Hello everyone. I am a 24-year-old male who recently developed, or began to notice a worsening of, non-somatic tinnitus in mid-October after months of taking many ototoxic painkillers such as Ibuprofen, Tylenol, Gabapentin, and Oxycodone due to a chest surgery. Within two weeks of noticing the persistent ringing and sudden ear pain, I went to an ENT doctor and had my hearing checked. They told me that my hearing is within the normal range. I attached the results in the files.
My tinnitus has not decreased, even though I have stopped all NSAIDs since mid-October and now only take Gabapentin and Valium for pain control. I have since learned that the standard hearing test only measures up to 8 kHz and can miss hearing loss at higher ranges. By checking with my own headphones, I found that I could not hear anything above 15 kHz. So I am fully aware that my hearing test is not especially useful for diagnosing the cause of my tinnitus.
I have also read about the Susan Shore device and the research from Harvard Medical School on inner hair cell regrowth in laboratory mice. However, I cannot help feeling discouraged by the slow progress of these research efforts and treatments, especially since the first mention of the Susan Shore device on this forum was in 2013, and here we are in 2025 with no clear release date or confirmed effectiveness for people with non-somatic tinnitus.
I would like to hear what the prospects may be for someone my age who has persistent tinnitus. I would also like to hear from others in a similar age group. For example, has your baseline decreased over the years?
It feels very unfortunate to end up with this condition because I was trying to treat my chest issue at such a young age. Still, I am old enough to understand that life will, at times, unfold in difficult ways.
My tinnitus has not decreased, even though I have stopped all NSAIDs since mid-October and now only take Gabapentin and Valium for pain control. I have since learned that the standard hearing test only measures up to 8 kHz and can miss hearing loss at higher ranges. By checking with my own headphones, I found that I could not hear anything above 15 kHz. So I am fully aware that my hearing test is not especially useful for diagnosing the cause of my tinnitus.
I have also read about the Susan Shore device and the research from Harvard Medical School on inner hair cell regrowth in laboratory mice. However, I cannot help feeling discouraged by the slow progress of these research efforts and treatments, especially since the first mention of the Susan Shore device on this forum was in 2013, and here we are in 2025 with no clear release date or confirmed effectiveness for people with non-somatic tinnitus.
I would like to hear what the prospects may be for someone my age who has persistent tinnitus. I would also like to hear from others in a similar age group. For example, has your baseline decreased over the years?
It feels very unfortunate to end up with this condition because I was trying to treat my chest issue at such a young age. Still, I am old enough to understand that life will, at times, unfold in difficult ways.
