T linked to strenuous work

[Graham1108]

Hi, I have been suffering with T in my right ear for seven months now. Lately I have noticed that if I do anything strenuous eg; Physical work, I get a feeling of blocked ears in both my ears and my T seems louder? Does anyone else experience this? Secondly. my neck and the point leading up to my right ear gets very sore at times, could anyone offer an explanation? I have been to the ENT specialist some time ago and have had a MRI and nothing was found to be an issue so I guess I just have to live with it. Can anyone offer some practical advice on next steps that I should explore with these issues?

[Happyrosie]

I’ve had something similar, Graham.

I’ve had T since I was a teenager. I’ve done yoga and Pilates for many years with no problems, but I found, about five years ago , that if I do this kind of exercise (which is physically difficult though it doesn’t get your heart rate up much) lying down then within a few hours I get the fullness and the next day severe vertigo. It took me several bouts to realise that the exercise was causing the vertigo. If you google BPPV you will find explanation about what happens in the ear canal. T was worse when I had the nausea.

I’m not diagnosing that this is what you have, but it might be the same phenomenon. If you think it might be, try vestibular rehabilitation exercises, but not the lying down ones. Google them. The exercises are just head and eye movements.

I don’t know about neck soreness, though. Muscular pain?

[Graham1108 in reply to Happyrosie]

Many thanks for your response, the pain leading up to my ear might be the Eustachian Tube I think?

[Happyrosie in reply to Graham1108]

Might be, though the ETube is between your outer ear and further into your head - but there is such a thing as referred pain. I can only tell you what I've found (as would others on this forum). The only way to find out is consulting a medical professional, really.

[rabbits65]

Hello Graham,Yes I get the same as you. If I rest and do little I am ok, however if I do jobs that involve a lot of movement my ears feel blocked and tinnitus is worse , I sometimes get dizziness and giddiness. Some days are better than others. If I feel calm I am better, if I feel stressed then everything escalates . There appears to be little explanation and I’m trying to habituate a word that’s used on this site a lot. Like you I’ve only been suffering a matter of months probably almost one year now.

Good luck from me, Penny

[Graham1108 in reply to rabbits65]

Thank you for your response Penny

[bridgeit]

Hi Graham. Could be head/neck muscular support/postural issues, that might well involve shoulders and thoracic spine as well.

If you can find a very good chiropractor, I suggest that an examination of your neck muscles and the position in which you hold your head when in 'neutral' might be informative. My chiro advised me that when we've been unwittingly subjecting our musculoskeletal system to bad upper-body posture for years (head projected forwards/shoulders slumped), we can really suffer at some point from a myriad of weird symptoms, including sudden onset T, when it all gets too much for our system to tolerate without adverse effect. Just a small additional stress load can tip our entire system over the edge, so to speak. Scans cannot highlight this kind of underlying problem.

If this is the case with you, a good corrective treatment/exercise regime should help - but ensure you find a very good chiro/osteopath or physiotherapist to examine and advise you.

Just something to think about.

Note: I had reservations about chiropractic until I found an excellent practitioner. I also discovered, the hard way, that it is essential to be extremely choosy when choosing a physical therapist for head/neck issues. I no longer permit vigorous cervical spine adjustment, i.e. low amplitude neck thrusts. There are other ways of activating stiffened facet joints; a good chiro should know how to do this.

[Graham1108]

Many thanks for your reply. I have used a Osteopath but he didn’t really treat my neck and concentrated more on my upper back, it made no difference and was proving expensive so I stopped going. I will however try a Chiropractor

[bridgeit in reply to Graham1108]

You're wise to be cautious.

If you don't notice any improvement after 4+ visits to any musculoskeletal practitioner, having also worked on the associated exercises, in my opinion theirs is most likely not the right treatment for your symptoms.