Tinnitus Continuing Because of Anxiety?

A little background about me before I start this post off. I've been suffering from health anxiety for the last 4 or so years (basically started a year after my dad passed away). Had it for numerous health related issues that I somehow convinced myself is worse than it is and I'm gonna die etc etc ..typical health anxiety.

My current issue is this ever so slight hissing/ringing/eeeee noise in my left ear I experience when I'm in a very quiet room or when I put my fingers in my ears to block any other sound.

It started around 2 or so months ago on a flight. Got a very bad pain in my left ear caused by air pressure. Anyway lasted a few hours and I was fine afterwards. Fast forward a couple of days (the morning after clubbing) and I was sure I could hear a ever so slight ringing. This continued for around 2 weeks where I would continuously go to different rooms to test if I heard it, block my ears to see if I could still hear the sound, google stuff about tinnitus at every opportunity, assume the worst etc etc).

Anyway one day around 2 months ago I got my girlfriend to basically go in various different rooms with me with any external sound off and explain what she could hear. Basically she could hear exactly the same thing as me and described it exactly how I was hearing it (although it took her a few seconds later to hear the sound being that she wasn't specifically looking for it). This reassured me immensely and for the next 2 months I literally did not think about it at all...it didn't bother me...I didn't test to hear it....I literally just forgot about it and paid it no attention at all.

Fast forward to last Friday when I went to a club where the music was loud. As soon as I left the club my ears were ringing in both ears. Anyway around 2 days later the ringing in my right ear had stopped completely but the hissing/eeee in my left ear was still there (although I can only hear it in very quiet environments again).

Now what I'm thinking is that I have always had this sound but never paid attention to it (and I only paid attention to it now due to the actual tinnitus ringing I had a couple of days before due to the club). I found it very strange that my previous episode of this ended the same day when I got confirmation/reassurance that my girlfriend could hear it as well.

Could it really just go away after 2 weeks of constant worrying straight when I receive this confirmation or is the likely outcome that I simply stopped thinking about it and it stopped being an issue. I think my health anxiety is the underlying cause of all this...does that sound stupid??

I just do not see how I can continuously worry about an issue for 2 weeks...then not think about it (and it doesn't affect me one bit for 2 months because I got some reassurance)..then now it's returned but I'm honestly thinking it probably never actually went. It's just I'm paying it close attention because of the loud noise exposure on the Friday.

My health anxiety is a big issue and really affects my sleep. It's not so much the quiet hissing/ringing I'm hearing when I'm going to sleep that keeps me up (that can be masked up) but the feeling something is wrong. Any advice is much appreciated.

 

Hi there and welcome to the forum

Anxiety and stress can do many things to the body/mind. Please protect your ears, going clubbing or being around loud noises, can further damage your ears and make your tinnitus MUCH louder. I was in your shoes and had a low tone/hiss (I'd give anything in my life to have a low tone hiss again) and was foolish and listened to louder music and went to loud places.

At the end of the day, I have beyond horrible tinnitus and wish for yours to stay low, but you must protect your ears.

 

@fishbone

can you give examples of the places that made your T worse so us noobiesan hopefully not make the same mistakes.

When you say loud noises or places do you mean concerts, clubs, sporting events, shooting etc.

Or do you mean things like resturants, pubs and bars, gyms etc

I'm in the process of trying to find a new gym and ive been to 3 gyms all which play fairly loud music, it'd not club level music but the db metre says 75-90db. even with ear defenders I don't feel safe after reading comments such as yours .

Thanks

 

Thanks mate. Will definitely protect my ears in future.

Regarding the anxiety question. I'm just so puzzled and confused as to how and why i could go 2 weeks continuously hearing and being worried about this sound that i could hear in my left ear (regardless of how faint it was) then it literally goes away the day after i got reassurance from my girlfriend that she can hear what i am hearing and stays away for 2 months (until this latest episode).

The latest episode which started last friday night / saturday morning has got me worried again and my anxiety is playing up which is resulting in little to no sleep. Again it's very faint (well i think its not as faint as the previous occasion but still faint enough to only hear it in a quiet room or when i close my ears (and its only my left ear affected again).

What is annoying is that the left ear seems to pick up on any sort of ring sound similar to the Tinnitus. If the air con is on it picks up on the very subtle ring sound and magnifies it (which makes me sometimes think im hearing the tinnitus) or a car engine etc etc. It is picking up on the very faint background sound and magnifying it which it did the last time. Oddly enough that also stopped immediantly after i was reassured by my girlfriend.

My health anxiety recently has been all over the place so i'm thinking this is a contributing factor. If i get my mind right then i can beat this (the very hard part is getting your mind right though).

 

I read something like cortisol/cortison or something has to do with tinnitus becoming chronic. And the cortisonl levels are up because of anxiety etc etc...

 

Dawg I know EXACTLY what you mean!!!! It's sooo annoying! There are threads about it here on tinnitustalk, check out this thread my man https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/hearing-distortion-recruitment-reactive-tinnitus.19449/

 

I will tell you this much. Not all sound is bad sound. There are some damaging sounds for tinnitus, avoid bars, pubs, clubs, concert, live events. I got to concerts still, but i wear ear plugs and protect my ears. This works for me, i am not recommending for people to go or to not go.

I use to do weightlifting and bodybuilding, i HAD to wear ear plugs, because people were just lame and would drop heavy weights (50lb dumbells and 2-300lb barbell sets on the floor or just make heavy noise with them) on the floor or just be loud for no reason. I had to wear ear plugs and protect my hearing.

You have to consider this as well, you guys(most here) are new to tinnitus and I been at this for almost 30 years. I can tolerate many things and some of them are painful(even loud sounds). I was at a loud restaurant lastnight having dinner with my friend and it was loud in there. I don't get scared of loud noises, I know as long as it's not above the damage level and duration of time, then I don't obsess over it. Tinnitus SPIKES don't always happen because our ears were damaged. They can also happen due to fear, excitement, or anxiety.

I have done a few things and some by accident and the sound was loud. I did not think about what happened and the next day or days, i had no spike or anything. Again, i been at this for almost 30 years and experience teaches us many things and we can use that to better our lives...

This is my experience and how i deal with things. I am not making any recommendations or advising here at all....Just understand that tinnitus takes time to adjust to.

 

I'm really puzzled about my apparent Tinnitus and need some advice please.

So as i said before, the last time i experienced tinnitus it lasted approximately 2 weeks until some reassurance from the other half made me literally not think about it for 2 months. During those 2 weeks my symptoms was basically a very faint ringing 'eeeee' sound in quiet rooms or when i closed my ears.

This one is a little different. I can basically put ear plugs on in a very quiet room and not hear any ring (i think i can hear a soft ring for the first few seconds and then it sort of fades into the background and i literally hear a calmimg sort of ocean sound and nothing else). Even if i lie in my bed in the morning without earplugs in total silence i struggle to hear a ring. If i walk into other very quiet rooms at the beginning looking for that sound i struggle but maybe a few times i hear a very faint ring...which then sort of fades away if i close my ears and literally focus in on it.

The issue is at night time that quiet ring that i find extremley hard hearing in other places is more prominent (not loud but i can hear it from my left ear.)

As i said i suffer from health anxiety which really effects my sleep at times. I start getting anxious when its night time and just hope i get a decent sleep. It's like my brain is literally working against me and trying to find ways that i dont sleep (this has been the case through many other health anxiety issues). I'm really just wondering how it is that i find it extremley hard to hear this sound in really quiet places..even blocking my ears or with ear buds (i seem to hear the ring when i concentrate at first for a few seconds and it literally fades away...then maybe after a few minutes i think i heard it again...then absolutely nothing) but in the night i hear it and focus in on it?

Ok so i def think my anxiety is playing a massive part in this. That little ring i was hearing completley vanishes when i put ear plugs on. The problem is i keep testing things out due to my anxiety and literally plug my ears at random times during the day to check what i can hear.
Problem is yesterday night i was sure i could hear a new sound which has now preoccupied my brain. The ring has now vanished and i'm now preoccupied with this new sound that i cant get out of my mind. I don't actually think i can hear it if you know what i mean...its just because i heard it once (i think) and now i'm focused in on it. Anyone got any tips?

 

You should feel lucky for having T only on one ear and not being there constant. What about others who has tinnitus deep inside the head that you might call "head noise" you can just imagine how it feels like! So, my friend, relax and take care. It will get better for you.

 

Thank you for your reassuring words. I understand i'm very fortunate. It's just i could literally hear nothing when i plugged my ears the last week and i thought it was gone but the anxiety literally finds something so my mind can be preoccupied and worried. I was literally checking my hearing by plugging my ears around 10 times a day trying to find a sound. Yesterday night i found it (or think i did) and that sound has folowed me today...
Despite me being almost sure i cant actually hear a sound if you know what i mean.

 

I'm really puzzled about something.
Can it really be Tinnitus if i can block out the ringing sound when i wear ear plugs or when i block my ears? I can basically hear that high pitched (but quiet) eeeee or tiiiiiii sound when i cone into a room and really concentrate but if i block my ears it sort of fades away after 30 secons or so. I don't get it...shouldn't blocking my ears make the sound more prominent?

 

You are correct, normally blocking your ears has no effect on tinnitus.

I am not a doctor (nor do I play one on TV, for those here old enough to remember those commercials ) but if you can stop it by blocking your ears, perhaps the cause of your tinnitus is pressure related? You already hinted at that then you said:

Have you mentioned this to a doctor? I would think that s/he would find the fact that blocking your ears affected you tinnitus quite interesting.

 

I mentioned it to him on during my first bout with T and he didn't seem at all interested. He just said there's nothing wrong with my ears thus there is nothing they can do. Wait it out and it will go. Funnily enough that was the day i felt really defeated...and then later did all those tests with my girlfriend in various room which resulted in it sort of dissapearing out my mind for 2 months (did not hear it once).

If it is indeed pressure related do you know of any techniques or things i can do to totally eradicate it?

 

@Kingdawson

Interesting theory.
I´ve had T for 20 years, and different anxiety for 17 years... Started out with panic attacks, then I got health anxiety and for 3 or 4 months ago I got generalised anxiety on top. Great huh?

So I do know for a fact that my brain is extremely sensitive when it comes to stress and anxiety but the link between T and anxiety did not become clear before I got this generalised anxiety. After doing som research, I have come to a temporary conclusion, that due to higher and steadier levels of stress hormon (cortisol) this affects my T.
I never get a full nights sleep, I am stressed about many things especially health and sickness and now I believe my system has a hang-up and is releasing stress hormons throughout the day (and night).
In this time, I have experienced that my T is louder, and also has presented a new kind of tone or sound.. It´s like a random short beeping sequence. It only lasts for some seconds and then I can go everything from hours to days before it´s back.

Not sure how to cope with this yet, but if I´m right, I believe some techniques to handle stress and anxiety would be helpful. Do you use any AD to help with the anxiety? I dont, and I never have. But as things are now, it is becoming more and more tempting to test some benzos just to get a break.

Good luck

 

You need to find another doctor. This is the perfect example of why people seek out a "second opinion". Doctors tend to focus on certain things, and no one can know everything about everything. You need to find a doctor who is familiar with tinnitus and had a history of treating it rather than just giving up on it and the patient.

 

I feel defeated and it's really effecting me.
So as ive said i have literally been testing this recent bout of tinnitus around 10 or so times a day to see if i could hear that sound. Would go into rooms, close my ears, read forums galore. Just obsess over it. Normally after a minute or less after putting ear plugs on that sound that high pitched ring in my left ear would die down and can not be heard. Would hear a calming forest like sound that i really enjoyed.

Anyway fast forward to last friday and i do one of my many tests in the evening where i go to a quiet room and literally put my ear plugs in and see what i can hear. Expecting to hear a little ring at the beginning which eventually just dies down after seconds....i was shocked/scared when i heard this really odd sound that seemed to be coming from my 'good' ear or even my head. It was a really weird sound...sort of like hissing and a car engine mixed up(not the obvious car engine sound but the very subtle sound you hear when a car drives by). Now i cant get that sound out of my head and my sleep has gone back to non existant. I really thought i was beating this but this new sound seems to be lodged in my head.

My job involves a lot of driving around (and also sitting in a car). The sound i hear when cars drive past is definitely very similar to the new sounds i am getting. It seems my ears/brain for some reason do not like this 'new' sound now and are in defense mode every time i hear it.

 

This is exactly what I think too, I have always had the sound but wasn't focusing on it. Went to an audiological center for tests etc. And they also told me that.

 

Just an update...

So I'm almost sure my anxiety is playing a big part in the feeling I have something wrong with my ear. I occasionally do hear very slight 'eeeee' ringing in my left ear only when it's extremely quiet/silent (that weirdly goes away when i plug my ears) but if I don't think about it I usually don't hear it. As I said, when I ask my girlfriend she hears the same sound so I'm starting to believe the sound is coming from certain places in the house at certain times. How is it that i close my ears and the sound goes? Although the weird thing is I can hear it sometimes when lying down but when I get up I don't hear it which confuses me.

So in conclusion I think I do have very very faint tinnitus in my left ear but my anxiety is the reason it's still there. I think as someone said....it is probably to do with air pressure and that flight was what caused it initially.

I now need to stop searching stuff on the internet and sort my anxiety out. Bless you all and good luck with everything.

 

Just an update

Since my last post my T simply vanished and i could not hear it. That lasted for a week or so but i kept testing and kept testing and sure enough i thought i heard a slight sound in my left ear again which caused me to be anxious. I get extremley panicky when i'm by myself in complete silence because i start thinking i will start hearing that slighttttt sound again. When i stopped coming on here, stopped reading about it, it literally went. I couldnt hear it even if i tried but yesterday my anxiety was kicking up....and bam...it returned.

So yes it does seem its anxiety driven. Even yesterday what i could hear wasnt a ring as such. It was a kinda high pitched sound that lasted around 10 seconds and then it sort of vanishes and turned into wind or air being taken out of a balloon or something. It was as if my brain was looking for a sound and then it got it (again the sound vanishes completley when i lie down on effected ear and i hear nothing). It seems like its def due to my anxiety and i will beat it.

 

Thank you for letting us know how you are doing.

I am happy that you were able to experience relief, albeit temporary.

I am also glad that you have found a connection to anxiety (obviously not glad you experience anxiety), and that now you know the connection you may be able to use that knowledge to rid yourself of the symptoms altogether.

Please keep up updated on your progress. I am looking forward to reading the thread you will start in "Success Stories".

 

Update again guys:

So basically the slight sound in my left ear is virtually not existant and can rarely hear it (even in silence). It's a weird one to be honest. If i close my effected ear, sleep on it, etc etc i never hear anything. If i sleep on the non effected ear i can hear something on the effected ear sometimes...but its not really a sound as such. So hard to explain but it just seems like my left ear is switched on. It kinda sounds like the environment..not really a sound and i actually think it's just the normal 'sound' ive heard my whole life but i'm focusing in on it which raises my anxiety which then makes me think i can hear something then i get panicky.

The other sound i thought i could hear at certain times for a few weeks turned out to be something external which others could hear in the night (seems like its the wind hitting the scaffolding which causes a really weird subtle high pitched sound. Anyway very releaved about that as it was making me go mad.

My anxiety is still high and i panic when im in a room thats silent. I keep thinking "please dont let me hear a sound" and i cant calm down sometimes so need to sort that out. Also sleep still isnt great because i panic about hearing a sound. I need to sort my anxiety out really badly.

 

@Kingdawson
Stress and anxiety can make tinnitus worse. However, I think the original cause of your tinnitus is exposure to loud noise. I read your first post mentioning going clubbing then noticing the ringing in your ears. I do not believe that you have full-blown tinnitus yet and therefore you are in a good position. If you act now then you might save yourself months if not years of grief. I am very serious but I don't think you know what you're dealing with and the depths that loud intrusive tinnitus take a person to. I don't mean to frighten you but just want to give you the facts as they are based on my many years experience with tinnitus .

If you go clubbing be careful of loud sounds. Even when wearing earplugs you are not 100% safe. If sound is loud enough it can reach your inner ear by bone conduction. I also advise you not to use headphones, earbuds or any type of headset to listen to audio even at low volume. Like I said, I don't believe you have full blown tinnitus, but if you continue to be exposed to loud sound, then the tinnitus is likely to return with a vengeance you wouldn't believe. Sorry to sound so sobering. Please click on the links below and read my articles on tinnitus. Try to read them in full and not skim through them. I advise you to use a sound machine at night by your bedside.

I wish you well.
Michael

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/tinnitus-a-personal-view.18668/

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/hyperacusis-as-i-see-it.19174/

 

@Kingdawson you really need to try and calm down. I know easier said than done but anxiety can really bring tinnitus back more than anything. Just relax and know that you where so blessed to not have it anymore. You will know if it returns. No need to listen out for it every second of the day.

And please take care of your ears from now on okay? To make sure it does not come back. The previous poster had excellent advice. Please take what he says really to heart because you don’t ever want this permanent.

 

Very much appreciated on the advice mate. I'm definitely going to be super cautious now if and when i do go out clubbing. Ear plugs for sure and if the music is loud i'm leaving straight away.

One thing this has open my eyes to is the amount of people i know that has some form of T (all of them being very low level not bothersome T). Literally everyone i know can hear a sound in silence but they just play it off as if it's normal. I've literally been preaching to them about being careful etc etc. Around 2 weeks ago we went to a concert which had a super strong sound system. I wore these great noise cancelling ear plugs and the next day most my mates were talking about how great the night was and that their ears were still ringing. I thought to myself 'how can you be so dumb' and preached again to no avail. So many of them talk about the 'eeeee' sound they hear occasionally.

 

I am glad you are taking this seriously and if you continue on this path I don't think you will have any problems with tinnitus. Your friends and associates on the other hand, have a lot to learn about the dangers our being exposed to loud sound. If they continue they are likely to get an experience that will never leave them, and it won't be pleasant.

All the best
Michael

 

Very much appreciated on your kind words.

Seeing a therapist about my health anxiety in a couple of days which will hopefully help out. Still find myself muting tv's...going into quiet rooms...checking if I hear a sound. Still get super anxious in the night in case I hear something out of the ordinary. I'm literally scared of sound now which is not good at all but I hope it will improve.