Tinnitus from a Dumbass Throwing a Firework Into a Car

So my tinnitus started after a dumbass threw a firework into my friend's car.

When it first happened, the ringing was so loud and horrible, my mom dismissed me saying it would pass. I went to my GP 2 times and she assured me it will go away because it was just one blast and she said the fact that I can only hear it in the quiet now is a good sign! However, she told me it would decrease within 2 weeks and it has a lot but I would say on a scale of 1-10 it’s a 1 and only noticeable if I put headphones like Beats on (because I use them at a low volume.)

So that being said if this is for the long run I’m very scared. I’m only 17. I graduate this year.

Me and my friends were planning to move out and get a place together because that has been our plan for a while. I’m so depressed and can’t even begin to think what I’m going to do.

Can I still work and get a good place and live normally or what should I do?

 

Hi @Bigboi1221.
What happened to you is called "acoustic trauma" and that your auditory system has been compromised by it. Blasts from fireworks can reach up to 110 dB, which is really high.
There is a good chance that your tinnitus will eventually fade. One month into it is relatively early. Your auditory system needs to heal - or at least partially recover - that either your tinnitus would fade or you would habituate to it.
Protect your ears from loud noises - anything above 85 dB. You can buy some decent ear muffs or ear plugs. Do not, however, overprotect your ears or you might end up lowering your threshold of sound and develop hyperacusis.

Refrain from using headphones - even at a low volume. Ditch watching movies or attending concerts or going to loud places to help your body heal.

Fear and anxiety feed tinnitus, so try to relax as much as you can. You can try playing white noise or soft music to help you sleep. Just put the volume a lower than you tinnitus.

Have a decent amount of sleep (<7 hours) as rest is key in your healing process.

Stay away from junk foods - those that are high in sodium or sugar or transfats.

Eat foods that are rich in magnesium, which can help relax the nervous system. Vitamin B-complex and C might be beneficial to you but please consult first your GP.

Stay hydrated and get some exercise under the sun. Vitamin D and an increase in serotonin level might help.

Stay calm and be open about this with your trusted friends and family, for support. Do the thing you love and be productive.

Overtime, you will feel much better.

Warm regards,
Albert

 

@AlbertJ thanks man. Yea I got these ones called Eargasms, and yea I’ve been staying inside and just smoking weed and playing video games. At first it was spiking my tinnitus but you have to build a tolerance to it like at first when I smoked my tinnitus would freak me out but it’s still a one or 2 when I’m high unless I think about it.

Do you think I will be able to move out and start my own life?

 

@Bigboi1221

Do not let your tinnitus limit you. There are plenty of people in this forum that have/had loud tinnitus but moved on and have been productive in life. Do not let tinnitus control you.

I would recommend you seeing an ENT doctor to properly assess your hearing.

Most tinnitus cases really improve over time. You are relatively young and there is a big chance you would see improvement in the coming months. But of course, this will also be dependent on how you protect your ears and your health (e.g., physical, psychological, and sometimes spiritual) in general.

I would suggest avoiding the things that would aggravate your condition. Maybe turn the volume down a bit when you are playing video games? Cut back on weed, perhaps, and see if you would notice more improvement.


Warm regards,
Albert

 

You still have a good chance it will fade. A one time event like that has much better chances than prolonged exposure. Just dont use the headphones at all anymore. Obviously if you think its ok then ok but me personally I just wouldn't.

 

Maybe, maybe not. Welcome to the dumbest disease in the universe.

Thank that dumbass that threw the firework for setting your life difficulty level on very hard.

 

Do you know this guy personally?

If so, and this T persists, take this piece of shit to court.

My T is my own fault, no one elses. But I'd be furious it was forced upon because of someone else's stupidity.

 

IMO you will fully recover, but it may take several more months at least. Use this as a wake up call, and protect yore ears from loud noise from now on. Even after you fully recover, you *may* be more easily re-injured from now on, even years later. Be careful from now on with earbuds, and always wear ear protection if going to a concert or sporting event.

 

What would we call that? Attempted mental murder? Or successful mental murder in the worst case?

So sorry to hear your story OP, that's some seriously messed up stuff

 

How about Assault?

 

@aot do you think I will be fine it seems to be going away but it’s still there a little I just wish I could go back in time and trust me if it doesn’t stop ringing im going to go insane and kill that mf I know who he is as my friend saw they guy with his truck the next day and comfronted him and he just said sorry he didn’t mean to so it his word bs mine I’m just trying to focus on healing do you think I will recover I’m just scared like the way I view the world is so different, depressed and sad ect but I’m going to try I just need to know if I’m going to deal with this forever

 

It's probably different for everybody and I know it's easier said than done but for me the more stressed I feel and he more I focus on the tinnitus the worse it tends to be. Only advice I can offer is to not forget the things that you enjoy and to not let yourself be limited by it. I've had it for 3 months and while it still bugs the crap out of me at certain times of the day the overall impact today is lower than it was at the start.

 

@JohnAdams do you really think there’s a chance I won’t live and do everything that I wanted to do like move out and ect... my mom doesn’t understand and I’m going to have to leave home soon I can just feel it coming I’m so nervous man and depressed you have no idea

 

No you can, you can do almost anything but its probably going to be very hard at times. For instance, it may be harder to concentrate in school, and your career options may be limited because of noise levels, and you certainly will want to avoid noisy environments like concerts, movie theaters, and clubs. Some people here are going to tell you its okay to keep going to noisy places. Do not listen to them. They will no doubt be here soon to tell you it is okay to keep exposing yourself to noise. There are people that have utterly ruined their lives taking that bad advice.

 

@JohnAdams tahnks man yea I just try to smoke it seems to put me in control of my anxiety I mean the ring temporarily seems a little louder but not by much also watching nexflix to me is better than the movie theater I just hope I can heal, if you don’t mind me asking how long did it take you to get used to it if you did?

 

We all have been there. I've spent many nights crying like a baby, this thing will break the toughest person, but, I think you will be fine in a few months.

 

I never get used to it. I have tinnitus that fluctuates and responds to supplements, sleep, etc. Some days mine is basically gone, other days like the last two, its crept back up and I'm like FML.

 

@Bigboi1221, the title of your thread is so humorous (the first 4 words I meant). I hope your tinnitus levels go down. That person should pay for the firecracker incident in a lawsuit if you have permanent ringing, which of course I hope you don't.

 

@Bigboi1221, I'm sorry you're going through this, especially at such a young age. I was your age (currently 21) when I first developed T. A walkie talkie was turned up too loudly at work, and it damn near blew my head off. The fact that my mother has Menire's Diease probably didn't help either

John Adams's advice is not without merit, but remember that T effects everyone diffentrly. I was able to habituate within a few months.

But I went wrong in that I failed to change my lifestyle. I never used hearing protection, and I used earbuds just about everyday. I'm going through a spike now after going to an event with friends, and it's been very difficult.

Hopefully this is temporary, but either way, here's what you should do.

Vist https://www.ata.org/ it is the website for the American Tinnitus Assosciation. They have a number that you can call if your T is causing distress.

Lower your intake of Sodium and Caffiene, both of which can aggrevate your T.

Avoid using earbuds/headphones, even at a low volume.

Avoid seeing Concerts, films in theatres, and other loud events. If you need to go, Earplugs can lower your risk of a spike.

However, the risk is still there. Be aware of the risk.

If you have trouble sleeping, Melatonin has done well for other members of this site.

Use white noise and such only if your T is unbearable. Constant use impeds recovery.

If you're feeling stressed, give meditation a try.

I also strongly suggest that you see an ENT, just to be safe.

 

If the person understands tinnitus it's a pretty twisted crime and more than assault, however that probably never crossed the mind of the person throwing the fireworks. Also depends on the severity of the resulting tinnitus

 

@aot hey is your t noise induced, for some reason my ears will pop if I move my youngest a certain way the ringing has definitely went down but when ever I cover my ears the slightest it has a little ring, also it changed from a high pitch ring to a low ring/hiss but hasn’t changed for a few days, I know there’s nothing I can do if my ear hair cells are messed up I just wish i never was in that car, I really want to start my life up man, move out get a job be my own person ect but I find that rn it’s just a cycle of being fine and then my anxiety kicks in and starts taking over I used to have really bad anxiety that i was diagnosed with when I was 15, but thanks for reaching out just losing faith that it’s going to heal fully it’s already been a month.

 

@aot meant to say ears pop if I move my jaw a certain way I hear my ears pop

 

Yes it will be just as useful as pointing a hotdog at the sun and chanting "sheeka boomba" for about 30 minutes.

 

Hi @Bigboi1221 -- You may want to check out the following thread. -- All the Best...

Three Supplements to Treat Severe Anxiety Symptoms

 

My T is noise induced, yes. But I don't recall anything about my ears popping.

To each their own. I personally found them to helpful, and it felt good to vent to someone about my condtion, especially since my family isn't really understanding.

 

@aot man I definitely understand the family thing I was explaining to my mom that I’m scared of what’s to come like if this doesn’t go away like the doctor said it would what am I going to do,(my moms had cancer) and she told me that you can’t let thing get to you and let them bring you down and then started talking about how thousands of other ppl are suffering and look I get that but I just need someone to vent to as this is new for me, but hanging out with friends seems to make this noise disappear until I lay down or think about it again but if I feel stressed I will totally give them a call

 

Same. I'm experimenting at the moment to find out what the hell makes it change so much and I might be on to something nobody seems to have yet. HYDRATION. We are all supposed to drink 2-3 litres of water a day. I generally only drink coffee but I'm experimenting with more water and less coffee. Seems like I might be onto something.

 

@john paul -- Just to let you know, coffee is a common culprit for causing spikes. Happy to hear you're switching over to more water; sounds like a good idea.

 

Yeah I'm aware coffee does effect some people. It never seemed to cause any spikes that i could identify as with weed. I exercise a lot and seem to have de hydration problem in general so I've started to switch over. I know it sounds daft coming from someone who smokes weed and drinks coffee regularly but its either cannabis, coffee or hydration or a combination of all for me. I do think hydration could be an over looked factor though. My tinnitus is all over the place really wish could just keep the good days for longer.

 

Hey so just wanted to post an update, seems like it doesn’t bother my mind state as much, 2 months in I’m not sure if there was much change after the first month and a half but I’m not sure because it’s hard to put a scale on something only I hear. I just got a job at a nice restaurant not that loud besides Mabey doing the dishes or when another cook dings the bell. My left ear does feel worse off because that’s where the blast was from, my ears pop if I move my throat a certain way, I don’t have a whole lot of money and nethier does my family so I’m trying to save up to go to ent appointment, I’m not really as sad as before now when I think about it I’m just like damn it’s still there instead of crying and seeming like my worlds gonna end, I ditched headphones but do listen to music in the car at a medium level nothing to were the car is shaking Mabey turned up 45-65% max because I told all my friends about what happen and there pretty understanding and want me to heal!