TomD77

An acquaintance of a few years back made his living organizing and taking groups of German tinnitus sufferers to some ex-eastern bloc country (can't remember which one for the life of me) for "treatments".

Military, a lot of shooting, lots of construction sites, I've got a bad case but never notice it unless something calls my attention, like this thread.

"The high-pitched ringing, squealing, hissing, clicking, roaring, buzzing or whistling in the ears that can drive tinnitus sufferers crazy may be a by-product of the brain turning up the volume to cope with subtle hearing loss". Subtle? Heh! Nothing subtle about my hearing loss.

CHAS

Pinging in my ear tells me that another round of Meniere's Syndrome is about to start. Drinking a lot of water with 25% Gatorade helps sometimes.

Does The Noise in My Head Bother You? - Steven Tyler's book (Aerosmith)

There are hearing aids than can help some people. Think they use white noise. Ask around as some audiologists are good, others are lousy.

CHAS

Some claim Van Gogh cut off his ear because tinnitus was driving him mad.

San Francisco

Ah yes, I try not to think about that. I am sure some of you have seen what I have in the movies.

Some guy goes all serial killer and when caught he says to the police "The ringing in my ears is so loud, can you hear it, it drove me insane, that's why I murdered all those people, help me please, the ringing is unbearable." While saying this the guy covers his ears with his hands and pleads to the police "Make it stop, please, make it stop. No, just shoot me, OK, end my misery!"

I go to church every Sunday and pray that the ringing in MY ears never gets as bad as it did for all those serial killers in the movies.

San Francisco

Oh, by the way, if your tinnitus was caused by combat, you can apply to the VA for a disability. (I applied years later after I got out, at the recommendation of my primary care VA doc). I got a 10% rating.)

Where the rating is beneficial is: 1) I got FREE hearing aids (top of the line model, $5,000 units); 2) a zero co-pay group on medical care; and 3) lifetime placement in the zero co-pay rating.

So while combat injuries are a drag the disability rating helps. So if you served and suffered hearing injury check with the VA. YOU CAN APPLY FOR MEDICAL CARE AND SIMPLY GET PUT INTO THE SYSTEM. Later, if you lose your private insurance you can then "activate" your VA benefits.

(And the care is excellent, by the way. Here in San Francisco the VAMC is superb. The "hearing aids dept." is fantastic.)

Note: I am not sure, but if the ringing in your ears is from military service and the "hearing aids dept." says it is, no matter your financial situation, the VA may give you hearing aids. Worth checking out. (The hearings aids have cut out some of the ringing in my ears.)

DX-MAN

From what others describe here, I'm guessing mine is pretty mild; no one's going to tell me, though, that it's not physiological.

Been going on for over 25 years, usually suppressed by low ambient noise (fan, TV, stiff breeze, etc.); loud music as a youth, loud artillery as an adult. Also been diagnosed with hi-freq loss -- funny how that can actually make you more sensitive to sudden loud noises in certain ranges. (Or, it does ME, at least....)

sarals 

As I said, 35 years of helicopters gave me mine. Along with playing drums as a teenager. I've noticed it for some time, but even now it doesn't bother me, even though it is louder (I hear it in noisy environments now, not just quiet environs). I tend to ignore it.

A hearing test a year ago was an eye opener for me. "You're a candidate for a hearing aid", I was told! I have a lot of hearing loss in the mid frequencies (20 to 40dB), and of course, at high frequencies (above 7K I am essentially deaf). What is interesting is that the tinnitus "noise" I experience almost exactly corresponds to where my hearing loss is the worst. I really think the notion that my brain is "raising the input level" in the areas where my hearing suffers has some merit.

merca

Sorry for bumping this thread, but I'm currently suffering from tinnitus and it drives me nuts. I read that there exists a sound treatment. Di anyone try it? And if yes, was it helpful? Any other advice is appreciated.

Salmonchaser

Oh jeez yes. Mine started in late 2018 during a bilateral viral ear infection. There was an early stage where if it didn't get better, I felt like it was time to make an exit. The volume has decreased a fair bit for me going from so loud it could be heard in the shower to about half that volume currently. During the last year or so, I've even started having a day or two per week where it gets so low that it isn't noticeable, but it always returns.
Ever since I developed it, I haven't had one solid good night of sleep (5 years now). Some nights as little as 4hrs, up to (very rarely) 7hrs. Average is about 6, which is hard because I used to be a solid 8hr every night sleeper. Always wake up between 2-4am with it blaring especially loudly - seems to be circadian rhythm related for me. I'm a research scientist and have read and tried everything - nothing works, just have to somehow adjust to it and learn to live with it.
It has made training and recovery a ***** due to lack of sleep - which is especially hard at this age.

MinnMan

Add me to the list.

I've had. it in my left ear for nearly 40 years, from standing to close to a pistol being fired (at a target, not a person) without ear protection. Fortunately, I'm only aware of it when things are otherwise quiet, and so it's ignorable most of the time.

They said that my hearing aids could diminish my perception of it, but that hasn't been my experience.

And ignore the snake-oil sales pitches, there is no cure.

locolobo13 

I've had it for at least 30 yrs. Gotten so used to it I have to listen for it to remember it's there. There were periods 15-20 yrs ago it really bothered me.

My brother has it too. He's tried some Eustachian tube massage technique that was hit or miss. Think he's just getting used to it as well.

Hold on a min. Gotta answer the phone..

DiabloScott

1. Anyone know what happened to the OP Pamestique ? She used to post a lot but nothing in 6 years now.

2. I have tolerable tinnitus - it's annoying, doesn't keep me awake or interfere with hearing, but it is constant. No guns or anything like that in my history - lots of loud machinery but I always wore hearing protection (grandpa lost most of his hearing from farm machinery and I saw as a kid how much it affected his quality of life). Hearing doctors said earbuds are fine if I keep the volume reasonable - I almost always have music or podcasts or a book stuck in my ears... it helps.

By the way... it's pronounced TIN-iddus... doctors appreciate when you know that.
My neurologists always ask me if I hear things that other people don't, and I tell them I have TINnittus and they chuckle.

Ogsarg

If you google "new treatment for tinnitus" you'll find all kinds of interesting reading. Some treatments look very promising and others are just junk.

I've had it for many years but it doesn't bother me. It is aggravated by wind noise so finding a way to reduce that while on the bike might be helpful. I've also heard a lot of people have successfully reduced or eliminated it by cutting out coffee. Did not work for me. One thing I heard about a few years ago is discussed in the link below. The UK and some other countries cover this in their health plans but US medicare and most or all insurances don't. Hope you find some peace. I know it can be very bad for some people.

Tinnitus treatment

SpedFast

I've had it since the early 70's from things that go boom. It's the main reason I wear my earbuds when I go riding. Wind howling in my ears sets it off big time. And yes, it affects my life when I can't hear others due to background noise. I'm getting pretty good at reading body language and lips though haha. A simple nod usually satisfies most speakers.

GhostRider62

I have it. Probably due to a couple thousand MRI test scans, or riding my bike too fast, or shooting too much.

Strangely, I am recovering from what appears to be long covid and my tinnitus is much worse and balance is weird.

SpedFast

Hope things eventually improve for you.

Chuck Naill

Same here. Thanks for the thread, now I am thinking about it....LOL!!

If I remember, I heard a doctor discuss very small doses of an anti-depressant for those of us who suffer more.

Hermes

Zombie thread. Moved to Pills and Ills.

boozergut

Ill chime in as I've also been to an ENT for tinnitus. 30 years of shooting was likely the cause for me. I've scoured the internet, taken the supplements, read books on the subject, et al. The key for me was learning to identify my triggers which ramp it from a 3 out of 10 to much higher. My triggers are:
stress
salty snacks
dehydration
caffeine
loud noises.
Dont waste your money on any pills. Avoid your triggers. If you work behind a desk check out some of the youtube masking sounds that you can listen to with headphones while you work.

Pray for a simple cure.

RB1-luvr

I have it. I like it. During the day I rarely hear it. I hear it when I go to bed and I meditate on it. I note the subtle differences of it every night, and it makes me smile. To me it's like white noise, which I have always liked. I pass right out.

Speedskater

I read in the past, that there are about 200 causes or types of tinnitus.
So nothing applies to everyone with tinnitus.
There are 2 sound (noise) treatments. The basically train your brain to ignore the tinnitus. Sometimes the work and sometimes they don't.

smurfy

Sorry to bring up an old thread but I thought this subject was quite interesting (and I'm near my third week of recovering from knee-replacement surgery so I'm getting kind of bored).

I have a mild case of tinnitus and like a previous poster has stated is like standing in a field or forest on a summer night with all the bugs singing. I do occasionally experience ringing but it usually last a couple of seconds at most and then just goes away.

Not to get OT but the reason I bring this up is it seems that cycling clubs now seem to insist on inviting live bands to their invitational ride events. This is a big no-no for me since the bass and reverb of the loudspeakers can by pure torture for my hearing. The last invitational ride I participated in I went to get my after-ride meal and I had to scream over the noise of the admittedly-crappy band to tell them what kind of food I wanted. I ended up taking my food with me out to the car and left the venue. Not enjoyable at all.