Recent Tinnitus Spike Likely from Headphone Use — Very Severe Anxiety

Look, I never said I was going to continue going to concerts or exposing myself to loud noises, I’ve agreed to stop a lot of things today. The only event happening in the future that may possibly have loud noises is a con, which I’m positive won’t affect me negatively at all, there’s a dance comp but it’s not loud at all, and I can refuse to go to the late night dances, it’s not a big deal. But right now I really want some sort of relaxation and hope that things will improve, not just talk about the future, I’m worried about right now

 

You are young, and this means you have a greater ability to heal. If you are careful, your tinnitus ought to stop getting worse.

Don't kick yourself for being unable to not check how loud your tinnitus is. Most of us here don't have the control over our thoughts that would be required to not check on the volume of t all of the time.

The short run sucks, but you ought to feel much better in the long run.

 

My results came back "normal" as well but my hearing is far from it. The standard hearing test (audiogram) doesn't reveal everything. To a degree, it's normal to struggle listening against background noise. With that being said, what you've described about having difficulty hearing someone talk directly to you in a crowded area is a hallmark of cochlear synaptopothy, aka a hidden hearing loss. Not trying to scare you here, but it sounds like you may have beaten your ears up more than you realize. The best thing you can do is start resting your ears. Get a dB app and familiarize yourself with safe exposure limits at the different dB levels.

 

I’ve heard of hidden hearing loss before and definitely think I may have it, some days are worse than others for me, I would like to be officially diagnosed but I’m not sure how that works, but other than with background noise my hearing seems okay, not perfect, but not far from it

 

I'm still seeking a diagnosis myself, but HHL is a fairly recent discovery and the majority of docs and audiologists seem unaware of it or simply don't have the means to test for it let alone do anything about it.

I actually had an audiologist trivialize tinnitus and hyperacusis as things that would just go away if I simply didn't pay attention to them. It's scary having to stand alone without the medical community behind you. But that is the horrible reality of hearing damage and it's nuances.

 

Definitely, I went to urgent care when this all first started a couple years back and they just told me there was “fluid” in my ears, when in reality that wasn’t the case, and then they recommended these tinnitus over the counter pills that were literally just a scam, and I took them for months too! Thinking they were gonna do SOMETHING, but there was no affect. My dad had t from concerts and the fact that he used to sing in a band, but he really isn’t by my side in this at all, telling me that I’m irrational about it and that I just need to ignore it. My mom doesn’t have it and she seems to have the same mindset, just shushes me when I talk to her about it. It’s really nerve wrecking, especially when I feel as hopeless as I do atm.

 

I really hope you’re right about improvements in the future, I do feel like it is just a temporary spike due to the fact that it slowly started to get worse, I remember about two weeks ago it was keeping me up at night, but didn’t bother me otherwise, and then after a few days it just kept getting worse and worse, like it wasn’t just SUDDENLY bad, it was over the course of a few days with each day getting worse, and I feel like a big role played into that is the fact that panic attacks started to occur, and i started dwelling on it again. I do feel like when you learn to ignore t is does get quieter, it did last time for me, the more you focus on it the louder it gets.

 

Also just to add on, there could be other things causing the spike besides noise exposure. When I’m anxious I clench my teeth, Ive found in the past that teeth clenching can likely cause t, I also have been waking up with neck aches and such, I haven’t been taking care of my hygiene well, especially for my ears. I’ve been getting pimples on my ears from earwax, but I don’t think it’s ear wax build up because I can still hear okay. My mom thinks due to the aching it could be an ear infection, which would make sense, but other than the ringing, pain, and popping, there isn’t any other symptoms that I feel relate to an ear infection. It could be from stress too, the past month or so has been one of the most stressful months I’ve had to live through for a while, which could definitely be making it worse too. Idk maybe it’s a mix of things?

 

Have you had your ears checked recently? If you do have an infection that's something you shouldn't just let go. The Doc can usually tell pretty quickly by how your eardrum looks. If you have a wax buildup it wouldn't hurt to have your ears flushed. Just avoid microsuction, others have said it makes T worse.

I'm in the same boat. People keep telling me to "pick myself up and dust myself off." Empathy comes in small quantities from people that haven't experienced this hell. Sounds like your Dad's T might not have been as bad as yours, or he was just able to cope with it better for whatever reason. Doesn't change the fact that you are in crisis mode and need love and support. You are young to be experiencing this and your parents need to understand this is a huge red flag for your hearing and health.

 

I have no idea how bad it is for him because he really refuses to talk to me about it. But I know that he’s had it for years, since before I was born, and he still goes to concerts and loud events monthly, he even blares his music in the car. As for the possible infection, we have some drops I’ve used in the past, but I’m scared to use them again because I don’t want to irritate my ears more, same with wax removal. I’d be lying if I didn’t say I got teary eyed at this, I really wish my parents were there for me more when it comes to my anxiety disorder.

 

Sorry to say but that's terrible of him. Sounds like he may be in denial about his own T. Do not follow his examples living a loud lifestyle. Remember that nobodys ears are exactly the same and don't use his or anybody else's as a baseline to compare your own to. Take care of your ears in every aspect.

 

I know I posted yesterday, and you can find more info there, today my ears are hurting more than they have this entire week, and I seriously don’t know what’s causing it to hurt sooo badly, my tinnitus spike is unbearable (read my last post for more info on that please), and I don’t know what to do anymore, I haven’t showered in a week from my anxiety and ive been feeling nauseous, also due to anxiety. I’m really not sure what to do anymore. I feel hopeless.

 

I think the first thing you need to do is get your ears checked out to rule out an ear infection and wax. Just because you can hear okay doesn't mean you don't have a buildup. Why don't you want to shower? Does the noise cause you pain?

 

Is there any possible way to know if I have an infection from at home? My parents really aren’t willing to take me to the doctor, I know that for a fact.

 

I'm guessing not unless you had an otoscope and knew what to look for.

 

Damn. I really am not sure what it is. When my tinnitus first started from hearing damage it was similar to now, but I don’t remember them aching this badly. Another thing I’m doing that’s not helping is that I’m clenching my teeth by mistake, I know for a fact that that’s terrible for tinnitus, and I keep putting my fingers in my ears for some reason too, which could also be worsening it. I’ve been taking probiotics for a few months because I have been getting infections (I didn’t really want to say WHAT infections, it’s kind of personal) so I’m going to take a break from them and see if there’s improvement, just in case they’re a risk.

 

You may have hyperacusis, it often accompanies tinnitus with hearing damage. Especially if sounds are triggering the pain and popping.

 

I’m not sure what’s triggering the pain or beeping though? I haven’t been exposing myself to anything loud recently, especially not since this started. And as for hyperacusis, what exactly is that?? I am sensitive to loud sounds, but I’ve always been like that, so I’m not sure if it exactly applies to me.

 

This is my first ever spike that’s actually affected me, before I went to a concert (with protection of course), and had one for a few days that really only bothered me if I thought about it, and sometimes I’d get one for a couple seconds every few days or so, which I figure is normal with t. But this one is the worst so far, it’s been the longest (thought I’ve been told they can take around three months to calm down), and the pitch and volume is incredibly inconsistent. It seems each day it is getting louder and more high pitched.

Is this normal with a spike? Does this give it more likelihood of it quieting down soon? I’m only 17, so having something like this at this age truly feels devastating. Currently have missed two days of school over this and am sleeping in my moms room so I feel less alone (and there’s better masking in there, though I can hear my ringing over it right now).

I’m just now sure what to do anymore, are things going to get better or am I going to be stuck crying everyday like this for the rest of my life?

 

It isn't normal for it to keep getting worse... Have you been taking any medications (that might be ototoxic)?

Things ought to get better. Unfortunately it might take a long time before you feel a lot better...

 

This is normal. Here is a poll I created three months after the onset:
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/thread...-make-you-wail-and-weep-uncontrollably.21797/

 

I think you're right about that, I never used headphones loud, just for very long durations.

 

The only medications I’ve been taking are probiotics, ibuprofen (only two pills a day when I have migraines, I’ve heard it can cause tinnitus with big dosages, but I don't know if that’s the problem because I’ve been taking it everyday for years), and ten milligrams of melatonin to help me sleep. I don’t know why it’s getting louder each day, and that’s what’s freaking me out the most. Could it be from anxiety?? Stress?? Do I have an infection?? My mom keeps saying I don’t, but the aching really doesn’t seem normal. It just doesn’t make sense and I don’t know how to ease the ringing so I can just relax.

 

Definitely, when I was younger I was more careless, but ever since I first got tinnitus and was weary, the volume was always below half way.

 

Ibuprofen is ototoxic!
http://hlaa-sbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Ototoxic_Brochure.pdf

Tylenol is the only painkiller that's not ototoxic...

If I were you, I would stop taking Ibuprofen. It is possible/likely? that this is the reason why your tinnitus keeps getting worse.

The ears of some people who have tinnitus have been compromised, and so are more sensitive than the ears of the healthy people...

Ibuprofen.

 

I’m really starting to think it may be an infection in both my ears. I don’t see why it would get worse each day for any other reason. I put some ear ache drops in yesterday and for a few hours it actually made it a little less painful, not a lot, but it was noticeable. I’m really trying to convince my parents to take me to the doctor for proper treatment. I went to the nurse today and she put something in my ear that tests for fluids, it didn’t say there was anything but she ALSO said that it wasn’t accurate or reliable. I’m not positive obviously, but it really does seem like an infection. I get headaches and earaches constantly, and it’s getting worse each day it’s not treated. I could be wrong but it really seems like an infection of some kind.

 

You're 17, you'll be fine , that's what you need to be telling yourself. Sounds like the tinnitus is also spiking because of an underlying issue going by what you were saying regarding earaches etc. My tinnitus is noise induced from lots of years playing in loud bands with no earplugs, back then I was thinking " ahhh i might be deaf when I'm older but f*ck it...I'm not wearing ear plugs for METAL!". But nobody ever mentioned TINNITUS!!! Anyway... I've continued playing (with proper moulded ear plugs) and my tinnitus hasn't gotten worse... yet. It's important that you keep listening to music...as you sound like you need it as much as I do... just be careful with how you listen to it, as one poster said above, it could make it worse, but it might not, so "dip your toe" and see how it is for YOU. Stopping the things you love to do won't be good for tinnitus either.

 

I keep telling myself it’s not permanent to give myself hope, I’m too young to have it be this loud already. I’m really, really hoping it’s an infection, just for some hope of being able to go back to my usual self again. I started to get t when I was a freshman during March (almost two years ago now) and it really bothered me then but I managed to deal with it and it eventually got quieter. It’s just so weird that it randomly is spiking up again for no real reason I can think of, of course there’s little things here and there. But not enough to cause pains besides an infection.

 

Hello everyone, I am seeing my doctor tomorrow thankfully! Hopefully she can figure out what may be causing this, even though I really think it’s an infection of some sort due to the pains I’ve been experiencing.

I just wanted to ask, I’ve been using this for my earaches because the more they hurt the louder my tinnitus, and I was wondering if that’s a bad thing?

My mom just told me to use it so I blindly did both today and yesterday. It actually did help for a couple hours yesterday, but then got bad again a few hours later. Does that mean it’s helping or??? Is it worse in the long run??

 

It's about time you saw the Dr. lol. What are the ingredients in those eardrops? If it's homeopathic my guess is it couldn't hurt.