Sudden Worsening of Tinnitus After New Year’s and Loud Squeak

[Maruashen]

Hello everyone,

Many years ago, in the fall of 2017, I suffered hearing damage from a hit to my left ear. This resulted in a muffled sensation and tinnitus. It took me about three to five months before I could function again, and after eleven months, I finally felt like life was worth living. I had habituated. Over the years, I continued to improve. I always carried earplugs and used them in normally loud environments. I was thriving.

However, on New Year's Eve this year, we were sitting inside having dinner. It was warm indoors, so we opened the windows a bit. Suddenly, fireworks went off right outside. I did not think much of it at the time, but on January 1, I woke up with louder tinnitus in my left ear. This has turned my life upside down. The past three months have been hell.

I have been overprotecting myself a lot, to the point where I wore earmuffs almost everywhere, except when sleeping or eating at home. I avoided many potentially risky situations. In the last two weeks, I started trying to return to normal life. I began walking around my apartment without protection, just to reintroduce sound slowly. Things were going okay.

Last night, I decided to move a clothes hanger on a metal pole (a standard IKEA one), and it made an extremely loud squeaking noise. It sounded almost like brakes screeching on a car or bike. I was not wearing earmuffs at the time. The sound gave me a lot of anxiety, so I decided to measure it.

Wearing earmuffs, I used my Apple Watch to check the noise levels and got readings of 67 dB, 66 dB, and a peak of 74 dB when I deliberately tried to make it loud. Then I used my decibel reader to take multiple measurements in both dBC and dBA. I got 69 dB, 67 dB, and 69 dB for dBC, and 66 dB, 68 dB, and 67 dB for dBA.

After this happened, my tinnitus became extremely loud in my left ear, not the right. I could not sleep until 5 a.m., and even then, I only managed four hours before waking up to the same high-pitched tinnitus.

What are your thoughts on this? Earlier in the evening, I felt good about how calm my tinnitus had been in recent weeks. Could this sound really have caused more hearing damage and worsened the tinnitus?

I would really appreciate your advice and hearing about your own experiences.

 

[ColinUK]

All you can do is try not to worry. Over the years, with good days and bad days, I have worn earmuffs around the house just to put butter on toast. I have avoided showering, tried to protect my ears, measured sounds, and limited my life. In all honesty, I have come to the conclusion that you can only do one thing with this condition: try your best to control your emotions and not react.

The only thing that has ever made this any better or worse for me is keeping my anxiety in check. The problem itself doesn't change or go away, but how I react to it changes everything.

For context, tinnitus and hyperacusis have severely and negatively impacted my life. I have to do my best to cope and manage while raising an extremely loud six-year-old. Every day, I worry about a laugh, a squeal, or a dropped toy.

I have had suicidal thoughts many times, wishing for this hell to be over and feeling despair over the never-ending misery. But after all these years, I also know that I can manage.

Most recently, I woke up with new sounds in both ears. My own voice, my daughter's voice—any noise—started distorting, causing feedback and making my tinnitus spike. Despite all the protection and caution, things got worse even though I did nothing. I just went to bed and woke up.

The last time I had a worsening like this, I was signed off work for two months and couldn't function at all. This time, I am managing much better, and I am proud of myself for that.

What made the difference? This time, I didn't completely fall down the well of anxiety. I wasn't walking around the house shaking, acting like I'd lost my mind. I finally realized that the only control I have is over how I react. It's not the tinnitus doing this—it's me reacting to the tinnitus. And I am fed up with letting this thing win.

The reality is that no one on this board knows what will happen, whether the noise caused any issues, or frankly, anything at all. But you can choose to do your best: breathe, stay calm, and not let this thing take over.

Whenever it gets bad, really bad, or completely overwhelming, just remember that you've done this before. You got through it, and you managed to live. Things can always be different tomorrow.

Trust me, I know it's a lot easier to say than to do. This is the biggest battle I have ever faced, but the reality is that it's all you have. Use whatever tools got you through it before, and know that you can do it.