Tinnitus Spike After a Customer Screamed and Whistled?

So I woke up this morning and I’m stressed out and worried.

I work in a retail store with the public, about two days ago I was helping a customer, I was taking her cake order (I am a cake decorator) so I was close to her, out of the blue she started screaming and whistling very loud, she was trying to get someone’s attention, I didn’t even have time to close my ears or even stand back!

She then looked down at me and knew what she had done. And said oh I am sorry, she acted like it was no big deal, I just stood there so mad and didn’t say anything. I finished helping her and she went on.

Yesterday my tinnitus was about the same, this morning I woke up and it’s loud.

I am so scared that woman with no common sense damaged my ears. I’m trying not to panic because I’m getting up trying to get ready for work and I know stress will make tinnitus worse.

I just don’t understand how people are like that! Even if she doesn’t know about tinnitus she still knew what she done, if you have any sense you don’t scream near anyone.

 

I know how you feel. A coworker invited me to his church and the speakers were so loud that it caused a bad spike and I thought it was going down, but I used to have no tinnitus nights, but not since then, my nights have been a struggle to stay asleep. He knew beforehand I hand hearing damage and when I told him how loud it was he just shrugged it off like it wasnt a big deal. I am starting to fear I've gone down a few notches in my quality of life since then. Nobody gets this at all.

 

Society today is so self centered. Not just with their voice but with their driving, manners in line etc. I'm sorry that happened Crystal and I hope things get better for you soon.

 

I agree with you, the people in this world are so self centered and it is just getting worse, you can’t deal with anyone. Thank you!

 

Also what made me mad about the situation even more was that a toddler maybe 2 or 3 years old was setting in the buggy right beside her so not only did she scream in my ears she also screamed in the child’s ears as well, the child started crying about a few minutes later

 

Perhaps take a few NAC pills to relax your ears. I don't know where youre from, but here in CA the people are always screaming and yelling at one another...i wear ear plugs when i am bothered to go into the city.

 

To be fair nobody understands how fragile we are. How could they?

 

All of us (T people) need to face the unexpected SOUND.
It could happen any moment at any place.
I have been through it many times and feel very frustrated.
But, what can we do ? This is our tinnitus lives.
Let us be brave to face it and accept the surprised SOUND as part of our lives.

I do remember in all US dollar-currency...
there is a sentence - "IN GOD WE TRUST".
I will put my daily life in His hands.

 

The same unexpected noise happened to me. After a dilevery truck finished and asked me to get paperwork, I walked over to him, was taking out my hearing plugs, and in mid sentence as he was handing me paperwork, let’s the large metal deck plates slam shut right next to my ears. I covered my ears in pain, and he just shrugged his shoulders. It’s been three weeks, am I’m still going through a major spike and sounds are different to me. I think my fratual hearring was damaged a little more and way higher tinnitus. I feel like I’m starting all over again. Your sudden exposer was probably not nearly as loud or damaging, but more agitating to your T. Hope it gets better for you.

 

Jesus, this is so bad. Why doesn't he show some compassion after you've explained that its very intrusive! Has it settled down at least a little?

 

Earplugs and earplugs. No one has a clue how bad this is. The awareness of T is at extreme ignorant levels. I didn't know anything about this till I got it. This will certainly not be the last time and it's most likely will be in this situation again. It's simply unavoidable. There should be a T sign or anything similar when you go to a place when there is a T sufferer. If not, this is just going to keep on happening.

 

I just wanna live in a Tinnitus village where everyone has T and nobody would ever scream when they are mad =P

 

No way that can damage hearing

 

And yet you claim hearing tests with decibel levels lower than the average scream can cause hearing damage.

Don't get me wrong, a scream is very unlikely to cause hearing damage unless it's right in someone's ear.

 

exactly, but remember ear syringing is water hitting the eardrum which can damage hearing. Somewone has to scream right into your ear...Acoustic Reflex is pretty much a sound emitted INTO YOUR EAR.
Here I am right now crying as I am typing this because my H and T have become unbearable. This is due to those ear tests that were done on JAN 15

 

Hang in there DPDX! I know its hard!

 

I wish I can go back in time and not do the caloric test and CVEMP. I still cant believe that they damaged my inner hair cells (mild hearing loss in noisy areas) My T right now can be heard over TV, people's voices, etc. I am almost a year in with the second acoustic trauma and no improvement in sight. I lost the 6/10 T days

 

I'm sorry. I'm not trying to be insensitive or argumentative. I've seen you mention Tympanometry and other tests as well. All that matters is the decibel level when the sound reaches your eardrum.

 

The CVEMP was around 95db I believe. It lasted for 2 minutes. It was loud as hell. Here I am with Severe T and Severe H.

 

They can still come back dont worry! Is there anything that can mask your T? Shower? White noise?

Mine cant be masked either, but if I use cricket noises it blends in.

 

Shower ONLY and by walking next to a busy road. My T used be a 2/10 but after my ENT said I might have (Acoustic Neuroma, Meniere, Cochlear Hydrops, Blood Cancer, Thyroid Cancer, etc), she tried to do (Typanometry, MRI, CT, Blood Tests, ECOG, CVEMP, Acoustic Reflex) to rule out if I have some hidden disease. ENT and Audiologist said there is no way I can get an acoustic trauma 5 days after a loud concert and here I am worse than ever.

 

Mine also said "I have not heard of noise damage causing problems a couple days after, only immediately after the event."

If you can mask it still in the shower thats good! At least you can get some relief. Can you find specific sounds that help mask it? Like crickets, water running, etc?

 

I can hear it over faucet running.
I can hear it 90% of the time.
I really really want to go back before the second trauma from those ear tests. I want to go back to Sep-Dec when I had No H and just Mild T (2/1o) which was sooo gooodddddd.

 

Yeah, I agree your ENT sounds ignorant. What do they mean you can't get an acoustic trauma 5 days after a loud concert? With the roll glutamate excitotoxicity and nerve degeneration that seems to fit the model.

Some of those tests (especially the acoustic reflex) should be contraindicated for someone with hyperacusis.

FWIW, only the shower masks mine too. I went from zero T to that overnight. It was daily torture for the first two years and I never thought I would be able to get used to it, now it doesn't bother me 75% of the time even though it's gotten a little worse (new tones from additional noise exposure). It's the hyperacusis and fear of it worsening that's the worst part of it now.

I'm sorry to hear the tests made yours worse, I hope you can improve or get used to it in time too.

I really do think that people with hearing damage can be more susceptible to additional hearing damage and that 'save' decibel levels don't apply to an unlucky minority.

 

Yup we are more prone to damage now. Our ears are fragile that is for sure.
I went to a freakin resturant and that caused a spike, it got better T went from a 9/10 to a 8/10 (baseline).

 

Did this spike settle???