It really saved me. From time to time when I'm not distracted, I hear it louder but then I just use the MP3. I know at this point it's not going away, that's why I just accepted it.

Hope this provides any help to people new to tinnitus.

 

Hey @Svensk,

I’m happy to hear that some habituation has happened in your case. Mine is similar except it’s bilateral (sounds like it’s in the center of my head which is absolutely torturous). While mine is very reactive I’m still on the hunt for any masking sounds I can find, currently ACRN gives me very very brief second to second relief.

Can you share what static noise on the myNoise app worked for you? Mine is very high frequency as well.

 

Thank you for coming back with an update.

 

It's called Impulse.

 

Wow thank you so much @Svensk! I too am surviving moment to moment on a handful of YouTube tracks and neuromodulation for HF reactive tinnitus and the way this sound is pulsed is super helpful. Anything continuous sets mine off too.