Why Is My Tinnitus Getting Worse as Time Goes on?

Hi all,

I feel like my tinnitus is getting worse the more time goes by. Just last week, I woke up on Monday with a new ringing sound in my left ear, then the next day woke up with another new ringing sound/tone in my right ear and woke up today to yet another new ringing sound/tone in my left ear.

I don't go out much (just driving to and from school to pick up my siblings) every day and I don't subject myself to loud noises either. Very careful about that stuff, as I also have mild-moderate hyperacusis.

Only reason I could possibly maybe think of; is sleep deprivation. I say that because sometimes after I've actually had a decent sleep, my tinnitus is significantly quieter when I wake up, then it progressively gets back to its 'normal' level throughout the day. Feels like every time I get used to a sound, a new one comes along.

Would like to know your thoughts on this, thanks.

Here's my tinnitus/hyperacusis story if it helps: https://www.tinnitustalk.com/thread...innitus-or-make-my-ears-more-sensitive.34783/

 

Hello, lack of sleep can often at times increase the volume of our tinnitus... Is there a reason why you're sleep deprived? Are there stresses in your life other than tinnitus? Is insomnia something that you deal with regularly? Hopefully these issues get addressed so you can go back to your normal routine. Is the "new" ringing sound still with you?

 

There is a massive link with sleep and tinnitus .

@coffee_girl How are you doing now?

 

Man I'm going through the same thing and it kills me because I can't find any answers... I don't expose myself to loud noises anymore, I'm always super careful and yet for the past 3 years my tinnitus has been consistently getting worse and worse...

A year ago I felt like you did, when I had a good night sleep it kinda lowered a bit and would increase again as the day went on, but now my god nothing gives me relief anymore, not showers, not sleeping, nothing, it's always super loud from the moment I wake up to the moment I fall asleep...

I have looked and looked for answers and I can't find none... At some point I believed it was my anxiety but I haven't been anxious for weeks, because even though tinnitus torments me everyday I've had it for long enough to be able to control myself and not stress about it, still it helps nothing because it is so bothersome, I hate this condition so much.

 

You state in your profile that you don't know the root cause of your tinnitus. That means your root cause could be something degenerative that is expected to worsen with time, which could explain why tinnitus gets worse as well. I have one of those, so I expect worsening of my tinnitus with time.

That's why it is super important to try to find the root cause for tinnitus. We know our hearing doesn't get better as we age, so even hearing loss tinnitus is likely to get worse as we age, but there are competing forces that tend to deal with the tinnitus naturally, as many recover spontaneously.

If you can figure out the root cause, at least you can try to do something about it. I did, and I am.

 

I've tried multiple doctors, ENTs, in search of a reason for my tinnitus getting worse and all of them just told me the same... and here I am three years later, I have been super careful with loud noises, I manage my anxiety and yet my tinnitus just gets worse and worse, I'm not sure how I'm supposed to carry on like this.

 

Just wanted to let you know that I can relate. I say that ear infections caused my tinnitus but I don’t actually know for sure I just can’t think of any other reason, I always hated loud noises even before tinnitus (never been to a concert, always watched fireworks from indoors, etc) so there’s no way it was loud noise exposure. Mine's also gotten worse this year and it’s so frustrating when you feel like you've done all the right things and yet this still happened to you.

I hope things get easier for both of us.

 

I know it's so frustrating and leaves a person completely desperate and hopeless. Thank you and I sincerely hope it gets easier for us too.

 

Hi, thanks for your reply. Funnily enough, I have almost no trouble sleeping throughout the day. Possibly because I'm home alone, even though my family isn't loud. I dunno. Trying to sleep at night for the last week-and-a-half has been a challenge. I think that has mostly to do with the anxiety I get from thinking, "another day has gone by and I haven't done enough work on my assignments". I'd say I am stressed, not as much as I was a month ago, but still... The new ringing kinda comes and goes ever since it started. Sometimes I feel like if I try to 'look for it', that's when it comes back, but at the same time, sometimes it's just there, even when my mind was completely distracted.

 

Hi, thanks for your reply. Well, I first got constant tinnitus after flying (Australia to UK) in December of 2017. I remember hearing it not go away the first night we arrived in the UK. Since then, it stayed at that very low, unobtrusive volume, where I could only lightly hear it when I'd try to sleep. After my second ear syringing (just a month ago), it amped up to maybe 2.5-3 times the volume (I also got mild hyperacusis from that syringing). So, not sure about the root cause, as I didn't listen to headphones loudly on the planes (and was always very careful with headphones volume in general). I've had a hearing test with an audiologist and according to that I don't have any hearing loss at all, so I dunno. Thanks.

 

Hey I'm doing good, just hanging in there...how are you love?

 

Insomnia caused by loud, high pitched, intense ringing you hear? Nah. Say it ain't so! :-/

 

probably losing more hearing.

 

Not too bad thanks, going through a quieter phase.