Pressing a Battery Powered Beard Clipper Into the Skin Consistently Reduces My Tinnitus

Hi there, I'm one of those folks that thinks spending too much time on this forum is kind of inadvisable, but I just wanted to quickly share an accidental discovery.

Info on me: tinnitus/hyperacusis after sudden hearing loss. I have zero idea if this method would work, or would even be advised, for those whose tinnitus is due to other causes.

I have a stubbly beard, which I trim every few days with a cheap, battery powered Wahl beard clipper. I found out that after I use the clipper to trim my stubble -- pressing into the skin not too hard, but enough that I get some bone conduction of the sound -- afterwards my tinnitus reduces about 40-50%, every single time, and the reduction lasts anywhere from 5-10 minutes. If my tinnitus is starting from moderate or moderately severe, it reduces to mild. If it starts off mild, it's actually the only time I get the sensation of near-silence.

Try at your own risk -- a quick Google search shows that some people's tinnitus is unhappy with the sounds of clippers. But I never hover the clippers over the ears, only in the beard area up against the skin. My hyperacusis doesn't seem to mind the sound of these clippers.

I've tested it over the course of the past month. A session of using the clippers generally lasts about 2 minutes, after which I get the effect. A nice additional effect is, if my tinnitus is quite bad, after doing the clippers, the ensuing improvement is enough, even over just a few minutes, to calm my nerves to where the tinnitus returns to a more subdued level.

The effect -- for me at least, and I suspect I have very standard (albeit loud) SNHL tinnitus -- is so consistent, that it makes me feel like this ought to perhaps be studied to understand the mechanism behind it. I know some people say that the flicking-against-back-of-head trick works for them for like a few seconds. That never worked for me. This does, and lasts for minutes, not seconds. Perhaps the bone conducted sounds are providing enough auditory stimuli to temporarily halt the ringing. But if so, that seems like perhaps a profitable avenue of study, if it hasn't been studied yet?

Anyway, if you are up for it, please consider giving it a try and let us know your results. I see no reason why a woman without a beard couldn't also try it. I also see no risk of hearing damage from this, as the decibel level is pretty low.

Anyway, best of luck! And don't read this forum too much

 

That's like that head vibrator thing that they said also treats tinnitus and vertigo.

 

Everybody is now going out to buy a beard clipper!

 

Ya know, I think there's definitely something to that. I used my sawzall to cut limbs the other weekend (with hearing protection of course), and it's quite vibrational to your body. I noticed quite a reduction in my tinnitus after that. Thought it was just coincidence but it could be something.

 

I thought vibrating the tiny bones in your ear could worsen tinnitus and hearing loss?

 

I find the same thing with my shaver. When I am having a really bad session sometimes I will shave just to quiet it down a bit, unfortunately the effect only lasts a couple of minutes or so

 

Sounds like the residual inhibition response. Possibly combined with massage/acupressure effect. I wouldn't go too overboard with it though.

 

Interesting, because a recent thread discussed a vibrational device about to enter clinical trials for motion sickness that also, anecdotally, dramatically reduced tinnitus.

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/head-mounted-device-for-motion-sickness-reduces-tinnitus.36129/

 

@Mister Muso -- Good thoughts. BTW, when I first read the above, my brain for a brief moment read it as, "wouldn't go too overbeard on it though".

 

Sometimes a good pun just can't help slipping out!

 

[QUOTE="And don't read this forum too much [/QUOTE]

Just curious why you say not to read too much here. My anxiety levels have gone down tremendously by coming here. I've spent hours reading about symptoms and experiences just like mine. What am I missing?

 

Yeah it’s one of my only coping mechanisms left.