OK, Spike Is Permanent. What Sound Levels Are Safe Now?

I've mostly habituated to my tinnitus that spiked about 5 months ago. Starting to accept it. I think it's from headphone use, but it could be neck related. No hyperacusis, maybe some high frequency hearing loss (at least online tone generators suggest this).

However, my tinnitus varies greatly. With 10 being MY highest tinnitus level, it fluctuates between 1-10. Usually from day to day. Sometimes it comes/goes during the day.

This is problematic when I try to determine safe audio levels for my ears (using speakers), because I can't determine if my spikes are from noise or if they are unrelated. Sometimes I get spikes during the night or the next day after listening to music (low volume 4-8 hours), but I get the same spikes when spending days listening only to sound enrichment.

So what do I do? Buy a dB meter and stay under 80 dB? Some people on the forum think people with tinnitus are more sensitive to sounds, and that the "standard" recommendation for safe noise exposure is not valid for people with tinnitus.

Where do I go from here? I only want to be able to use speakers and sing (sometimes loudly) without making my tinnitus worse. Never touching headphones again, never going to gigs even with protection and so on.

Every professional I've spoken to recommends just continuing as usual and not worrying about the T getting worse from noise, which makes absolutely no sense to me. Especially since so many people here get worse T from doing "safe" things like going to shows with earplugs.

 

That's exactly what my doctors told me and to be fair, I think this advice works for many people. But there seems to be a group of people that don't fit into this model and I think doctors are being ignorant by ignoring them and their experiences.

What I would recommend:

• continue to give your ears a break, don't go to loud events with hearing protection
• don't listen to anything through headphones (or reduce using them if possible), don't sing loudly (if possible)
• perhaps try supplements like NAC, magnesium, vitamin b12, vitamin d, etc
• see a physical therapist, be aware of your posture throughout the day

Wished I could give you better advice. I hope your spike isn't noise related and that it will calm down!

 

From what I’ve read, using the EPA/WHO scale for noise exposure seems to be the best bet. The scale says 75 dB for 8 hours is the max safe exposure vs 85 dB for 8 hours.

 

Right off the bat I think it's very positive you don't suffer from hyperacusis/phonophobia. Keep it that way. These conditions almost always make existing tinnitus a lot worse. At least that is true of myself. The next good think IMO is that your tinnitus fluctuates a lot and is not relentlessly at the same volume. It might still back off to its baseline.

My tips:

• don't sing aloud with your ears plugged. The occlusion effect is real https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occlusion_effect
• if I were you I'd use loudspeakers from now on instead of earphones or headphones
• regarding safe volumes for T patients; that's a pretty problematic topic and this may also be dependent on the degree of damage that was done to one's auditory system. my personal preference is to follow the EPA guideline as they adopted the strickest noise exposure standards https://midimagic.sgc-hosting.com/spldose.htm
• not possible to always stay under 80 dB(A) -sudden impact noises, but if you want a discreet dB meter to monitor steady state sound lvls in a restaurant e.g., get the official NIOSH Sound Level Meter app for iOS devices
• sorry to hear about your docs not being helpful. it may take many hits before you run into the right one but in the end it's totally worth it. a lot of shows are insanely loud and a pair of earplugs might not suffice. not worth the risk. more on the real NRR of hearing protectors by Occupational and Agricultural health, Mitch Ricketts, Ph.D., CSP here
• instead of a course of Prednisone I'd try this out in your position: Vitamins A, C & E Combined with Magnesium Help Prevent Noise-Induced Hearing Loss + NAC
• seek out an upper cervical chiropracter to help you with your c. spine and posture
• check this out: Managing tinnitus spiking and some more helpful tips from our members here: Tinnitus Spike Relieve Thread

I hope it improves for you, man.

Cheers.