Science Behind Short Tinnitus Spikes

This might be a very "Tinnitus 101" level of question, so I apologize in advance.

I've been wondering what causes spikes that only last for a shorter period of time? Or is it what's called reactive tinnitus?

Every time I take a shower, blow dry my hair, vacuum, travel in a vehicle, I get a temporary increase (like 2 times louder than the normal level) in the volume of my main sound, but only for an hour or so.

Do the neurons get overstimulated? Or the hair cells are sensitive? Does this mean that the hair cells reacting and therefore cranking up the tinnitus volume are not totally damaged, but slowly dying carrying a risk that tinnitus will be worse and increased permanently in the future?

 

It almost seems like this is what happens to people after a really loud noise (eg concert) - they have some tinnitus that goes away after a few hours.

Maybe it's your tolerance that's down and causing short spikes that disappear quickly after the noise. Just guessing though.

 

Probably no one could give you a definitive answer on it. We have only our own experiences. I have that too and over the years it is more easily triggered. Seems like damage to the ear is additive meaning even if I recovered from some acoustic trauma with no permanent tinnitus increase the ear is in a more fragile state (that is spikes are set off more easily). Let's hope that the damage that is done there is hair cell damage and FX-322 will save us.

 

Potentially FX-322 could be released in 2 years which is great news and hope it solves our issues such as hyperacusis and tinnitus.

 

I'm honestly dying for some good news right now - it's a shame Audion are playing hard to get but I hope FX-322 succeeds asap.

 

These spikes might continue being temporary. Another way this might play out is that if you continue ignoring the signals sent to you by your own body, eventually you will end up with a permanent spike.

Consider doing what you can to shield yourself from any noise that gives you a spike. Hopefully doing so will promote your healing. A year or two from now you will likely become more resilient and those sounds won't have that impact on you.

 

I hope both are successful in the clinical trials for hyperacusis and tinnitus. They seem to be doing a similar thing. Maybe Audion are playing hard to get cause they might be better than FX-322 lol

 

Ok, but do you know any way to avoid these sounds? I'm not ignoring the signals. I use a muff and/or earplugs for the above mentioned stuff and still get spikes. I cannot not perform personal hygiene and avoid every form of transportation... I'm not going clubbing, concerts, restaurants, bars, I'm doing what is absolutely necessary to live a life which reminds me a tiny bit of a life worth living.

 

Yes, the best option surely would be to go now into some from of hibernation and wake up in 5 years to see what regenerative medicine has in store for us.

 

Take baths instead of showers, take your shower early enough so that your hair can dry without a hair dryer (you can also pull some moisture out of your hair with paper towels/toilet paper after your towel seems to no longer be effective), get a family member to come out once a week or two to vacuum your home (some extra dust will be better than a tinnitus spike).

Traveling in a car is a harder one to fix. Are you using the right plugs/muffs? 3M's Peltor X5A and
https://www.amazon.com/3M-1100-Foam-Plugs-200-Pair/dp/B008MVYL7C
work well, especially if you wear the plugs underneath your muffs (giving you an additional noise reduction of 5 dB).

 

Yes, I have a Peltor X5A (I have like 3 other muffs too, one of them is Optime, the other two are noname) and tons of 3M foamies and some silicone ones too. Should be enough for traveling, maybe the type of noise spikes me, don't know. (Although since I started to use the X5A, my less problematic ear started twitching. Is it a coincidence? Otherwise it's the best muff I own.)

Can't take bath instead of showers, because don't have a bathtub.
In the summertime, I will definitely air dry my hair.
I'm trying my best to reduce the risk of a spike and adjust my life to this situation, pretty much cut out everything else which gave me joy, but resulted in a spike.

Cryosleep from sci-fis really starting to look like a very favorable option.

 

Have you experimented with finding the lowest water pressure that would still allow you to take a shower?

 

Yes. I'm trying to find techniques to reduce spiking. Like it's the worst when water reaches the bottom of the shower directly, so I try to avoid that.