Tinnitus after ear infection (seven months). Any chance it will go?

[Sally07]

Hi

My tinnitus started about seven months ago when I had an ear infection. It has reduced a lot since then but is definitely still there, and pretty annoying! It's only in one ear, and most of the hearing tests I've had have come up 'normal' in both ears. Does anyone know if after this long it can still go?

I'm coping HEAPS better than I was when it first started - partly because the noise is quieter, and partly because my fears have settled a bit. On the positive side I've learned so much about the power of the mind and how to cope when things suddenly take a turn for the worst. Trouble is, I'm still a bit obsessed with this 'will it ever go completely' thing, and was wondering about other people's opinions/experiences.

Many thanks and best wishes!

[starveycat]

If it does brilliant if not you will cope . Keep positive good luck

[Judyspal]

As the Audiologist says stop listening for it and you will not hear it.

Hope it works for you,good luck

[SUS776]

I to had ear infection unfortunately ear cleared up still have titinis coping much better with it hospital says due to slight hearing loss hearing aids help but find them irritating have to accept that it won't go away think it might be hereditary but feeling a little more positive hopefully get more used to it soon x

[djv1985 in reply to SUS776]

How much do you mean when you say slight? I have ringing left over from an infection I’ve been told to give it up to at least six months but was told that there was a little hearing loss or weakness in the ear that was infected and have an ent appointment (2nd one) in June and was considering asking but I think you to have a certain degree.

I know as some have said two months since the first infection was cleared up and had a second in the opposite ear but that’s all clear as well now and was just wondering how much loss did u have and also how much volume do the hearing aids take off the T?

[SUS776 in reply to djv1985]

Hi list about 20 % hearing aids help can't wear them all the time irratate my ears

[SUS776 in reply to SUS776]

Sorry meant to say hearing aids block it only when spike happens brings it to a level we're it's comfortable still there but manageable

[djv1985 in reply to SUS776]

Ok. My brother has hearing aids and they irritate his ears as well or did. Doctor took a look and said they were incorrectly fitted. He also bought thin clear medical tape to put over the top of his ear (think butterfly stitches) to stop the irritating and hasn’t said anything since.

[SUS776 in reply to djv1985]

Great thanks

[Woodentop99]

I had an ear infection over 45 years ago, left with the big T when it cleared up, however up to oct 2018 i probably didn’t notice it for past 40 years, I would like to say it may go for good, mine did not but it was so far back inside my head my brain 99% switched off to it so as I say didn’t even notice it the more you get on with your life the quicker you will “ habituate” and not even know it’s there, though the opposite applies the more you listen the longer it will bother you, worry not you will be fine.

[SUS776 in reply to Woodentop99]

Thanks

[Sally07 in reply to Woodentop99]

Thanks! It bothers me a lot less than it did at the start, but it is definitely 'there'. I always notice it, though not always with a negative reaction, but I am really hoping one day I will stop noticing it!

[djv1985 in reply to Woodentop99]

The strange thing is I actually think I’ve already habituated to it. Even though I’ve only had it a few months I just deal. I mean when it first reared it’s ugly head the T was loud as hell and drove me bananas. I was researching and researching and researching and (well you get the picture lol) just like everyone else I’ve spoken to or read about I was damned if I was going to live with it but within the last month or two I’ve just gotten used to it. I’m back to reading which I love, I’m able to watch television and enjoy what I’m watching, listen to Ricky Gervais torment Karl Pilkington on their old show as I go to sleep so I just get on with my day.

It strange because I’ve read that sometimes it can take months or years to get used to the noise and be able to live with it but for me it was pretty quick thankfully. Don’t get me wrong I’d love for it to go and know that I’ll probably have to deal with a spike or two in the future but other than that I’m doing okay. Also working on an action plan has helped. I mean it’s ringing now as I type but I’m only noticing it because I’m writing about it. (Still would like it go to go though lol 🤞but if not I can cope).

[Sally07 in reply to djv1985]

It's so good to hear that you've habituated! Some people seem to think that it's impossible, or that it takes years. I'm sure that's the case for some people, which is awful, but it's good to know it isn't like that for everyone. I love reading as well, and I'm a student so it's been a blow not being able to do that, but I'm steadily improving again and trying to think positively for the future!

[strawberrymilk in reply to djv1985]

How are you doing now?

[djv1985 in reply to strawberrymilk]

Better. A lot better. Don’t get me wrong I have the odd bad days and I’m now super maybe even over protective when it comes to my hearing but the noise is background now. I can read watch tv do all the things I did before I got hit with it. I’m happier.

[strawberrymilk in reply to djv1985]

I'm so happy for you, I hope I can be just like that at some point. Thank you for your quick reply and have a lovely weekend <3

[djv1985 in reply to strawberrymilk]

No worries about the quick reply. You can distraction is the most important thing. It’s what I used and have posted here in the past about the tricks I use and they’ve really helped. I can’t say they’ve helped everyone or will for sure help but it has helped me.

If I could give you one piece of advice that was given to me: Stop hoping it’ll go because it’s a never ending cycle. You go to sleep hoping it’ll go and wake up to find it’s still there and depression hits. I accepted that it’ll be here for life, if it goes then great but I stopped holding hope. Acceptance was a major step.

Hopefully you’ll get to that point. Good luck.

[Chitrams]

I'm exactly in the same place right now Sally..been around 7 months plus I got T from an ear infection and my T is fading too..but it is there ..I too get into this dilemma of wether I have to completely accept it or hope for it to go....somehow managing to hang in there...but really really want it to go away for good..

[Sally07 in reply to Chitrams]

Wow, that sounds exactly like my situation! If someone had told me before that this much grief could be caused by an ear infection I wouldn't have believed them! Guess we just have to see how it goes - I know it's frustrating!

[shabbagaz]

Similar to my situation. Got mine after a cold & ears felt blocked.

Have had it for about 2 months and coping a lot better than I first did and hasn't been as bad over the past couple of weeks. Seemed to have spiked a bit today though for some reason.

Like you, I keep thinking 'will it ever go?'.

[Sally07 in reply to shabbagaz]

Sorry to hear about the spike. I get that too, sometimes for no discernible reason it will flare up just when I thought it was getting better - very frustrating! I'm starting to think that the only way forward for me is accepting that the question of 'will it ever go' is impossible to answer - even more frustrating, but I think 'frustrating' is tinnitus in a word. :/

[djv1985 in reply to shabbagaz]

I think one of the things that helped was forgetting that question. I kept researching it looking for health tips for ideas of how to trick the brain into ignoring it but at some point after asking six doctors (2 ents, 2 hospital urgent care docs and 2 gps) who all said it would “eventually” I think I just thought you know what plan for the worst and I think accepting that I might be stuck with it forever helped in a strange way.

[Sally07 in reply to djv1985]

I had the long list of doctors too, but bizarrely they all gave me different answers! I had one GP tell me it would probably never go, I had an ENT consultant tell me it would definitely go provided I learn to tame my anxiety about it, and I had another gp genuinely 'prescribe' me a self-help book called 'Don't Sweat the Small Stuff' - I found that insulting at the time because it DEFINITELY wasn't 'small stuff', more like a blaring siren in my ear, but I see what he was trying to do. I like the idea of 'forgetting the question', and I think the only way to do that is to live life as I used to as much as possible and when I can't do that distract myself with something trivial.

[djv1985 in reply to Sally07]

Agreed. I think distraction is a big help that I cannot back enough. It drove and drives me nuts when someone says “you just have to deal” or when they don’t seem to understand what it’s like unless they have it and just think they’d be able to cope easily. I had one doctor actually say “well at least it isn’t cancer” I swear I nearly went off on one, like I didn’t know that.

When I first got it it was the loudest it has ever been and thankfully has gone down although it still tends to get loud when I first wake up or there isn’t any sound around me so I try not to sit in silence (something I strangle miss lol) I’ve reached that point of being able to deal with it even at its worst. I’m holding hope that it’ll pass but like I said if it stays like this and at this volume then I’ll deal.

Also I’m a stubborn b’stard which helps lol.

[djv1985 in reply to djv1985]

Oh and stumbling across this website has helped as well more than people know.

[Eabxj28 in reply to djv1985]

Yes I've had told to me at hospital not life threatening and you got to live with it they don't know what where going through

[djv1985 in reply to Eabxj28]

Worst advice ever. Hate that advice. I have to hold back anger when I’m told that especially if the person doesn’t have it but then again now I know that they’re right in a way.

[Eabxj28]

Hi I know how you feel ive had ear infection 6 months and buzzing in head you just can't get it out of your mind ,my head seems to vibrate and ear ache all the time ,my head buzzing writing this how do you try to forget it someone tell us how

[djv1985 in reply to Eabxj28]

Thankfully the ear infection is gone. A trip to the ent helped clear it out and all cleaned. I’m stuck with the ruddy noise though and probably will for the rest of my days but honestly I’m dealing with it. I’ve posted before about how I’m dealing with it and in short distractions and living like I did before. I watch tv, read, play video games, heck I walk more I’ve lost some weight from the extra walks. Distraction is probably the best advice I’ve been given and am sharing.

It’s a horrible thing and it’s not right that no one is really trained to sea with it and the mental impact it has. Unless people have it very few manage to get the pain. I’ll say there have been moments where I’ve struggled and mentioned how badly I was doing but those are rare days I’m lucky being a stubborn person that I can’t let it beat me even when it’s ringing louder than norma I just talk to it and tell it I’m gonna win. It’s a trick I was told to do.

I’ve met and know of people who’ve lived decades and decades with it and most have lived happy lives. I’ve begged them to post on here but they don’t because they don’t want to acknowledge it. Life’s hard with it but do what you can to distract yourself and maybe fingers crossed they’ll be real treatment for it one day.

[Sally07 in reply to Eabxj28]

Personally, I have two ways to 'cope.' Firstly, as people have said, 'distractions.' If I am engaged in an activity for a while, especially if I am with other people, there comes a point when what started as a 'distraction' becomes genuinely enjoyable, and, when that happens, the ringing gets quieter. Thus, on busy days, I can go many hours without even noticing my ringing, which otherwise is loud enough for me to hear very clearly.

Secondly, I have a more practical technique. I have a 'Starkey' hearing device, which plays white noise into my ear and masks my tinnitus. I guess it's just replacing one noise with another one, but it's a much nicer noise and it helps me to stop monitoring my own noises so much. I got the device from a private audiologist for about £800. It's a lot but it has really helped - it feels like a 'lifeline' for when/if things get really bad. If I have a spike I can just think screw this, I'm not going to spend all day freaking out, I'm just going to listen to some white noise instead.

I hope this has helped. Remember if things are really bad that it will definitely get better, either in terms of volume or in terms of its intrusiveness - either way, you've got this.

Best wishes,

Sally

[Gwynydd]

I had the same experience and after two months, I went a month with nothing. It came back in October 18 and after all the usual scans and audiology tests, I was told there was nothing wrong. then in May this year it went away again and has not returned. I have now been told it is my jaw. In addition antibiotics I was taking for UTIs are also for Dental Infections and Otitis Media. Medicine is not an exact science and I am convinced that also played a part in recovering. I have some hearing loss but not enough to affect me. I am also 80 in October so am relieved that things have turned out this way.

[Smmmm]

Have had mine since the late 1980s. Got it after a bad ear infection in both ears that severely affected my hearing for several months then cleared, but l was left with tinnitus. Hearing is fine but background sounds still are louder than spoken sounds. It used to be a slight, constant background whistling but over the years has gotten louder. Most of the time I don’t notice it too much, but if I think about it then it’s very annoying and loud. Mostly it’s at night when I really hear it. My best advice is to sleep with a window cracked open at night so you can hear outside sounds to distract from the tinnitus, and in general try not to think or read about it, because then you will hear it all the louder.