I have been riding a motorbike since I was 16 and I am now retired .
I didn't really know what tinnitus was until 12 months ago and now I do !!!!!
After all of those years of riding ,I really don't understand how I can now go for a 2 hour ride ( with earplugs) only to have the T increase in volume
After the ride ,it does not seem to revert back to its previous level but stays high .
Last night in bed it seemed to drown out the white noise from the Opticon hearing aids
I am not game to ride the bike anymore as this has happened on a couple of occasions
I just have to adapt to the increased noise on each occasion
It really doesnt make sense to me how a 2 hour ride can stir the T up and not let it drop back to the pre-ride level
i am taking every possible precaution to make sure that I am not damaging my ears in terms of exceeding my daily noise dosage allowance but in spite of this I aggravate the T
Just wondering if anyone has similar experiences please ?
I dont want to sel the bike :-((
Thanks in anticipation
Written by
DR650SE
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Sorry to read all that Peter . It's a shame when T stops you doing the things you love. I haven't been to the cinema for the last two years and I don't think I'll ever go again. It's just not worth the risk for me. Not quite the same of course because I can watch films on DVD but it's not as atmospheric.
None seems to have an explanation as to why non -damaging hearing noise levels stirs up TI can go to the pictures but I take earplugs to take the edge of the noise .
These plugs are far lower rated than the bike ones
It is very frustrating when tinnitus (or any chronic complaint) prevents us from participating in pastimes that we've enjoyed for most of our lives. In recent years, I have stopped attending music concerts out of fear that the high sound levels will cause damage to my ears, even with earplugs in. My tinnitus reacts to sound and listening to music at home, my main pleasure, will often aggravate it. I can now listen to music only when my tinnitus is in the right mood, which is quite limiting.
Would shorter bike rides be feasible without affecting your tinnitus? You say you wear earplugs but I have found that earplugs and ear defenders don't really block the low-frequency noise from engines, which is perhaps what is causing your problem. Noise-cancelling headphones/earphones are much more effective in reducing continuous low-frequency noise, so may be a better option for you.
You may find that the increased tinnitus level caused by your bike ride will diminish in time. People have tinnitus 'spikes' that can be triggered by loud sounds but, as the names suggests, they eventually subside. Your tinnitus may be going through a phase and may be quite different in a few weeks or months. So, don't sell your bike!
It's also a mystery to me as to why T can be aggravated by sound. The opposite is more logical - that as external sound levels increase, the brain turns its internal volume control down, and the T with it. Actually, this is how it seems to work for me with very loud sounds but not with moderate sounds.
106dB on the bike does seem rather high, especially for prolonged exposure. According to the BTA, you shouldn't expose yourself to this level for more than 3.75 minutes at a time, although I suppose the earplugs reduce the level you're exposed to.
I imagine most of the sound on a motorbike is low-frequency from the engine and headwind, which is why I suggested noise-cancelling earphones, as they can cut down low-frequency sound quite dramatically. I bought some ear-defenders to use on train journeys during a phase of hyperacusis but they were not very effective because they mainly cut down high-frequency sound and let most of the engine noise through. I then started wearing 'active' noise-cancelling headphones instead and the improvement was very noticeable.
I don't see why noise-cancelling earphones shouldn't protect your ears, especially when used without music playing. The active (ANC) type are very good at reducing continuous noise. The Headphonesty article "Are Noise-Canceling Headphones Safe?" is useful and actually claims that these headphones were first introduced as hearing protection for airline pilots (I wasn't allowed to provide a link in this reply).
Thanks for the reply ,I shall check those noise cancelling earplugs out .Your arguement is logical
Bennetts Uk claimed that 3M Earsoft FX are the best earplugs for bikes
You roll them like plasticine and you have time to pop them in your ears before they expand.They have a demo video on how to insert them properly
They are really good a protecting your ears and cut out so much noise that the brain thinks what in the hell is going on here "No noise??" It then turns up the internal T volume to compensate for the external noise reduction
Trust me this is the case
The worst T that I have ever experienced was when having them in .
However if you want to protect your ears against 106 decibels they are great
The ANC earphones are worth a try if it means you can continue to enjoy your bike. They have worked well for me on trains. I often used to use the roll-up type of earplug with strong dB reduction (but not the same brand) when sleeping in hotels to try to reduce outside noise and even noises within the room from the AC or heating system. They were quite effective, except for blocking out the boom boom noise if there was a club/disco nearby.
ANC earphones won't cut external noise down to nothing. They'll just reduce it. And they are reliant on continuous noise, so you'll still be able to hear sudden noises. If I use them at work, it reduces the noise level of the air-conditioning but I can still hear people speak, with more tinny sounding voices.
Hi 106 db is loud even with earplugs so slowing down to decrease wind noise will help. As I understand it noise duration along with noise level is an equal part of the problem.I would try going for a ride for 5 minutes and see if all ok then build up in 5 minute increments to find the time duration on the bike that raises your tinnitus. Hopefully you will find a reasonable duration of time on your bike that allows you to continue riding.
I have reactive tinnitus too it’s all about finding the thresholds and adapting - you probably don’t have to stop. 👍
We're on holiday in Scotland at this moment. This required a 5 hour journey in our 2009 Landrover Defender - so probably as comparable to a motorbike journey as car journeys go. We travelled up on Friday and it's now Sunday. My tinnitus is horrendous; I've had more trouble sleeping the last 2 night than I've had months. We travel another 4 hours further north in the Highlands tomorrow.
Oh well, just another thing I have to live with. Including having to endure a beautiful meal in (not so particularly) noisy local resteraunt last night. I have to say I live with all this after some help from a prescription of Sertraline.
Staying positive.....
We bought the Landrover s few weeks ago. Maybe I'll buy an electric car next time, but no regrets as it's my pride and joy, and new toy. Incidentally, we're staying in a remote log cabin in Scotland, so getting to enjoy some off-road driving. I've added a photo from our stand off with some of the locals on our way to the resteraunt yesterday evening.
Like we all should be doing is finding coping strategies (mine is with some help from antidepressants), so I'm staying strong and taking life by the horns (excuse the pun 😁).
My P3 setting on my HA too - ocean waves. Though theyre broken at the moment. For nights, I have a speaker headband that acts as a facemask.
Stay positive and find different strategies - though avoid too many justice treatments especially if they once crossing a palm with silver when there's no evidence. Well there is no cure Acceptance is key..
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Dave Russell - me in a nutshell. Except I'm sitting in the warm Wiltshire countryside which is only a 90 minute drive from me. I have to do a lot of driving for work unfortunately and the constant noise seems to set my tinnitus at a certain level that never abates. It was raging the first night we were here and much like you, last night's meal out was a lonely experience - I couldn't properly converse with my wife sat next to me - thankfully she understands.
However I wouldn't ever consider going car-less, that would simply stop a lot of enjoyment I get from going out and about and exploring, and would be impossible for my work commitments anyway.
So to DR650SE - try not to analyse why your tinnitus is heightened by your bike rides, with or without earplugs, tinnitus really makes no sense but quite simply makes its own rules. Dangerous noise levels or not, anything can cause it to go up. I found household chores like hoovering far far worse an aggravator!
Thanks hypnotiseI shall take on board what you say .Howver surely someone can explain why certain no -hearing damage noises aggravate it?
If I knew for sure that these noise inducing episodes where only short term and werent an accumulated aggragate of noise I would feel better .In order works go for a ride on the bike and know that there will be a couple of not so pleasant days before it settles down again
I have had tinnitus for 25 years, I have given up many things I liked because of it, not worth it, be patient, adapt yourself, I can see your favorite bike too by your nickname, the great dr650 !! Dont give up, I have a motorcycle too, its entertaining, and moreover, tinnitus is already too bad, keep riding your dr650 !!!
Sitting here typing this reasonable in quite space apart but ringing in both ears and fridge/freezer whirring away, I trail ride bikes, KTM's never worn earplugs, my T has gotten more noticeable since I stopped working although had it since my late teens when I was in engineering now 62, my trouble is gauging how bad it is as only recently mentioned it to my GP, my T got worse after an ear infection following a holiday about 15 years ago, can sleep ok at the moment, try not to give up bike it's good for your soul.
106dB is LOUD. Blowing wind is not exactly the same as loud music of course but still - please do mind this noise.
This isn't exactly proven or so - but our ears are more prone to noise as we get older. 3h of quieter sound than that leaved me with permanent tinnitus.
I'm trying to read more (even Wikipedia is not so bad) - I don't know how exact is your knowledge on that matter but our 'hairs' in internal ears are trying to regenerate - so short burst of noise should be reversible (opposite to riding the bike which is longer)
I would fear that worse hearing -> bigger mind compensate -> bigger tinnitus. Try to find good motorcycle helmet and exhaust muffler.
Sorry for being a little rough - but i have tinnitus partially by my light-heartedness . I don't want any to make such mistakes....
I really wish you well (i know what tinnitus do to our hobbies)
It is well known that wind noise is in the order of 105 db at 60mph on a bikeThe daily noise dosage is 85db for 8 hours
88db at 4 hours
105 db for about 15minutes
The scale is logarithmic
The app "Eardial" tells you your safe noise exposure time for the noise level that you are exposed to
I need ear plugs that attenuate the noise by 26db to get me down to 80db and in the safe zone
The other side of the coin is that when I reduce the external noise to a safe level ,the T gets pi**ed off and decides "I shall sort you out!!" and being vindictive ramps up the neural internal noises .
Maybe I have migraine my whole life 85dB for 8h would drain me for the rest of my life ...
Seriously - I'm more suspected to those noises (comparing to people with whom I live) so I take those numbers with (big) grain of salt. I have (certified) sound meter so I have tested 65dB music - It is too loud for me (1m from audio source). I tried apps but my sanity is at stake so I don't risk using them now. So I have lived practically my whole life <70dB but still I have tinnitus - must be old age ....
What I'm saying is that everyone is different in those topic as well.
About aggravation it is similar here - I read books in 'silence', sometimes it's unbearable. What I observe is that next day is better though. I don't know how much it is psychological/physical but I use blockers in cinema even if I hear slight tinnitus during movie .
Are you saying that blockers make you hear tinnitus during ride ? That outside noise isn't enough to drain it ? Ridding by car aggravate mine - but _usually_ outside noise drowns tinnitus.
be well (and of course i wouldn't throw out the bike - but did everything to be safe)
Never said otherwise - but I feel ear fatigue with quieter sounds (and harm myself with them) so I read this as "85dB / 8h will not make you noticeably deaf before detach" - can not help that
Some people are more fragile (similar example: range - all people use headphones, but some have ringing after shooting anyway - witch can lead to tinnitus)
I'm not a fan of motorcycles because I dont love to race and I'm afraid of getting into an accident, unfortunately I did once and decided for myself that I would only ride a bike hahaha. I bought myself a new bike and got it insured here simplebikeinsurance.com/ , right away because knowing myself, I can get in some kind of trouble. Now I come home after a hard work evening on it. In fact, in some ways it's even better than a motorcycle. Now I'm talking about keeping fit. I'm doing about 7 kilometers each way, which is good for my cardio and my legs are really good right now!
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85dB for 8h would drain me for the rest of my life ... 
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