Veteran for Years; Now Hearing Loss & Increased Tinnitus & Mild Hyperacusis

Hi everyone,

First of all, I am sorry for some upcoming grammatical & orthographic mistakes, English is not my first language (greetings from France). Secondly I want to thank this community, reading everyone's posts (especially the success stories) was a big help when I was in the pit of depression.

I have had tinnitus since 2006 after attending my first (and only one) concert of my life (& maybe some loud music played on earbuds from my teenage years). For 14 years my tinnitus (only in one ear) was very mild (rate 0.1/10 on the level of nuisance). I couldn't hear it on my daily activity (not habituation), only when I had to lay down my "bad ear" on a pillow. I used masking to sleep or a fan (like before, I always liked ASMR to fall asleep or relaxing anyway, so nothing abnormal for me), life was good!

I tried to protect my hearing as much at possible (no loud music, no concert, stay away from loud events: weddings...), of course I had some minors setbacks but it stay approximately at the same level for all this years.

Then, last October I went on Holiday in Myanmar and at the end of the trip for the last place I had to take an outboard boat for 3 days straight which was very loud (it's the only way to visit the place, so maybe 3/4 hours per day). I did put my fingers in my ears from time to time but did not put earplugs (a shame because I had some & did put them on others occasions during the trip: in a loud train for example). However I have to say that I did not notice any increase in my tinnitus, loss of hearing or anything after the trip.

Fast forward to the end of last January, 24 hours after a gaming session with a headset (which was maybe a bit loud than usual I can recall) I developed a massive tinnitus in both ears & some sudden hearing loss along with hyperacusis. The level of nuisance went from 0.1/10 to 10/10. It was awful & I end up in the Hospital to get something to calm down my nerves & get some sleep. At some point I was so in pain that my entire body was in shock. Now I'm better (thanks to medication & therapy & time) but it still hard to cope with the loss of hearing & quality of life (I can't sleep with my wife & I'm off work since 4 months).

I'm trying to figure what happen. I already went to an ENT for my hearing problems (lost of my time if you ask me) & because of some other medical condition (I'm celiac) & other sudden symptoms (loss of motor control/sensitivity in my arms, legs, pins and needles in my hands) I'm followed by a neurologist to find out what is happening to me (she thinks maybe there is something that can explain the hearings problems because of the auto-immune background but I doubt it).

But here is what I think:

My new tinnitus, hyperacusis & hearing loss are noise induced and has been start by the long 3 days offshore boat trip in October. It is the only loud event I can recall since 10 years and my usage of headset was pretty careful most of the time so I doubt it's that. I know damage can be cumulative, so I think that the gaming session in January (much louder than usual: it was a 3 hours custom party of Warcraft 3 Reforged with Heavy Metal music) was the straw that breaks the camel's back. If I did not take that trip (or use protection during it), I would have been fine today (even with the last gaming session with headset).

This condition sucks, really... I have been careful 14 years and all it take is one mistake. These boat trip was loud but not painfully loud. Ours ears are just so damn stupid, on the contrary of other body parts: if you go too close from the fire you hurt your skin but if you listen to something very loud you will not bleed or feel pain immediately. You have to rupture your eardrums to feel something immediately.

It's insane... isn't it ?

 

How do you know you have hearing loss? Have you had an audiometric test or is it just a subjective feeling?

As for the impact of noise on our ears, sometimes a sound that did not damage us previously does suddenly make damage. It is shocking but it's how it is. Maybe it is due to how ears are behaving on a particular day, and also may depend on whether nose, throat, etc are unblocked or blocked (sinus issues for instance), and how the eardrum, middle ears tensors etc are... Sometimes the ear can get "stuck" and amplifies sound; if you are caught by some loud noise in a day when the ears are stuck, then the sound is perceived even louder and maybe can make damage.

 

I understand that my Tinnitus gets much louder after being in a casino for a couple of days.

 

Do you recall what volume level you had you PC volume set to while gaming, or at least a good guess?

 

Hello french fellow,

If you need to speak in our language. I'm here for you, maybe it'll be easier.

My only advice is to not think about the past. What is done is done. Time is your best friend against tinnitus.

 

Hey guys, just a quick update!

I'm sorry for not following up since then but life has been busy (& did not want to think about tinnitus or hyperacusis).

Tinnitus is still there, but my response to it is so much lower! It may not be as loud as some of you have of course but that's it. Hyperacusis is still there, sometimes my ears are very sensitive and I need to be alone, I can't stand to be around dishes, and my limit is 65/70 dB music.

My therapist says I'm out of the blue for now... after 5/6 months of terrible nightmares. I'm not afraid to say that at some point I wanted to end it, but not anymore.

We think that my response to the new tinnitus was that bad because I had some underlying problems (other medicals problems, stress from work & ...).

So, what my life is now:

- I have stopped focusing on the noise and blaming myself. There is no point in doing that.
- I rejoined the gym, spend lot of time around the house (cleaning, repairing, ...) to stay busy & not think about my tinnitus.
- I sleep so much better without help, some nights better than others but that's ok, I can take a long nap.
- I'm still on medication for my depression & planning to stop it gradually.
- I lost my job due to COVID-19 & some other problems with my employer but that's ok... it's not a death sentence.
- I'm planning to sign to get my motorbike license soon (with earplugs of course), very exciting
- I still need to find a way to enjoy video games again (ditch the headphones) with some nice studio speakers & high end microphone.

Take care of yourself & fuck tinnitus!

 

Just a quick update to tell you that tinnitus is not the end of the world and you should be grateful to only have this problem in your life. I don't want to belittle your pain (I have been there) but when you face real life changing problems (like a big surgery, losing a loved one), you really put things in context. Tinnitus is just a sound, and you will adapt, trust me: 2 years ago I was thinking that I couldn't drive a bike (I bought one), or couldn't go to the movie theater (I can) or play saxophone again (I can, but my ears vibrate because of my hyperacusis, I think I need -32 dB custom earplugs instead of -27 dB for that but not a big deal). I just did a 4 hour session of saxophone alto tonight with custom earplugs & I'm ok. I can't play like before but that's ok, nobody gives a shit except me, I play only for me.

YOU WILL OVERCOME THIS SOUND! TRUST ME! HAVE FAITH IN YOU! YOU ARE NOT WEAK! YOU ARE A STRONG HUMAN BEING AND YOU WILL KICK IT! MOST IMPORTANTLY: DON'T BEAT YOURSELF FOR HAVING IT!

Important advice: you have to keep telling yourself why you're grateful right now (house, wife, kids, job, passions, friends, foods, holidays, whatever...) It will help you to calm down. And this advice comes from a person who wanted to end his life 2 years ago because of tinnitus.

Take care of yourself & fuck tinnitus!

 

You won't think it's "just a sound" when it reacts and permanently increases in tones and loudness from noise less than 30 dB (or for no reason at all). Catastrophic cases should not be discarded with phrases like "it's just a sound".

No comment.

I appreciate your positivity, and I'm truly happy for you, but people in my, @DocTors_94, @Chinmoku, @Travis Henry's situation don't benefit from people with stable tinnitus that doesn't spike from 4 hours of 130 dB saying it's no big deal. We need a treatment yesterday, not positivity.

I do agree that 99% of people will never be as bad as us, but that doesn't mean we should be discarded as unable to adapt.

Cheers.

 

I'm truly sorry you are going trough that. I understand your position. I just wanted to give some hope.

Please don't get me wrong, I know others can have it harder than me or anyone else.

But because you have it harder doesn't mean other can't celebrate little things in life or that their pain does not exist.

I drive (not now because of my back) my bike with a sound "proof" helmet (I did a lot of research before) and with custom earplugs (I had to make 2 of them because the first ones were not enough for my ears) and I bought a small cc bike because I did not want to damage my ears (it's maximum 86 dB engine). I played saxophone for the first time in 18 years, with earplugs and with a towel inside the core to decrease the sound. And I did not push it to the limit because of my ears (ok... maybe 1 times, or 10...) so it's not 130 dB all the time. You can push it to >100 dB easily yes (mainly beginners tend to do that) but the spirituality of this instrument is the tonality and you can recognize the trues players by the way they can modulate the power of the instrument.

You don't know me. Neither my condition, nor the consequence of it and in 2022 I still pay the consequences of the new onset of my tinnitus in 2020, trust me. When I did this update, it was just so another "baguette" like me could calm down, breathe and move on. In 2020, I saw so few positive posts here, it was all doom & hell, and this kind of "positive" post helped me believe I could have a future.

Take care my friend.

I hope you will find a solution to cope with that shit, or that someone will find a cure for all the sufferers.

 

Newbies need to see horror stories and know how bad it can get. They need to know that they aren't free to do whatever the hell they want with no consequences (which is what most of these "positivity" posts do - "Hey guys!!! I just went to a 150 dB concert and didn't spike, so going to concerts is okay!!!" - I see way too many posts like this).

I say this from my own experience. If it wasn't for mild preachers saying it's iMpOsSiBLe to spike and to keep living normally, I wouldn't have gotten catastrophically worse.

Wish you well.

 

Be careful or the next increase might be permanent chaos and pain.

It becomes the biggest problem in your life when you can't just say fuck it because the risks of suicide increase tremendously if it gets worse.

Life shouldn't just fall back into normal with this condition. You didn't really get better... you were given a warning.

 

I thank you both for the warning. I'm trying my best to be active and not put my ears at risk. I vacuum, use power tools with noise cancelling headphones and when I go to the movie, I wear custom musician earplugs. Even at the gym when some dumb kids drop plates I put earplugs in, you don't want to be near two pieces of metal crushing at high speed.

 

Hello again,

It’s me... the dumbest man on earth.

Life was good, my hyperacusis & tinnitus were not a problem anymore, I used hearing protection when needed until recently.

I went to a party and the music was loud (not loud like you need to scream to hear someone but loud enough). I had a few drinks before they turned up the volume. I did not use hearing protection.

My tinnitus is still the same in both ears but I have constant ear pain on my left side and some form of hyperacusis on both ears. It radiate to the TMJ and back of my left throat. Also I get more than usual fleeting tinnitus on both ears.

The party was last Saturday, so 6 days ago. I had a panic attack today because the pain was constant (before not so much). I managed to calm my nerves by telling me the old mantra my psychiatrist told me back in the days « what you have now is not what you will have in the future » but it’s quite difficult.

I took some Paracetamol and ear drops but the last one made things worse (thinking about taking oral corticosteroids I still have). I don’t know if my new onset is psychosomatic because of my health anxiety but I’m pretty sure it’s a combination of both acoustic trauma and stress. I tend to clench my jaw when I’m stressed and right now it’s through the roof.

Dammit I was feeling so good for 2 years, gradually the hyperacusis went away and the tinnitus went down and I lost a few tones (no more ringing), it was just a constant hiss with the usual fleeting tinnitus.

It’s so easy to forget the pain and suffering when you are feeling good again and BAM, life gives you another lesson. I will never learn from my mistakes, humans are dumb and I’m dumb.

Sorry for the rant guys...

I will pray that my tinnitus do not get worse and the pain and hyperacusis go away. I know it will be a long road again...

 

Any updates, @Baguette? I hope you're doing better, though you are one of those constantly tempting fate.

 

It sucks that we forget about all the trauma we've experienced once we've habituated and go about living normal again. We need to keep our damaged hearing in mind so as not to forget that we're one acoustic trauma away from regret.

Hopefully you heal again and stay out of loud spaces.

 

Look back through the posts. You were warned by @AnthonyMcDonald. I suggest you spread the word to friends and family who just 'get on with life as normal.'

 

No worries, we all make stupid mistakes. My tinnitus and reactivity got better in a span over a few months, then I got the flu, consumed Acetaminophen and bam, it left my tinnitus in a horrible fluctuating state that was 6 months before that. Sad thing is that I also had the same experience when I got COVID-19, that when I consumed DayQuil (which contains Acetaminophen), it also left it in a horrible reactive fluctuating state but it got better over time. Not sure if I will be that lucky again.

Even if at some point we think we’re doing okay and have the expectation of not being in the worse point in which we were in the past, we need to take the exact same precautions as if we’re still in that horrible state, so that we can decrease the chances of having such return.