Tinnitus Spike and New Tone from Trash Compactor Incident

I went to throw away some trash at an apartment complex that has a compactor. The compactor was empty. When I tossed the first bag in it had glass or something inside it. Made a very loud clang and where the compactor was enclosed this echoed. It hit my right ear as I was turned toward it that way and immediately it was one of those sounds that just didn’t feel right to my ear. I was not wearing any protection.

Within the hour I had fullness and discomfort. By the time I went to bed I had a spike. I then was awakened by my tinnitus. This hasn’t happened since probably the first month since onset. Beyond just spiking something felt different, but I couldn’t tell what exactly. I have my children and I sleep in the same room with them as my younger twins are afraid of the dark. So over their snoring and breathing and the heat running I could just tell something was different. I got up and put on some earmuffs and I have a new tone in my right ear that builds in intensity and then recedes repeatedly.

I took NAC and magnesium after it happened. I take NAC daily anyway. I don’t take magnesium daily because if I take it regularly it aggravates my tinnitus and sleep. I’m seriously considering going to urgent care tomorrow for steroids. This would be my first time getting steroids for trauma post onset. I am worried they may not give me prednisone if I request it specifically for acoustic trauma. My ENT / surgeon may, but contacting him is a process. I have to go through his assistant and it could take hours. I have to leave town tomorrow so I don’t have all day to wait for them to fill the prescription.

 

My surgeon called me in two tablets of 50mg prednisone. Wtf.

 

I wonder why he was so stingy with the dose?

Did it do anything for you?

 

I've never been given as high a dose. When I first got tinnitus a doctor at Urgent Care gave me a taper pack of 4 mg pills. I think it’s 5 or 6 pills you take the first day. I only made it through the first and the part of the second day. They worsened my insomnia that I was suffering with then. She gave it to me because she said she saw fluid behind my ears.

I then went to the ER where the doctor said he didn’t see any fluid and told me to stop the steroid since it was exacerbating the insomnia. At the time I didn’t know the benefits for possibly helping with tinnitus so I did what he said. Since it was a low dose it may have done nothing as far as stopping the tinnitus or making initial onset less severe.

I later got a taper pack for atopic dermatitis and got silence in my left ear for a while and lowering in right ear. The silence in the left last for an extended period, but the right ear went back up within days I think.

This time 50 mg spiked me most of the day and made me shaky and anxious. I take Clonazepam at night so that helped me to sleep but not very well. Woke up with a headache from jaw clenching even though I wear a bite guard.

It’s probably pointless to take the high dose though since he gave me such a short course. I messaged him through an app called MyChart. His assistant said he told her two pills is fine for now and I can call the on call number to request more if I feel I need it. Just seems like more hoops for me as the patient to jump through for what reason?

 

Hyperacusis ear (left) now more sensitive again after improvement mostly since December. Tinnitus louder and a pure tone in that ear vs hiss and wind chime like before. Though still lower than my right ear. Really hope this calms down.

 

@FGG @HootOwl as I mentioned earlier in this thread my doctor only gave me two 50mg prednisone. My new tone is still present. I didn’t have a dose for today and I was out of town. He said I could call the on call line and request more.

However, where I missed a dose today would that basically void any chance of it helping? Since he only gave me two to begin with I’m guessing if I request more it will probably be the same amount if not just one pill?

I would appreciate any advice you could offer.