About two or three weeks before Christmas, I started hearing this high pitched squealing in my ears. It originally lasted for a few minutes. Then it went. It came back a few times over the following days and then stayed with me constantly. It's not in both ears so to speak, it switches ears every so often. My doctor originally thought it was my tonsils, and I was given antibiotics. Nothing changed. I went back, I was then told it could have been a really heavy cold that I wasn't able to shift and was given more antibiotics - pssh, so much for controlling this stuff - and its still here. I had a hearing test done and my results came back fine, I'm within normal hearing levels, but I have to admit its frightening me. The audiologist I spoke with told me she has had it for 11 years and that she recommends I be referred to a specialist for therapy and coping strategies.

I wanted to ask, has anyone here got tinnitus? If so, how do you deal with it? My main fear is I'm going to go deaf... which I don't want to happen The audiologist told me not to panic about that as it only happens in rare circumstances, but I can't help but worry. My ears feel all weird, although I think that could be because I'm panicking about it as they feel weird when I stop to listen for it and don't usually bother me when I'm concentrating. It's starting to wear me down now though. I'm feeling tired and really anxious all the time. I know this isn't a medical forum, but I was just curious if anyone here had any advice?

Most people get a very temporary form of this when the pressure in their ears becomes slightly uneven. We all know the trick to fix this, which is popping your ears by plugging your nose and then trying to blow air out of it. It will always cause the ears to pop, the pressure to equalize, and the high-pitched sound to fade away immediately. Sadly, it seems you have the permanent form, and though I am definitely not a doctor, it does seem to match up with classic tinnitus.

My mother has had it for several years. Some times she's fine and is barely aware of it, and some times it nearly drives her insane. This occurs mainly at night, when there are no other ambient noises to distract her from what she is hearing inside her head. It only rarely gets that bad, but one way she is considering in coping with it is a medical device that does one very simple thing at night: it emits low-level white noise that allows you to sleep because it is constant and unchanging, but it will distract you from hearing the high-pitched squeal that occurs on a range that is difficult for a resting mind to ignore.

Sorry, I wish I could be of more help but that is my sole experience with it. I hope it goes away, and if not, that you find a tolerable and effective way to deal with it.

Yikes.

I'm afraid I don't have any advice, but trying out a white noise machine sounds like a good start. Sorry you are going through this.

I also don't really have any advice, but the ambient noise may help. they have some cool ones like the ambient engine noise of the enterprise or deathstar, etc you can download and play at night.

Lindir, my friend, welcome to the tinnitus club.
I have had it for the past 20 years.

You apparently have the more common high[er] pitched version, same as I.
If one has to have tinnitus, that is the preferable form to have. It is much easier to mask it.
With the lower frequency version it is almost impossible to mask because you feel it more than hear it.
That one can really make the sufferer miserable, non-stop.

From what I've read, it doesn't progress to deafness unless it has a pathological cause (and maybe not even then) which has been ruled out in your case.
It may even clear up on its own, but that could be months or years away.

Mine (also non-pathological) manifests itself sounding like a gazillion crickets, but I don't even notice it during the day...the routine noises of daily life mask it.
And interestingly enough, I always pass the word recognition part of a hearing test with flying colors.
I do have some hearing dropoff at the higher freqs (about 4KHz and above) but the ENT guy said that is a natural result of my *ahem* getting older.

At night it MAY be a problem if you worry about it, because sounds at night are always more noticeable, so try not to think about it. I know that is easier said than done.
Masking it with white noise generally works for most people . I've used use a small table fan or maybe those "environmental sounds " CDs, like ocean waves or a running brook.
I've also also used a clock radio and tune it to a "non" station that has static.
Really tho', since I know I'm not going deaf, it no longer concerns me and I seldom even need the white noise at night.

However, some drugs like aspirin and other NSAIDS or opiates can temporarily make it a lot louder and annoying.
Google tinnitus and you can get more info on what drugs worsen it (while the drug is in your system).

I take aspirin every night and I guess I've gotten used to the "crickets" getting louder because I don't even bother with masking them.

The one time it is VERY noticeable is when I'm swimming laps.
My head is under water (except for turning to breathe) and under water it doesn't sound like crickets at all....it sounds like tissue paper constantly being crumpled, very crackly.
It's not real loud and I'm concentrating on my stroke so it still doesn't bother me, but it's definitely there.

The take away from all this Lindir, is: try not to worry about it, mask it with white noise as needed, and know what drugs temporarily exacerbate it.

Hey Lindir,

I'm a doctor and encounter this frequently.
Considering this is an acute symptom for you I would see how it goes over the next couple of weeks and ask your doctor to exclude things like Meniere's disease, Acoustic neuroma or Vestibular neuronitis.
It's a bit hard to do over the internet! Usually with those things you may encounter other symptoms like vertigo, dizziness, nausea/vomiting or hearing loss.
So make sure your doc has thought about those and excluded those.
If so, the management for chronic tinnitus is basically avoiding triggers and managing the symptoms from a lifestyle point of view. Occasionally medications can help (such as oral corticosteroids or beta blockers).
Let me know how you go or feel free to PM for anything else you need!

Thanks for the support guys and thank you to those who were able to give advice. I plan to see my doctor next week. I appear to have a very slight form of hyperacusis to. Or I'm just panicking too much.

Thank you WhiteHand, I will ask my GP to refer me to an ENT so I can get my ears checked thoroughly and hopefully they'll rule out any more serious conditions. I haven't had any other symptoms of Ménière's disease but it's still worth getting it ruled out. I hope it doesn't get worse. Val you mentioned popping ears. I can't pop my ears. I have never been able to blow my nose and so I can't use the method you described. Maybe this is something I could mention to my doctor. Not sure if there's a link there but might be worth looking in to.

The most damaging thing I do to my ears is listen to music through headphones or movies through headphones. I admit, I do like them to be somewhat loud. It's not out of a need for them to be loud, I just enjoy it better. I've taken a break from doing so ever since it started though, and I've been limiting my time wearing headphones.

I'll keep you all updated. Thanks again guys for your support

I hope it gets better for you Lindir. It is something I wouldn't like to experience. I've had hyper sensitive hearing all my life and I couldn't imagine going through that.

Hey K - is there a correlation between a constant noise and this condition? I have a friend with it and she blames the constant hum of a mainframe computer room. (Believe me, it is quite a hum)

I've heard we may be living a lot longer in the future with all the medical advances but we are all most likely to be deaf. Your thoughts?

Hey J,

Yeah there is definitely a correlation unfortunately.
It's most common in war veterans due to explosions etc
Also see it a lot in younger teenagers as they like to blast loud music via their headphones (which based on what Lindir said, I think may be the cause of his Tinnitus).
So if your friend is constantly hearing this loud hum then more than likely they will suffer from tinnitus but not necessarily hearing loss. Early audiometry is always a good thing to do
There's no way to reverse it but symptoms are usually manageable as other have mentioned above

I am going to be getting my hearing checked regularly from now on. I think the best way for me to look at my tinnitus is like this - I haven't lost any hearing just yet, but it's a warning sign that I need to take better care and try my best to control my exposure to loud sounds.

I've bought my self some ear plugs that I can wear when I'm travelling to uni. The car I travel in is quite loud at times which I can't imagine is healthy for my ears. Another thing, is it recommended to plug your ears when you go to see a movie at the cinema? I read on a tinnitus forum that someone there always does it.

To be honest, the thought of going deaf truly terrifies me although the thought of going blind is far worse. Are there any records/statistics that show that people who develop tinnitus early end up going deaf later on?

With Deimos and Val's mother they've had it for a long time with no further problems so that at least gives me hope. My lecturer at uni has also had it for a number of years and her hearing seems to be fine. The audiologist I spoke with too seemed to be hearing fine.

Slightly related to what you asked Idril: my Sky box makes a weird whiring noise that I first thought was my ears. It wasn't, however, as my parents could hear it too. Then the following day when I was lying in bed I could hear the whirring noise. I plugged my ears and I could still hear it. It was as though the tinnitus had copied the sound.

Lindir wrote:....To be honest, the thought of going deaf truly terrifies me although the thought of going blind is far worse. Are there any records/statistics that show that people who develop tinnitus early end up going deaf later on?

With Deimos and Val's mother they've had it for a long time with no further problems so that at least gives me hope. My lecturer at uni has also had it for a number of years and her hearing seems to be fine. The audiologist I spoke with too seemed to be hearing fine...

Lindir, a few things to consider:

Turn down the music (if you haven't already). I read that if someone else can hear the music YOU are listening to with earbuds or headphones, it is 'way too loud and you are courting early onset hearing loss.

Decide if attending rock concerts is worth losing your hearing for.
85dB is the threshold beyond which hearing will begin to sustain permanent damage.
Rock concerts are typically 120dB.
By way of comparison, normal conversation is 65dB, a jack hammer is 105-110, a jet engine is at 130.

I have found that the sound at the theatre is too loud and will bring earplugs. I started doing this long before I had tinnitus.

Hearing loss is a normal result of aging, and usually begins to show up in one's 40's ---BUT it is a gradual loss (if one
hasn't been regularly exposed to damaging noise levels.)
When the ENT diagnosed my tinnitus 20 years ago he said I would need hearing aids before I was 60, but NOT because of the tinnitus.
Nor did the tests show any damage; just the start of normal age related hearing loss.
Well, I still don't need hearing aids [just yet], but I never listened to music anywhere near rock concert levels either.

Life is choices.

Couldn't have put it better myself Deimos!

Don't worry, I've already limited my music level and time. I've set a sound limit on my phone currently so it won't go over a dangerous level.

I've downloaded an app on my phone and I was checking the sound levels on the train to uni this morning and I was shocked at how loud it was. It was saying that it reached a maximum of 99dB whilst peaking at around 86. I was on the train for an hour too. I think earplugs will be used on the train or in the car from now on.

I don't know how accurate this app is tbh, but that's still frightening. I measured sound levels around uni and the streets and they were at maximum around about 70dB so not so much danger there.

Rock concerts aren't my thing, neither are music festivals. I've never been to one and have never been in a nightclub. I know at nightclubs the sound levels can reach 100dB and above and according to the research I've done, it's suggested that anything longer than 10-15 minutes in such an environment will start to damage your hearing. Yikes.