Omicron Infection — Did It Make Your Tinnitus Worse? Post Your Experience

This is the worst ”flu” I have ever had! Fever at 39C for 2 days, even with Paracetamol every 3 hours. Sore throat? More like blocked throat. I am vaccinated but this hit me hard.

Tinnitus is still gone.

 

I had the Omicron with mild cough, runny nose and scratchy throat. Tinnitus got a bit more loud but the spike only lasted for 3 days.

But instead of constant ringing and hissing I now have something totally different. The ringing went to a little man in my head hammering on an anvil. It's not a loud hammering sound but very annoying.

I had Pfizer vaccines and the Pfizer booster. I got Omicron after the booster.

 

Same here, can’t speak.

How many days did it take to recover?

 

My tinnitus came back today. And loud! High electric hiss again. Could be ETD or sinus related. Can't pop my eardrums. I have some Nasonex spray to clear up my sinuses.

Fever is gone.

Hoping the tinnitus goes back to baseline.

 

We have something in common, Elmer, only a slight bit of a difference in the timing. I got Omicron "before" my booster. After my booster, give or take a few days, my tinnitus sound morphed into something completely different, also. As luck would have it, my volume increased significantly. It still hasn't let up.

I am getting so concerned and worried that this may not go back to baseline.

 

It took me a good 4 weeks, from beginning to end, to lose the cough and for my voice to sound normal. Even now, if I go for a walk in the cold weather, I cough for a good 20 minutes once I get home.

So many times I heard people say that the Omicron variant was a milder one, not in my case.

 

I believe I got my tinnitus and ear problems from COVID-19 in November 2020.

3 weeks after tested positive my ears went to hell and still bother me.

I just tested positive again. I'm guessing Omicron. It seems like a cold but my ears are feeling really full. This is the second day. Hoping it does not get worse.

I didn't get vaccinated over fears of worse tinnitus.

 

After the booster, and then the Omicron infection, my tinnitus did go down, but the anvil hammering is still there along with the ringing and hissing I had prior. Now it's spiked that is not wanting to fade back to baseline and it's quite annoying. The hearing aids have a white noise app and it's not helping.

 

Looks like it’s a 50/50 chance of worsening permanently?! That’s crazy. Vaccinated and unvaccinated. Some saying the booster has caused even more worsening. What a nightmare...

This thread is causing me a considerable amount of anxiety, so if everyone doesn’t mind answering some of my questions, that would be great. Just want to clarify everyone’s situation.

@bmxer883, you mention that COVID-19 caused your tinnitus in 2020, I’m wondering how you voted in the thread? I’m trying to figure out if people are voting for permanent worsening based on previous variants.

@kestokas, I know from previous chats with you that your tinnitus also originated for COVID-19, a very serious case, but it was not Omicron. Wondering how you voted?

@Thomas_83, not expecting much change in circumstances since it’s only been a day. I hope you are doing ok. Could you tell me if you were vaccinated?

@emmalee, how long after infection were you vaccinated?

@Elmer B Fuddled, how long after vaccination were you infected?

@AbeS, how are you doing now? Hope things are returning to normal. Were you vaccinated?

@Vassili, you have not been active since announcing you had Omicron. I hope you are doing ok, tinnitus wise, and overall.

I hate COVID-19 with a passion! I am just counting the days till my daughter brings Omicron home. Kinda surprised we haven’t had it yet, but I test twice a week and all have been negative. Part of me wants to just catch it and be done with it, the other part, not so much...

 

I got both the Pfizer and Moderna. Not the booster. Still loud hiss.

 

Thanks. I hope your tinnitus returns to baseline soon.

 

I haven't voted since I'm currently going through infection with Omicron right now.

So far the ringing is same but my ears are more plugged up, and I have issues popping and some ear pain.

I'll vote in a week or two after the infection is over.

 

I see. I was hoping that people had grouped all COVID-19 variants together. Sorry, I was in a bit of a panic this morning.

Hope you are feeling better soon.

 

I actually replied to this the other day, don't know why it didn't appear.

My tinnitus is not as loud now. Hard to tell if it is back at baseline or not since it fluctuates so much.

I can finally pop my ears again and the hearing is back to normal.

I am not vaccinated.

 

It was a short time after, perhaps three weeks or so. The good news is that my tinnitus has shown some improvement in the last two days, finally. Keeping my fingers crossed.

I hope hearing this helps to relieve some of your anxiety.

 

@AbeS, @emmalee, so happy that you are both seeing improvement! I hope it continues.

Hearing from people who have recovered from COVID-19 induced spikes does wonders for my anxiety. Mental health is so important when dealing with tinnitus.

Thank you.

 

Tested positive for COVID-19, probably Omicron, 2 and a half days ago after falling ill the day before.

I voted "I haven't had omicron" 2 weeks ago, before getting infected.

Tinnitus increased maybe 30% for the first day only and I had very mild hyperacusis again which also passed in a day. Not sure what kind of role my laser treatment plays in all this, didn't quit it during the infection. I have never received a vaccine for COVID-19. The other symptoms, excluding a cough every now and then and a bit sore throat, have all passed by now as well.

I want to add that I take cold showers for 10 minutes every day (which I quit when I had the fever), take minerals and vitamins like vitamin D, C, Zinc, Selenium and many others, plus I work out.

All my family members who were infected at the same time, 2 of them had the boosters, had a much worse time than I and are still experiencing some symptoms.

 

Try to keep perspective. This is a tinnitus forum so there is already strong bias. I’m not saying that increased tinnitus from vaccines and/or COVID-19 isn’t a thing to be concerned about but I think the numbers still say it’s rare although not zero. If it’s 50/50 here it’s probably significantly lower in the general public. Having recently gone through some ETD issues, that has me most concerned. It’s misery on another level.

 

Thanks for this. I have been suffering really badly with anxiety the past few weeks.

I think it may be down to the fact that my daughter changed from an outdoor nursery to an indoor one, as we want to prepare her for school in August. She has been outdoors all through the pandemic, and I am now stressing about her getting hearing loss from Omicron, resulting in tinnitus because of my rubbish genes. Obviously, my logical brain tells me this is borderline ridiculous, but I can’t seem to shift the idea out my head, I’ve had the same repeating dream about it for weeks now.

Feeling a bit better now, but had a few panic attacks last week. Crazy what your mind can do. Because of this, my brain has also latched onto the idea that my own ears might also get worse, but to be honest, I am most worried about the pressure/hearing loss in my right ear, not the tinnitus.

 

These numbers are simply impossible. And I do not say to downplay your worry, but to put it into perspective and try to mitigate it. This poll might be approximate at best, for several reasons:

• the respondents' sample size is too small;
• there probably is some sampling bias;
• there is no timeline indicated - a "permanent" worsening might be reversed, say, in 3/6/9/whatever months. So the answers might change with time;
• according to the results, there is a 10% chance of improving after catching Omicron; honestly, I am going to go out and get it. It would be probably more effective than any supplement / Prednisone / TRT.

 

I tested positive for COVID-19 (Omicron I suspect) on 12 February. Horrible flu like symptoms and on the fourth day noticed an increase in my tinnitus. I wasn’t too concerned because after 5 years with tinnitus you know it fluctuates a lot and mine has always gone down again. It hasn’t yet.

I went out again for the first time on 22 February and noticed a massive increase in pain hyperacusis. I had been kind of stable before and on the same level and now I’m back to square 1... I could really cry. It really feels like how my pain hyperacsusis was in the first few months.

Really hoping this will settle in time. I’m not vaccinated btw (I figured the stress and possible side effects of the vaccine would be too much of a risk). My chances of getting COVID-19 were relatively small but seems like these days there’s no escape of it.

I wanted to share my experience, even though it’s not positive up till now. I will post again when I’ve hopefully made some improvements.

 

It took me three weeks to get better. Nasty virus. Headache, temperature, vertigo, problems with stomach, muscle pain, couldn't smell anything for a week. Tinnitus is more or less the same, maybe a bit louder but I don't know if it's connected with virus. It can be a usual fluctuation.

Thanks for asking.

 

Good to hear from you @Vassili, I thought you were having a time of it when you fell silent. Happy to hear that you are on the mend, and that all your progress has not been unraveled.

 

Hello, I'm a fellow Omicron-haver at the moment! On day 7 of symptoms, and currently unvaxxed due to my Doctor's recommendation (unrelated health). Tested positive on the 19th.

It's all been general flu-like symptoms for me; body aches, runny nose, slight fever, headache... the worst days were at the start, but I think I'm on the mend now. Just dealing with a lingering cough and fatigue.

COVID-19 has definitely given me a spike, though, and an annoying one at that. Started around day 3 of symptoms... from someone who was considerably comfortable and habituated to my tinnitus, this has been disappointing, but I remain hopeful that it'll calm down in another week or two. Every other spike has thus far.

I've got some new tones and a few aches in my ears. It's not necessarily louder, but I am struggling to mask it with the usual things. Could be due to congestion... or maybe inflammation? Not entirely sure, just going to see how it feels + sounds a week from now.

 

Mine worsened on day 3 as well. Just got louder, and the worsening was about equal to previous worsenings (currently the 4th).

 

Checking in to say mine is still worse from my infection back during New Year's.

 

My timeline was much the same as yours, my spike became noticeable around day three. I, too, was comfortable and accepting of my tinnitus, so I understand your disappointment. Keep the hope, it is all we really have for the most part. My spike is still with me, although it has lowered a bit, just not back to my baseline volume or tonal pitch. This morning it is actually much louder once again, one step forward, two steps back.

I wish you nothing but the best and hope that your spike will subside completely and quickly.

 

So sorry to hear this, kingsfan. Time may well work in your favor, these spikes can take several months to back off, yet they very well can subside.

 

Day three seems to be the common denominator, here. Best of luck, hoping your tinnitus will lower, it doesn't seem like too much to ask, we just want some relief.

 

So I had COVID-19 back on January 1st. No tinnitus whatsoever before COVID-19. Didn’t exactly know what it even was. Got it on day three of infection and 4 months later I’m sitting here typing and still have it. That along with ear popping. Literally pops every single time I swallow. So annoying. Two rounds of Prednisone, Z-pack, Amoxicillin, you name it. “It should go away” they say. Surrrre...