Punched in Ear. Will My Tinnitus Go Away?

@ZachB - I started Saturday with low T, went to the gym, then the cinema (I think I'll need to revisit that one) and a restaurant that played music at 85db. Spiiiiiike. This will be a learning process for you in terms of where you can and can't go and which precautions you should take. In any case, do not leave the house without some plugs, just in case.

You never know when you're going for a quiet drink with friends and some open micers start playing. I actually believe one introductory story here is from where this or something similar happened.

I think your chances are good for a complete recovery, but one thing I was told is that, how we perceive the T or focus on it early on will have a big impact on how it develops.

Quote:
" Tinnitus is known to be associated with deeper processing centres of the brain. It's theorised that once signals travel from the ear to the auditory cortex, caudate and putamen, they then make their way to other regions of the brain where more sophisticated processing takes place. This involves memory, and your brain interpreting the meaning of the sound, whilst giving it emotional significance. There are various studies that have been carried out on the brain of people with tinnitus vs people without using MEGs and EEGs. What's usually apparent, is that the tinnitus brains have other areas activated, with neurons firing in synch with the auditory cortex. It's like a complex web of connections. Many believe that the way we deal with tinnitus (especially early on) has ramifications on how the brain learns to deal with the problem. If the amygdala attaches relevance to it, it's likely our emotions will also be caught up in it, creating a heightened perception.

Our behaviour can be an important factor in how the problem gets handled. Some of the overprotection, and avoidance practices, attach significant weight to the tinnitus signal in your subconsciousness. The brain is smart, and will usually learn to ignore it if you don't become overly anxious about it. Loud noise is a common trigger, but the way we deal with the aftermath can lead to further problems if we let it get out of control."

I've made a promise to myself to stop spending so much time on this forum and work on the goals I have in life, regardless of the fact that I'm now even crankier than before T. lol.

 

Did I send you the PM list of all the people who had the T more or less go away? @JohnC took nearly 2 years or so for it to go completely. You are 6 weeks in! It can definitely improve. And you know, Neuromod will be released this year. Allegedly. Don't lose faith that you could hear silence again. It may not be soon, but you have to believe you will one day, either through neuroplasticity or advancements in science and technology. My audiologist is sure that we'll be able to cure hearing loss (and by extension, T) in our lifetimes.

I don't have time to read the study you're citing just now in depth, but I think this study compares milder hearing loss with more pronounced hearing loss. Nobody in that study had no measurable hearing loss.

 

You still think my T can go away on its own completely even though it’s already been 6-7 weeks of non stop high pitch loudness? Like over 6 months?

 

I think the data indicates that is a possibility, yes. It won't necessarily be gone by then, but don't count yourself out just yet. If it doesn't fade completely, there's every chance it can fade to a 2/10 level that's tolerable. There are other exciting things on the way, like Neuromod.

 

I’m in a store right now and it’s 50-60 DB and I still hear the T. Even at that intensity now most people’s T fades by 6 months and it’s usually really bad at the start?

I’m going crazy thinking this is forever

I’m really worried...some people’s careers are ruined by this and I’m a wreck for the past 5 weeks. Anti anxiety med Isn’t even doing the job right now.

 

I am thinking you may be focusing too much on the sound, e.g. you've now gotten to a point where you've focused in on the signal so much, you can pick it out in busy environments.

Please try not to focus on the signal. Are you doing any masking right now?

Some people react differently to T. One of my friends has loud intrusive T and hasn't changed anything about her life. She still hears it every day, if she listens to it, but she hasn't changed anything. Still goes to gigs, still travels and has fun, her life didn't change one bit. She hasn't even been to her GP to see if earwax could be adding to her T. I asked her if she still has it and she says yes, still loud T like a pure tone.

We are both very different to that type of personality - if we weren't, we wouldn't be on here.

At the moment, you and I are both going through a bit of habituation. Sadly, there are no cures for me RIGHT NOW and it looks like the same thing for you. My goal is not to be some sort of TRT, CBT or mindfulness bluepiller, but the reality is that this will be with us at least for a little while. We have to be able to deal with what we have right now, with the hope that it can either fade, be changed by something like neuromod and eventually some sort of surgery/stem cell injection can finish it off. I guess it's a mix of red and blue - purple pill, if you will.

My suggestion to you is to try to fill your mind with the things you want to do - think about the goals you have in life, like this new job. There are people out there who are successful with loud, screaming T. Dana White, for example. He runs the UFC and has bad T.

 

I don’t know how I’ll habituate. Mine started out only when I put my head on the pillow and developed into an all encompassing super loud T. I hear it even with masking apps on my phone.

I am trying not to hear it and push it into the background but it’s so high pitched it’s nearly impossible.

Head on the pillow and it’s screaming at me. I am afraid it won’t fade. Maybe it spiked from ibuprofen. It’s only getting worse and I am scared. I don’t know how people live with this for years. I am young too so how will I go on like this....is there still hope for mine to fade?

 

There is still hope for it to fade, even if it doesn't go completely, there's still a chance for it to fade. How long has it been now? 7 weeks?

How are you coping otherwise? Are you still going to work? Seeing friends?

 

7 weeks yeah. Not working at the moment but have interviews and interview tests starting this week. Coping horribly but seeing an ENT today.

So there’s still a chance it can go away completely despite the loudness now? Really hope this improves.

 

Right. Ok, hopefully you will have a good ENT that can help you. Make sure you have all your questions prepared before you head in. Mine just glazed over the minute he heard the word "tinnitus".

You are still early on. I think you'll know more at 3 months, and even more at 6.

 

A tinnitus clinic said everyone with tinnitus has some hearing loss but you gotta test up to 16. Didn’t want to give an answer on whether it will fade but said once the hair cells are damaged in the ear they’re gone.

 

Everyone has some hearing loss through age and noise exposure from living in our urban cities. No way of getting around that.

Not everyone who loses hearing has tinnitus, though. My mother, for example, is getting to be hard of hearing, but she has no T. Why? Because the hearing loss has been gradual and her brain has had a chance to adapt slowly.

Did they test you up to 16K?

 

ENT said my tinnitus is probably not from the hit to the ear but the stress on the brain caused by the hit and that 90-95% of cases of tinnitus without hearing loss (even tested only up to 8k) go away or fade a lot by 3-6 months in. Also that some meds could be making it worse.

 

Well, there you go! Great news for you. Now it's time to try to de-stress in the best ways you can.

 

Yup. Sleep and mood might be crap for a while but at least I have some hope and it shows that this is probably true:

“etc. For many patients who have experienced tinnitus for less than six months, its natural course is to improve over time, and most people do not go on to have persistent, bothersome tinnitus”

And I’m just in the bad acute stage that Bill Bauer said is not what you end up with <the T newbies hear>

 

Well just found out Trazadone can CAUSE tinnitus and I’ve been on a high dose of it for the past few weeks. No wonder my tinnitus got louder after being quieter!

Gonna tell my doctor I’m done with it.

http://www.europeanreview.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/956.pdf List of drugs that can cause tinnitus, ototoxic or cause vertigo

 

I really hope this medication induced spike goes away! It was so much quieter at the start before the meds. I’ve only taken them for 3-5 weeks.

Hopefully discontinuing them including an anti anxiety med will decrease the spike in my tinnitus.

Really hoping this isn’t permanent

 

Have you tried playing nature sounds (e.g., crickets)? It helps to have something else to listen to, besides your T...

This means that your chance of getting better is higher.

Sounds like you have a knowledgeable ENT.

Ask your doctor what you can replace those meds with, and check whether any of those meds are on the list below
http://hlaa-sbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Ototoxic_Brochure.pdf

 

Well, this is great news. Please post to let us know what is happening when you discontinue the drugs.

 

As I've said before on this board, it really tickles me that doctors tell you to "stay off the internet!" when you get T, but then prescribe you drugs and advice that is by and large dated.

My ENT handed me a 2 page printout from 2009 on on how to deal with tinnitus. 2009. As if there's been NOTHING new in the last decade on tinnitus treatments.

 

3 of the 4 medications I’m on are on that list. Even the anti anxiety stuff to manage tinnitus CAUSES tinnitus.

If I’ve only been on these meds for 5 weeks is it likely once I stop them I’ll notice my T decrease back to the low baseline from before?

I’m pissed off at my doctor now.

 

Zach, I tagged you in another thread! Two other people on this board have reported spikes from the drug you took.

 

Saw that, I replied. Really really hope the spike over the past few weeks from these meds goes away. It went from ear on pillow and spiking in a movie theatre to I can hear it everywhere and every sound spikes it.

 

Utterly disgusting. I feel like centuries from now, people will look at tinnitus treatments like we do wooden legs.

"They did what? Utter madness"

 

I’m most cases medication spikes go away when the person stops the med right?

Usually I read the tinnitus stays when they’ve been on it for years. But the ENT said even 3 doses can cause it with these ototoxic tinnitus inducing meds.

 

I'm too new and too unfamiliar with the stats on this, but from what I've gathered, the spike does in most cases go back to baseline once you've stopped short term usage. If you'd used it longer, it'd be more of a chance of it sticking around. Beyond that is hard to tell. Please keep us updated.

 

Longer term is probably years but the ENT said 90-95% of cases go away without hearing loss and I highly doubt these meds caused hearing loss in 5-6 weeks.

But I definitely noticed things getting much worse from the meds. 3 meds that all cause tinnitus.

 

Yeah, exactly. So when are you seeing your doctor next?

If you want an anti anxiety drug that is no-otoxic, the one I am on is meant to be good. It's called Mirtazapine or Remeron. If you think you still need an anti anxiety drug, discuss this one with your doctor.

 

Monday and I think my case of tinnitus has become severe from these medications....I don’t know how I’ll function if this isn’t a temporary spike from the meds.

Sleeping 2-4 hours a night. Losing faith the T will go away completely and lower. It’s only gotten worse.

 

It's become severe TEMPORARILY. KEEP TELLING YOURSELF THIS.

Stop taking those drugs today. Even if they didn't contribute to your T, they are not working.

What you could try are some more "natural" stress relievers. 5-HTP and L-Tryptophan. Get those at your local healthfood shop. They are meant to help you calm down and destress. I think they're both the main ingredient in Joe Rogan's 'New Mood' supplement. Also get some valerian root and Melatonin for sleep.

Please try to relax and think positively.