Tinnitus, Ear Pressure, Muffled Ear, Dizziness, Vertigo — I Can't Carry on Like This

It’s been almost 1 year since my tinnitus started and I am still struggling massively.

I don’t know what caused my tinnitus, possibly damage to my ear or a vascular problem.

It’s incredibly loud and changes every day. I can’t go a single second without thinking about it and I can’t believe that after a year I am still so depressed by it. I mourn my old life very badly.

I also have unbearable ear pressure, a muffled ear feeling sometimes, dizziness, and mild vertigo at times. I can only sleep with my bad ear in the air, otherwise the pressure builds really badly.

Anyway, I’m looking for some words of encouragement as I feel I can’t carry on like this. I just can’t handle it any more. I’m so sad and uncomfortable, all the time.

 

It took a year and a half for me to see any improvement. It then took another 6-8 months for most things to get a lot better. There is hope for improvement. I had all the same symptoms other than vertigo you mentioned and more. I did have mild unsteadiness. Got vertigo later, but ended up being related to BPPV.

 

I am sorry to know you are going through so much difficulty @Rachel1971 having endured this for a year without any relief.

Have you been seen at ENT and had tests and, if so, what have you been told? The reason I ask is because something usually causes tinnitus. The ear pressure, muffled feeling with dizziness and vertigo that you mention, could be linked to an underlying medical problem within your auditory system, which is something an ENT doctor should be able to diagnose the cause.

All the best,
Michael

 

You’re not alone.

 

Thanks guys, it’s been tough. I’m pretty sure most of my problems are caused by my upper neck. I have a C1 misalignment on my left side and severe neck tension of my left SCM muscle. A physical therapist is working on relaxing my neck muscles with laser therapy and trigger point therapy. I was seeing an upper cervical chiropractor right before it made my symptoms 10x worse. The pressure and the tinnitus are definitely the worst symptoms that I have.

 

I don’t know if it will help you but Cyclobenzaprine, a muscle relaxer, helps quell my tinnitus symptoms.

 

Hi @Rachael Robins, sorry to hear you are suffering with these symptoms. I too have tinnitus, ear pressure, light headedness, neck issues and head pressure. It's been with me for just over a year.

Have you considered whether a COVID-19 vaccine may have caused this? Did you have one and is the timing right?

This is what I believe caused mine. I used to get very slight symptoms of all of these things when stressed or with prolonged tiredness, but now a whole lot worse and pretty constant. I've taken lots of advice and everyone has said it will improve in time, but could take two years. I am also working with an Upper Cervical Chiropractor, who has found a misalignment between C1 and Atlas, which he says could be causing these sensations. This is a work in progress but no relief yet.

I hope you find some improvement soon.

 

I faced this issue quite a bit myself. At those times I was dealing with either a cold, or inner ear issues.