Sudden Tinnitus for 3 Weeks! Help! Is It From a TENS Unit?

New here. 21 yo female. I have a long history of health problems so I'll make it short- I've had a headache every day for 20 months and instead of getting better I've been developing more and more symptoms. My nervous system has completely fallen apart and my doctors have diagnosed me with general dysautonomia. I have horrible nausea, fatigue, anxiety you name it. I'm going to be hospitalized next week.

However I never suffered from TINNITUS... Well not like this. I would experience the common tinnitus after a loud concert, and once in a while I would get a loud ringing for a few seconds, but right now I've had constant horrible tinnitus and fullness in my left ear for 3 WEEKS. It's a really high pitched white-noise ringing type of sound. I went to my ENT and he said everhthing was crystal clear but that maybe my sinuses (chronic sinus infections) are affecting my ears. I've suffered with my sinuses for years so why would this suddenly come up now?

Here's my feeling- has anyone ever used a TENS unit for pain? (Used commonly for muscle pain). Exactly around when my tinnitus started I began using CEFALY- a TENS unit that you wear like a tiara on your head that stimulates the trigeminal nerve and eases migraines. Like I said I never had tinnitus issues before I started using this. And one of the contraindications is not to use it if you have MENIERES diseas... Probably what I have since I had vertigo for a few years as a kid. Anyway thoughts? My neurologist thought I was crazy and I emailed the engineers at Cefaly and they denied it..Google Cefaly if you've never heard of it (I imagine lots of people here also have migraines). I can't sleep at night I need help Each day it gets louder.

 

I just started getting physical therapy for a TMJ problem - at the end of the session, she put electrodes around my jaw, both sides, for 10'. My tinnitus - which has 3 'tones' and been there for 35 years, noticeably diminished for several days afterwards. The next session (last week), I took home a TENS unit and have used it a couple of times, with each session resulting in improved hearing and reduced tinnitus. I can't believe the difference!

 

I use a tens unit every day for lower chronic pain. But NOT on my head or near my ears. The pads are on my back and lower stomach area. No effect on tinnitus.

But this reminded me of one of the most weird things I did 12 years ago. I had the chiropractor use them on my neck just under my ears. All it did was produce a bad red rash area. But we were trying to find some way and just thought maybe....it was not one of my more brighter ideas.

I can kind of laugh about some things now. Like putting different drops of this and that in my ears...all it did was grow a garden in my ear canal. The ENT was rather amused after I told him why it was there.