Tinnitus Started While I Was Sleeping — Can Going to a Concert Make It Worse?

Hi there. First of all, I'm not a native English speaker so pardon me if I make some mistakes or use plenty of simple constructions. I hope you understand everything, I will try to do my best!

My tinnitus started at the beginning of May 2021, during the night while I was sleeping. I'm a 23-year-old boy from Spain who has only been to a couple of concerts, not many discos, but I have used headphones a lot for the past year due to lockdown and working from home (meetings, music, etc. but I tried to always regulate the volume in order for it to not be too loud).

My tinnitus hasn't been constant. When it first started I (almost) couldn't hear it during the day, but when I lay down at night it used to get a bit louder and annoying. Now, during the day it's not that annoying (I tend to look for it when I'm in a quiet room such as the bathroom or bedroom) and when I'm distracted, taking a walk or with friends I can't almost note it. During the night I'm still on "an alert state" and I can't get to sleep continuously all night but anxiety is getting a little little bit better. For the past few days (2-4 days or so) I have also noticed that during the night I tend to not hear it as loud or annoying as I used to but still a little bit louder than during the day, but maybe it's just me, I don't know but I'm hopeful it's getting better and stable.

Anyway, I went to see an ENT. He did some examinations on my ears and it all turned out good. Now I'm waiting for an MRI on the 14th (healthcare is slow here), so let's see how that goes. For now, the doctor hasn't told me anything about tinnitus, but we all know how we like to search on Google lol.

So I decided to get into this forum in order to look for advice and good, positive words from people who have suffered from it for some time now. I know these type of places can be home for negativity but I read some nice stories and posts and thought it would be good to join.

I would also like to ask a question. It's probably silly but I have seen different answers on the internet and on a Spanish forum. I bought tickets for a concert at a theater at the end of June some months ago, to go with a friend. I'm a bit worried and anxious about the fact it could make my tinnitus worse. I have been to the cinema and to the theater one time each during May and nothing bad happened. On a Spanish forum where I was talking to some peers they advised me to use some ear protection (can you recommend some nice Amazon earplugs available on Amazon.es?) and to continue a normal life, because tinnitus shouldn't limit the stuff we do. They told me they go to concerts and are feeling good. I don't think a gig is going to blow up tinnitus unless you don't protect your ears or go to a lot of gigs.

Anyway thank you for reading my introduction. Sorry for the question at the end and sorry for my, probably, bad English, I'm still learning! I'm taking small steps towards habituation and being in peace with myself and I hope we can all help each other. I'm leaving you here a couple of songs from the singer I told you about, I hope you enjoy them! Have a nice day everyone

Directo El Kanka - Vengas cuando vengas -...

El Kanka - Los conciertos de Radio 3

 

Hi!

The good news is that if your tinnitus is only mild, and you have to listen for it to hear it, it'll likely fade into the background with time, and you'll barely notice it day to day, which it sounds like you're doing almost already. Best thing to do when you notice it, is to just remember it'll fade when you forget about it, and draw your mind to something else.

I had mild tinnitus for years and never noticed it unless I looked for it, even in quiet environments. If I switched my attention to something else, it'd fade away.

 

Hey,

Thank you for your answer, it really helps I guess my tinnitus is still mild because it doesn't interfere with my day to day a lot for now. I listen to it sometimes and other times I'm so absorbed into what I'm doing that I do not notice it or it seems so low. When I'm trying to sleep it seems worse. I will try your advice and see if that helps. I guess it's a thing of training your mind to deviate the attention to other stuff.

I hope you are doing well right now Thank you for the answer and the time.

 

Most welcome! Glad I could help, and hope you have a good week.

 

Make sure you use proper double ear protection for an MRI (properly fitted foam earplugs on top of properly fitted earmuffs).

Do not accept the scan if they don't supply those for you.

Tesla 3 powered scanners can be loud.