• We have updated Tinnitus Talk.

    If you come across any issues, please use our contact form to get in touch.

Tinnitus Week 2018 / Day 5: What Makes Your Tinnitus Worse?

Tinnitus Talk

Knowledge Base
Author
Staff
Hall of Fame
Jan 23, 2012
388
www.tinnitustalk.com
Stress, lack of sleep, certain kinds of noises (besides dangerously loud noise), maybe some foods/drinks - what (if anything) makes your tinnitus worse or, as we with tinnitus tend to say, spike?

TinnitusWeek-Friday.jpg


Comment below. You can also respond to our Facebook post.
 
Lack of sleep, loud noises, hormonal changes (being a female I have no choice in the matter), too much salt or sugar, too long in the shower, bad speakers, and.... salmon (lol). Not giving the last one up though!
 
The one thing that seems to make it "seem" louder without fail is the lack of external noise. The quieter it is the more I can hear/notice it. If I have too much alcohol to drink, the morning after it can be louder, but not always.
 
Definitely lack of sleep.
Ear pressure (from flights, driving through mountains, clogged ears during colds).
Binging on foods high very high in sodium such as potato chips. :ROFL:
Likely stress, but I'm not completely sure.
 
Background noise seems to make mine worse. A day spent in the lab at work with equipment running is about 70-75Db, but on leaving the lab it seems to be worse even though I'm in a similarly noisy area. Maybe its the change in the frequency mix of the noise? A mix of cooling fans, air conditioning, devices and fixtures running, ect...
 
Probably car drives, alcohol, noise, blocked eustachian tube( seems to be happening more often now after years with little blocking)
 
It knows when I'm ready to relax at night it will spike up sometimes and sometimes it will also spike when I sleep, but then I'll run water next to my head and it goes back. And yes a quiet room it decide to do it's loud dance.
 
Sexual intercourse but only for some minutes after, high pitched sounds, when I come from shower it has reacted and spiked, stress makes it spike too.
 
My tinnitus ramps up when I'm exposed to loud music, kids screaming, or high-pitched barking dogs. Sometimes, not always, feeling pressured by someone to do something I don't want to do will make it worse. I suspect it has something to do with cortisol levels rising, but can't be sure.

Excess sugar will make me more aware of it for a while on the days when it's more intrusive to begin with. On very mild days, it has no effect.
 
Wow, a lot of similar responses. For me it's stress and lack of sleep. I suspect sugar in high dosages as well. Recently, I realized that if I rest the back of my head on something (soft or hard) then my static noise increases with time. Once I lift my head it goes away fairly quickly.
 
My tinnitus most definitely gets worse when I don't get enough sleep. Not enough quality sleep I should say, because it doesn't help me much to sleep lightly for long hours. I think that's the major contributor. Second to sleep is stress. If I am under a lot of pressure it tends to gets worse as the day progresses. I have not seen a noticeable difference when it comes to food and drinks. Loud noises can be bothersome because of hyperacusis, but not so much if I am well rested.
 
Not enough quality sleep I should say, because it doesn't help me much to sleep lightly for long hours. I think that's the major contributor. Second to sleep is stress. Loud noises can be bothersome because of hyperacusis.

The same with me regarding all factors that you mentioned. Additionally, if I have Chinese food for dinner on a day that my T is moderate, I'll usually wake up the next morning with a loud spike on both sides that will last at least the rest of the day. Sometimes even longer. That's why I rarely have it anymore.


But those "Pork Balls" are so tough to give up!..:D
 
The same with me regarding all factors that you mentioned. Additionally, if I have Chinese food for dinner on a day that my T is moderate, I'll usually wake up the next morning with a loud spike on both sides that will last at least the rest of the day. Sometimes even longer. That's why I rarely have it anymore.


But those "Pork Balls" are so tough to give up!..:D
By any chance does the Chinese food have MSG? I have read that can exacerbate tinnitus.
 
By any chance does the Chinese food have MSG? I have read that can exacerbate tinnitus.

I specifically tell them "NO MSG" when I place my order because the menu has a footnote to let them know if you don't want them to use it.
 
I specifically tell them "NO MSG" when I place my order because the menu has a footnote to let them know if you don't want them to use it.

Make the same recipe at home, being careful to make sure there is absolutely no MSG. If your T doesn't spike the next day, then you'll know for sure whether there really is no MSG in the food they're serving you. "No MSG" might mean no added MSG if it's already in some of the ingredients they receive from suppliers.
 

Log in or register to get the full forum benefits!

Register

Register on Tinnitus Talk for free!

Register Now