Tinnitus? I Thought It Was Neighbour's Sump Pump?

Four years ago I started noticing an odd sound in my house - sounded like a very low frequency hum, sort of like a foghorn, it was intermittent and no one else could hear it. I had heard of tinnitus of course, but associated that with ringing or buzzing not this very low humming noise. I scoured the house for the source of the noise, maybe some electrical equipment malfunctioning, maybe the furnace motor needing replacement, then looked further afield. Was it a neighbour's sump pump? Was the city installing new electric grid?

Then finally, I was visiting a friend who lives out in the country where it is very very quiet and lo and behold... the foghorn that only I can hear sounded late one night. Then I knew... yes, it is all in my head! Starting doing a bit of research to find that there are many sounds of tinnitus. Now that I know what it is and now that I know I don't have to find the source of (or fix) the problem and that it is not a health risk, I'm actually much more relaxed. I guess I'm lucky that it's not always there and it's not debilitating. Annoying yes but I'm getting used to it.

 

I also don't think there is a need to panic, but I would encourage you to go down the diagnosis path and try to find a root cause. Yes, tinnitus in itself isn't a major health risk, except that it can worsen to the point of becoming a major health risk due to the impact on your Quality Of Life. In some cases, it drives people to suicide, so I wouldn't take this too nonchalantly.

Tinnitus is a symptom. You are hearing the "fog horn" because something is going on with you, and you may be at its early stages, and it may be treatable. Your body is telling you something. I think it's in your best interest to find out.

Good luck!

 

I also have that humming noise and your experience sounds like mine. Does your hum get loud from time to time or is it stable?

 

I have something quite similar. A low frequency tone that sounds like a mix of an idling motor/foghorn/washing machine. Mine is only in my left ear and it's on/off. Can you make it stop by covering your ear with your hand, plugging it with your finger, swallowing, talking, yawning?

I have had it on/off for 5 years, visited 8 ENTs, neurologist, gnatologists, did lots of tests, and as many of us here, I'm not one bit closer to finding the root cause than I was years ago. If you do go down the diagnostic route, be careful about loud tests though.

 

Also left ear and yes, it is on/off and almost disappears when I cover my ear with my hand. It is faintly there but much less noticeable, which is why I guess I originally thought the sound was a genuine sound coming from somewhere far away. I probably won't bother going the diagnostic route as it hasn't changed in 4 years. Otherwise I have excellent hearing... better than most people my age.

I have lingering sinusitis on that side (which started with an infected tooth) and I wonder if that is the source of the problem. Removal of tooth (after a failed root canal) did not resolve the problem... so think I'm going to learn to live with it.

 

CykoJon, I don't hear it all the time... probably a couple of times a day for about half an hour or so. The sound, like a foghorn in distance, starts out quieter and then intensifies and then tapers off. But it is mostly the same every time, with no time really louder than any other. Each pulse can last for five seconds to twenty seconds or so. Very strange to try to describe it.