TRT (Tinnitus Retraining Therapy) Sound Therapy for Pain Hyperacusis — Conflicting Opinions?

Hi guys,

I've read from a lot of people on Tinnitus Talk that TRT (Tinnitus Retraining Therapy) sound therapy for pain hyperacusis isn't a good idea but based on the Hyperacusis Focus website some people have recovered from pain hyperacusis using pink and white noise generators.

What are your thoughts

My story: I developed loudness hyperacusis in February from over use of headphones when making music in my studio. In the space of 4 months, I saw significant improvement without doing any treatment: I went from only being able to watch movies on my laptop at a low level to going out to live music bars with earplugs and coping fine, however my progress was weird, like I could listen to some beat on medium size Bluetooth speakers after 3 months and not be bothered by the loudness but noises from dishes would still annoy my ears... It felt like my hyperacusis was no longer about loudness but just about specific frequencies regardless of volume).

In July I went to a club with earplugs feeling confident and I had a major setback that took me back to square one. I had pain for 3 days in my ears following the night out and then just loudness hyperacusis again with no pain just maybe once a week. Then I went on a trip to Greece for 9 days and my hyperacusis was almost gone, unbelievable... I was driving a quad at 70km/h for the all week and didn't feel any symptoms, no ear ache, fullness or loudness discomfort. Then when I came back, setback again... I started feeling some symptoms again and slowly I got loudness hyperacusis with delayed pain everyday. Now I have moderate / severe hyperacusis with pain everyday since 4 weeks.

Anyone with a similar story who went from loudness hyperacusis to pain hyperacusis? Any chance to get back to just loudness hyperacusis in the next few months with a lot of quiet time?

Thanks,
Gregg

 

I'd be very, very cautious about what you do from now on. You say that:

That initial hyperacusis was a warning sign to make major changes in your lifestyle regarding noise exposure. Unfortunately, you read your slow if irregular progress from that point as an opportunity to go back to normal. This led to over-confidence about your safety in terms of noise exposure, shown by your belief that you would be fine to go to a nightclub with earplugs.

My suggestions for now on. Avoid nightclubs and loud music gigs completely - don't rely on earplugs to get you through - they can't filter out enough sound to protect your ears to prolonged exposure to very high decibels. Focus on quiet activities which you enjoy. My own experience with WNGs wasn't good enough for me to recommend them though others may have have a different perspective.

 

Hi David,

Thank you for your message.

Yes it was definitely a mistake to expose myself again but I saw so many success stories online of people recovering and being able to go back to loud events again. However, I think these people did get hyperacusis from anxiety / TMJ disorder and not sound-induced hyperacusis. There is so many different causes and I wish I had known from day 1 that sound-induced hyperacusis was a more serious case.

Do you have hyperacusis yourself? What is the cause of your hyperacusis?

 

Greg, all I can say is be careful man. I have had loudness hyperacusis and tinnitus for many years with not too many issues. I blew out my inner ear making things much worse, while battling that I got in a car accident and acquired lovely pain hyperacusis.

Like David said, I would be extremely cautious from now on. Mine just started out from squealing car breaks and high pitch noises setting it off and causing pain. Over time I was not careful enough, then it got to the point where even without earplugs these noises would cause pain.

I kept trying my best to go to the gym, restaurants, and work, and it get getting worse and worse. So much noise exposure I could not control from these places. I told myself, man up , that I won’t end up like one of the severe noxacusis sufferers. If I stick it out I will heal.

Man did I think wrong, I kept getting exposed to these horrible high pitch car breaks and squealing doors, then the noxacusis started getting set off from other noise like dishes, then vibrations, then voices, then even my own voice started to trigger pain. Noxacusis is not to be fucked with, it is no joke. Now if I’m doubled up and I’m exposed to a chirping bird, boom pain. It’s horrible. I wish I was more careful when I was in your position.

Don’t end up like me, avoid things that set the pain off.

 

Thank you for your messages guys.

So what would be your best advice for me to improve my condition and build tolerance? I saw a story online from a Portuguese who got sound-induced hyperacusis with pain from dishes, typing etc who managed to improve his condition by moving to a quiet beach town. He's now able to go to restaurants, bars and house parties with earplugs and is coping fine.

I'm thinking of doing full auditory rest for a year or two like him and wearing musician custom-made earplugs with -25 dB attenuation when going in the streets to avoid setbacks from car honks, ambulance siren, motorbikes. And obviously gradually increase sound exposure at home and outside.

Thanks,
Gregg

 

I am doing something similar. Plus taking away everything that messes with my central nervous system like alcohol, SSRI, coffee and Zopiclone (type of benzo). Also changed my diet quite drastically. I hope my body can adjust and start the healing process.

I can also recommend hard stretches (yes, it hurts) and cold showers. Gives you the feeling that you control your nerve reactions and not the other way around.