Pulsatile Tinnitus During Recovery from Brain Surgery?

Hello everyone,

I really wish I wasn't here but ah well, here I am. I have usual tinnitus that I believe was caused by a cold back a few years ago. The entry into that was its own hell but with time and a lot of effort, I learned to just deal with it for the most part. Some days were worse than others but besides avoiding noisier situations I was to the point of what I would consider 'okay'. All of that is not the reason for me writing this today though.

I recently underwent brain surgery a few weeks ago. The recovery so far has been rough although I know its very early to not cut myself any slack to heal but I don't handle this sort of stress well and my mental health always takes a nose dive, but I am trying my best. 3 days ago I got myself out of bed and went to the kitchen only to notice my left ear (the left side of my head is the side surgery was performed on) was making a rhythmic pulsing noise that wasn't terribly loud but it was enough to make me uneasy. It came and went throughout the day, of course scaring me a lot. Day 2 and it seemed to lessen to a degree, it would show up but always get quieter. It would pop up when I would eat or if I stood up to fast with the accompanying pressure increase in my head which has been happening since I returned home from surgery. I was able to function throughout the day and was able to sleep but it picked up again for day 3, today.

Its now just a constant muffled heart beat as I sit here, it intensifies if I turn my head to the left or if I stand up too fast. I feel pressure on the left side of my head and like something is swollen though everything looks okay from the outside I guess. My follow up with my neurosurgeon isn't for a few weeks although I've called the office to try and speak with someone about my concerns but missed their call back today and have to wait till tomorrow for (hopefully) another call. I am absolutely terrified at this point, probably more scared than I've been in a long while. It's funny really, I wasn't this afraid when I was told I needed brain surgery. I'm terrified that this is one more thing I'll have to deal with on the long term when I have been trying so hard to get better.

Could this pulsatile tinnitus be part of this rocky recovery? Do I have a reason to be scared out of my mind because at the moment I'm already at that point, even though I'm sure that sounds ridiculous. I'm not even sure what to think right now. I was hoping to put all this behind me and recover and now I have something that has put me under immediate stress and I know that is not doing my recovery any favors, if anything its going to slow it. This entire thing is just so isolating and I have zero clue what to do now. Any help in some sort of direction would be incredible.

 

Hello @alwaysafraid, how are you now?

I’ve just read your post.

Sending prayers.