Tinnitus Spike and Muffled Hearing from Loud Noise (Shutting Something Very Hard) — Terrified

My tinnitus is louder and my hearing is very muffled in my left ear after I shut something very hard a week ago. I pressed my finger against my right ear to block out the sound as I was doing it, and I was using my left hand to do it, so I scrunched up my neck and pressed my shoulder against my left ear and shut it as hard as I could with my elbow. It slammed shut; making a very loud noise I wasn’t expecting.

Because my elbow was in contact with my ear at the same time, I think ear was exposed to the sound at even higher level than normal if my elbow was not used.

My tinnitus in my left ear (which was already the worse ear) is so loud now and my hearing in that ear is muffled. I hear much less out of it compared to my right ear. I also feel a lot of pain in that ear.

I took a few steroids I had but I stopped because I’m concerned about effects on my eyes, because there have been several periods where I’ve been on steroids for a very long time (for childhood asthma daily and pneumonia, and a few months ago for a nerve pain disease I developed in my leg) and they slightly elevated my eye pressured, according to an optometrist.

I’m not sure how steroid effects on eyes work, if the risk is only long term, or the damage accumulates over time after repeated use. But I’m terrified of cataracts or glaucoma. I don’t want another sense to be affected. I’m already trapped inside this flesh prison.

I’m really scared. My tinnitus and pain disorder already made me want to die and made me feel trapped. I cannot handle loss of ant hearing as well and louder tinnitus. I keep imagining the moment and pain I felt when it happened, and the damage I caused, and I wish I could go back. I thought the spike would fade, but the presence of the muffled hearing is also making me so scared.

 

How are you feeling now? Has your spike gone back down?

Accidents happen and you can't avoid every single noise exposure. Spikes happen and usually they resolve so try not to let the panic set in too much.

I understand all your feelings as I have them too. I keep thinking back to when I got tinnitus (acoustic trauma) and how I could have done things differently. But something I heard from a therapist once was, if you are having bad thoughts like that, to ask yourself if thinking about those things will change anything or be productive in this moment? If the answer is no (it usually is), then allow yourself a break and let it go for the moment. Even setting a time to think about it later. Easier said than done I know but it has helped me sometimes.

I understand the trapped feeling but it helps to think of the positives in life, even if they are small. Did you get to see a sunrise or sunset today? Did you eat something that tasted yummy? Did you get to talk to someone you care about? Did you get to watch something you like on tv or another activity you enjoy? There's lots of small things we can be positive about in our day to day that can help.

 

Hi. Has your spike gone down? I hope you're feeling better.