Working in Mining with Tinnitus?

Hello,

I have recently developed worse 24/7 tinnitus after having COVID-19 at the start of June. 6 months before that I brought a house. I work in mining, and the cab noise is around 80 dB in some machines. I do wear earplugs that are 33 dB NRR but it seems in some gear the engine vibrates through me. I have some cheap earmuffs I have tried doubling up on but that makes the vibrating worse and aggravates my tinnitus.

Ideally I'd like to maintain working where I am and manage the noise better because I'm afraid of not having a job that pays as well and sell my home etc (I know that's catastrophic thinking).

Does anyone work in a loud job? How do you manage it? Does anyone have any tips to help me?

Below is a screenshot of inside my cab and the dB rating:

 

Bone conduction + occlusion effect can be a bad combo. I think you may be putting your ears at risk, but I also understand you have to work and not lose your home. It's a difficult situation...

 

I know it’s hard. I find myself wearing double protection and my ears are still irritated after my shift? I honestly don’t know if I’m doing damage or not?

 

I guess nobody can know for sure if you are causing damage? It could be small cumulative damage happening over time, causing bigger issues as time goes by.

I don't think it's a good sign if your ears are constantly irritated after your shifts.

 

Maybe try some heavy duty earmuffs instead of the "cheap" ones? If I'm reading your decibel meter right, most of the noise is low frequency which hearing protection is least effective in stopping.

You may wish to start looking or alternatives if your ears are irritated every time after work, though it's only been a short time since your symptoms began so you may settle into an "ok" spot where you don't see any more increase in symptoms and slowly become accustomed to your current situation.

 

Okay, I'll have to start researching good quality earmuffs that can deal with low frequency noise. I think it's mostly just the engine sounds that probably do it and my ears have been feeling sensitive to sounds since these symptoms developed post COVID-19.

 

I would go with 3M brand in the highest possible NRR rating.

You can see on their data sheets than the Peltor X5 which is 31 NRR only reduces 125 Hz by about 24 dB, at 32 Hz it's probably even less. Low frequency noises have larger wavelengths so they travel though solid objects easier, including earmuffs and even your own body.

 

That sounds like the worst part and I don't think that can be blocked, since it's sound driven by bone conduction.

It's like the sound of a rattly train, the metro etc. It goes through your body. Bone conduction.