I have like a low humming, feels likes it’s in my head, it’s at around 115hz, when that humming gets louder I know I’m in for a bad time with my left ear which has a extra loud hum on top, this hum is about 125hz and is so loud I can feel it like it’s on my ear drum, it switches on and off like someone playing with a switch, the only way I can stop it is to have continuous sound going into the ear, if sound isn’t quiet loud enough then it will kick in, switching on and off, I have pressure in that ear, pain and when it’s really bad a slight burning feeling inside, all feels like it’s coming from my middle ear.
I’ve had this since January 2016, when I was 36 weeks pregnant and had the worse head cold ever!! Just before this T started, I had a few weeks of where my ears popped and I could hear my own voice loud in my left ear and it wouldn’t pop back, then this stopped and I was left with what I’ve been suffering with now.
I’ve always had what I class as the traditional ringing in my ears ever since I was little, I’m so used to that noise though, as it’s so high pitched, but it doesn’t really bother me. I could even get used to the humming, but this extra loud hum in my left ear is just hell on earth, the fact that when it switches on I can feel it and is so loud, I can not hear quiet noises over it, when it’s off I can hear fine. If I shake my head the humming shakes as well!
I’ve seen many different GP’s none are interested, they look in my ears and say my ear drums look totally fine and no sign of fluid behind the ear drum. I’ve had a course of antibiotics in case it was an infection, no joy either.. I saw a ent around September 2016, problem was I waited so long for a appointment, that when the day came my ear was having a good day, my hearing and pressure tests came back fine.. the ent I saw was not interested at all in my problem, just said it can take ages for a viral infection of the ears to clear up!! And she sent me on my way with no help what’s so ever! Since the birth of my second child in July, my ear is now super bad!!! It’s humming on my ear drum right now as I type! I’m terrified this is getting worse and sound will eventually not stop it, as it’s fighting now with the tv on! When it’s at it’s worse it also floods into my good right ear making that do the same but at a slight higher frequency!! Sob
I’ve had blood taken yesterday to see if something else is causing this problem, as I’ve read so many times that T is a symptom of something, so I’m also waiting now for another ent appointment!!
I also suffer from bad anxiety, have done for the past 13years, panic attacks as well. I’ve bought some cbd oil and I’m about to start trying it, but I’m also worried incase it makes the T worse..
hope to all of us suffering this torture, it’s absolute hell
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Momoko79
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Should also add that I get itchy ear canals, as well.. one GP suspected that I had ETD and as of today I have found out that when you swallow, the cracking noise I hear in my ears isn’t normal!! I thought it was, maybe ETD is a problem that is causing this god awful T
Thank you for sharing your Tinnitus story. There are so many reasons to tinnitus, I and really hope that it will be interesting for medical science soon. We usually hear, go home and live with your tinnitus. You wrote that you had a head cold just before tinnitus. I had a middle Ear infection and Ear pain just before tinnitus started. Virus on the nerve of balance is accepted, so why not virus on the nerves in the Innner Ear ? What is EDT?
Eustachian tube dysfunction, my left ear this morning feels like it’s inflamed even more this morning, my T that switches on and off to sound is going mental, 😪 bad day today I hope this downward spiral stops I can’t bare the thought of it getting worse.
I always have crackling in ears when I swallow, usualky called glue ear, as u have fluid buikd up in ear tubes. Plse dont worry abt chiropractors and strokes, if u go to a reputable one the risk is so tiny, but results may be beneficial. It really sounds like u have ETD. Decongestants help too.
Have u been diagnosed with Eustachian Tube Dysfunction ? My tinitus started because of this i discovered. The pressure and hearing yr voice in head is typical of this. Ive had this a lot but never as bad as it was when I posted my comments. Also chiropractor helps a lot too. My neck and shoulders were realky tight, shes sorted that. I still have a slight buzzing in right ear and some pressure on cheeks, taking decongestant, othetwise easier. Mention the above ETD to yr doctor. Hope this helps. Hxx
One GP I saw seemed to think I had ETD, it sounds quite likely to me, Ive seen about visiting chiropractor or osteopath can help, I also saw about having work done on your neck can be dangerous and cause a risk of stroke!! It kinda scared me.
I’ve been taking some decongestant at the mo as I have a cold as well, which is all o need.
Can you now equalize the pressure in your ears? I had a tuba dilation operation 1 months because one Ear specialist among many thought that my tinnitus was due to this. I can equalize pressure now , but it is still not easy. It was easier when I used decongestant, but was told only to use that in 14 days after operation. I too feel that I have a pressure , fullness in my head, not only in my ears.
I don’t think it’s air pressure that is causing the fullness so much but possibly inflammation and maybe swelling.. if I drive up or down a hill you get that need to pop your ears, it sorts it self out when I swallow, the pressure I feel in my ear feels slightly different to a difference in air pressure.. but I’ve always had a crackle/click noise in both my ears when I swallow.. I’ve had this since I can remember, I always thought it was normal, but apparently not.
Hi Momoko, I'm awake in the middle of the night, able to reply to you because I can't sleep. I to, wonder what is going to happen to me.
I've had the high pitch hissing wring for 20 years and had learned to live with it. Earlier this year, my luck began to run bad. I lost my wine country home to the Tubbs fire in California. I have another derelict house in Corta Medera that I hurried to restore to house part of my family. Whilst working on it, I hit my head on the crown and pinched the nerves between c5 c6. I went to the ER. They shined a light in my eyes and said I had a concussion but that I had no signs of internal bleeding. They didn't even sterilize the gash in my scalp.
I fired my contractor who's bad work was the cause of my accident, and finished most of the remodel myself. By this time, I had developed neuropathy in both hands. While I was at the nuerosurgeon getting this checked, the city called and told me they were shutting my job down. At this point, I'd reached a new level of stress.
With two other family members battling cancer and five year old twins to care for, something had to give. I'm an artist and have always worked real hard to succeed but this was breaking my spirit.
My Neurosurgeon ordered an MRI of my neck, an ENG, an Epidural, and physical Therapy. "let's try this and see if we can isolate the source of the neuropathy"
Well, the epidural caused my T to double in volume. I complained to the Doctor and he belittled my problem. I persisted in telling him it was something I needed to seek a treatment for. If the cause could be identified, we'd know if it was something treatable. He said,"well, we could do a brain scan to see if you have a tumor in your inner ear". I decided it was worth a try.
The scan was the loudest and most prolonged noise I've ever been subjected to. I left the scanner angry, wondering how in the world they could do this to people. My head felt like I'd suffered shell shock. When I tried asking for an explanation from the radiologist, she dismissed my complaint.
It's been a month now and I've been through there Tinnitus screening protocol. GE is examining the scanner for defects and I have all of those lovely symptoms so many of the contributors on this platform have.
I hear you loud and clear. If you have symptoms in one ear, there is a problem with that ear. If you have bilateral or what I'd call centralized, you have the tinnitus that exists within the brain as it searches for lost hearing.
I've asked for follow up ear exams and hearing tests because the eardrum can act eradic when it is injured. The tiny bones behind it could have problems related to a synus or ear infection and loud noise or stress can make it go haywire.
I'm not a doctor but I'll give you my advise only because I have experienced similar sensations and have been working overtime trying to distill my situation:
Don't panic or worry. That will make your brain simulate more noise. You have a two part problem. One being whatever caused the T and two the side affects. That will involve you gaining an understanding of how the human brain perceives sound. This begins when you are born, and the training started there. Your brain needs to train again. Follow up with the ENT on the ear and let me know if the CBC oil helps. I'm reluctant to experiment for fear it might make things worse. I ask the audiologist and ENT in the T department at UCSF and they said one patient who actually is a licensed manufacture of the oils has tried it and reported that it doesn't help. I asked consultants from a dispensary in SF and they said they had no reports of it helping T.
I've found that when I'm painting, I don't pay attention to the T. I adjust my music to a level of soft, that is loud enough to mask the sound yet not loud enough to trigger my hyperacusis.
Thank you for your reply Wringing, so sorry to hear about the string of bad luck you had.
I do feel stress is a major issue for making things worse, I’m trying to figure out what things could of caused this, not sure when I will get my blood results back, possibly next week sometime. As for the ENT, last time I waited 9months to get an appointment! I’m not sure how quick in America you can be seen, but in the U.K. our NHS is so stretched and under funded that everything takes ages to get sorted and to pay for private health care here is just unaffordable! I did try some cbd oil about 3 hours ago, I only had two small drops under the tongue, as it’s my first time trying it and I’m scared it could make it worse, I also sprayed some ear spray in my ear, it’s something for ear ache and has anti inflammatory and antibacterial properties.. that’s taken down a bit of the burning sensation down a little, but it’s still there, as the spray can only go down the ear canal to the drum and really it could do with going in my middle ear lol
Back to the cbd oil though, I had taken the level down my a notch I’d say, where this morning I’d say it was a 8 it’s now at a 7, I will have a few drops later on and see how it goes.. I’m also trying to drink more water, I tend to not really drink much fluid, I’ve been like it all my life but I trying to force myself to drink at least double what I usually do today..
around the time my T started it was around the time I was cleaning my ears out in the shower, urgh now I realise what a big mistake that was, I just used to let the warm water flow from the shower in my ear to clean the wax out, little did I know how stupid I was for doing that, so even though this started with the head cold I can’t help but think did it also start because of my stupidity in the shower.
Should of also added that when I visited the doctors, she said my blood pressure is low so I’m also wondering if the constant low hum I have is to do with that..
Hello and welcome to the British Tinnitus Association forum Momoko79. Do feel free to ask any questions, I hope that you are finding this a helpful and supportive place to help you manage your tinnitus.
Pregnancy can be a trigger for tinnitus, but it usual settles after the birth of your child. However, stress and anxiety can aggravate it and with so much on your plate with a young family, it can be hard to find the space to manage it.
We have some resources that you might like to check out in addition to our home here:
Thank you for your reply, after 2 and half years of this I’m still no wiser to what this is, feels very mechanical in my ear, right now my ear drum feels like it’s burning and aching, if there is no sound in the room it’s like my ear drum starts humming loudly, shake my head and the humming goes with it, I’m very worried.. doctors don’t seem interested and I’ve been referred to a ENT again but that is going to take ages for an appointment again 😡
I awoke with that same humming this morning. This time louder and it switched ears as you described. I’m up now and it seems to have stopped. The high pitched hissing wring is constant but this midrange hum toggles on and of like an electrical short. I could feel the vibration of it in my head.
I’ve no doubt my symptom was caused by a very loud brain scan. GE technicians were testing the scanner last night and I should hear back from radiology today as to whether or not the Tesla scanner was malfunctioning.
mine is definitely something going on in my left ear, saw the Doctor again the other day, she had a proper look in my ear and said my ear drum looks fine.. i'm like but im getting pain, ache, burning, pressure, the pressure is what causing the constant low humming and when quiet causing the extra hum to switch on and off I can feel it but as usual, Doctors just shrug you off, being refered back to the ENT but thats got a 28 week wait!!!! can't afford private treatment either.. Im worried about this being a artery aneurysm or a tumor! my nan had a tumor in the back of her head when she was alive, it gave her meniere's disease
As for the CBD oil, i used it for 2 days and i feel its made my panic attacks worse!!! not good
Regarding tumors and such, I was worried about that and my brain scan showed only some alergy related sinus congestion.
Given how many things can cause these Simptoms, I’d keep focused on the likely things first. Don’t think the worst. It may cause you to miss the obvious that is right under your nose.
I’m going to keep searching for answers but I plan to eventually shift my focus back to living once I’ve exhausted my treatment options.
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My brief Tinnitus story
ringing noise in ears
Tinnitus Flare - Still New to This 
I can’t take my tinnitus no more..
ENT appointment, hearing aids.
