Warning for New Tinnitus Sufferers: A Blender Can Make You Worse

I should have known better, as I have been reading this forum before. But I was stupid...

Trying to make it short: I got tinnitus 4 weeks ago after noise trauma. This is my second round, first time it disappeared after about 6 months. Back then I had sensitivity to some sounds, but could for example still use my blender with earmuffs.

This time, I noticed discomfort when blending, even with earplugs AND earmuffs on. But I thought, this cannot be a problem, it has always been fine before. It was not fine, and after about 3 times of using my blender I got severe hyperacusis on top of tinnitus. Tinnitus is terrible but hyperacusis can be worse, and that's what I want to warn about: after getting tinnitus, if you find any sound uncomfortable, just stop. Wait. When you can tolerate the sound again, go on.

I tried to continue my life pretty normally after getting hyperacusis (always with ear protection), but that just made things sooo much worse. Now everything is too loud & hurts. I'm homebound, one friend visits sometimes and we talk whispering.

Had I skipped the blender for a few months after the tinnitus onset, this all would probably have been avoided.

 

On the flip side - you won't get COVID-19...

 

Hi Saswata,

I don't think you should beat yourself up. If you carry double hearing protection, you should have been well able to use a blender a few times. I suspect your hyperacusis might have worsened regardless.

I suffer from both tinnitus and hyperacusis, both pretty bad. I get by thanks to always inserting foam earplugs before I leave home. (The trick is to make sure they are deeply inserted, which provides a protection of some 20 decibels.) You should be able to return to a more active live yourself. Just take it step by step.

 

Hi @Saswata.

Try not to be too hard on yourself. You have had tinnitus since 2020 and usually noise induced tinnitus improves over time. If you have been using any type of headphones, earbuds or headsets even at low volume, this is the likely reason your symptoms have not improved. I say this because you have mentioned the first time they disappeared after 6 months. In addition to this, if you have been working in a noisy environment or attended venues where loud music was played, even when wearing earplugs, there is no guarantee that your tinnitus was not affected.

A lot people with noise induced tinnitus and hyperacusis find their symptoms improve over time as yours did and think they have turned a corner. They think all is now well but often this is not the case. The healing process can take up to 18 months, sometimes longer, particularly if hyperacusis or oversensitivity to sound is present. Some tend to think they can return to the old lifestyle; perhaps this was using headphones, earbuds or headsets. These devices may have originally caused the noise trauma because of listening to audio at too high a volume without realizing it.

If one returns to using any type of headphones even at low volume, then they risk making the noise induced tinnitus worse. This can still happen after a long habituation period lasting years. People with this type of tinnitus are never completely out of the woods. They can still enjoy life and do most of the things they want to do. However, some prudence is required long term. I advise not to listen to audio through any type headphones and listening to loud music even with earplugs for long durations, as the sound can pass through the head and reach the inner ear by bone conduction and spike the tinnitus. In some cases the spike might not reduce but increase the tinnitus to a new permanent level.

Please click on the links below and read my posts, then go to my started threads and read my articles on TRT. Whilst you are there read: Hyperacusis, As I See It and The Habituation Process. I am not saying you need TRT, but advise that you see an Audiologist that specialises in tinnitus and hyperacusis treatment.

All the best,
Michael

Will My Tinnitus Get Worse? | Tinnitus Talk Support Forum
How to Habituate to Tinnitus | Tinnitus Talk Support Forum

 

I also tried to live normally, driving everywhere, going to restaurants. It made me very slightly worse.

Then I went for an MRI (with double protection) and it absolutely destroyed my ears.

I think people should protect their ears for a very long time after an acoustic trauma (maybe even for a year or longer).

 

Thank you for your replies

I have read Tinnitus Talk a LOT this week, and noticed that some people warn others to be very careful & others kind of laugh at this, saying things like you should not stop living... Well I did not stop living, until I had to. I so wish someone can read this thread and possibly save themselves some very tough time, by being very careful.

I'm quite sure I'll give up everything that includes loud noise (or headphones) even if & when I get better, even with earplugs on - luckily none of those things are all that important to me anyways. What I'm not willing to do is listen to this eeeee noise all day long, and give up all things that are too loud&painful with hyperacusis, and that is basically everything right now.

I wish we all get better soon <3

 

Thank you for warning about that and sorry to hear about your hyperacusis. I use a blender every now and then but haven't used it after I got tinnitus. Probably because I have been too depressed because of my tinnitus to make my healthy morning smoothies.

My blender is really loud. I probably wouldn't have even thought about that what you mentioned because I am tinnitus newbie, 4 weeks. I have hyperacusis too. Next time I use my blender I remember to wear hearing protection.

 

My wife makes fun of me for wearing gun range earmuffs when I make things in the blender. I leave them right on the counter 24/7 since I make a shake every day. I'm glad to see other people with similarly ultra loud blenders!

 

Hi Saswata,

Sorry to hear about your flare up. I learned from experience how important it is to remain vigilant. I had noise induced tinnitus/hyperacusis a year ago that took several months to subside. It was a rough couple of months. The tinnitus never went away completely but it was totally manageable and it got to the point where I wasn’t even wearing earplugs in most scenarios anymore. I felt mostly normal.
Then one night about 6 weeks ago, I was very tired and tossed a heavy glass bottle into the recycling. It smacked another heavy glass bottle and I knew immediately it was bad.
It caused a flare up and many of the unbearable symptoms I went through the first time reappeared. What’s amazing to me is how much a flareup can affect me mentally. I almost feel like a different person. My emotions are so intense and I have a hard time dealing with anything, especially any kind of sound. I get high anxiety during a flare up.
My symptoms aren’t as bad as they were the first time around, but it’s still been fairly debilitating. It’s also been really difficult mentally because I felt like I barely got through it the first time, and having it happen again made me really depressed.

I’ve just started to turn the corner where I feel a tiny bit of hope, but I noticed my ears are still incredibly sensitive, like even if I talk too loud it can make my tinnitus louder.

I guess it’s something I’m just gonna have to remember to be very vigilant about, but the thing is I thought I was pretty careful and still this happened.

I hope you feel better very soon. Rest your ears. I’ve started taking more anti-inflammatory herbs, I’m hoping that does the trick. I’ll keep everyone posted.

 

@SaraK18, I'm sorry you have to go through that all over - I'm there with you with the anxiety. But it is encouraging you were able to get so much better the first time, surely it will happen again to a good extent, even if it takes a bit more time (hopefully won't). We'll get through this and then let's be very careful! (And keep posting your success).

 

My son uses a blender daily. I’m not always in the kitchen when he does but when I am, I just block my ears with my fingers and I haven’t had any problems. I guess it’s definitely individual. My tinnitus however is from hearing loss and not a result of noise trauma. Possibly a cumulative effect but not a recent noise trauma.

 

Hi, there are blenders, and there are blenders. Ours is a Cuisinart PowerEdge 700. Use low speed pulse. With dual hearing protection nothing will happen. Pulse is intermittent so you expose yourself briefly and intermittently. Ears can handle that. Other blenders are ridiculous. I'm very cautious when buying things.

Lately i bought a Vevor meat grinder. It is great for putting veggies through it, and with just over the ear hearing protection I can barely notice it. I use it to grind my sprouted chick peas.