A couple of months ago after 4 hours at a very loud music venue, I awoke to a hissing in both ears, left worse than right.
I’ve found this so stressful in a way that I couldn’t never have imagined before. It feels like the noise has taken over.
I’ve been for a hearing test and it’s within range for my age (high street audiologist). A week or so later, I noticed pressure and a fullness in my ears. The doctors said I have fluid behind my ears and have prescribed me a steroid spray.
It does seem to have made an improvement in the fullness but the ringing is still there.
Could this improve with time ( I’ve only been using the spray a week)? I still can’t understand how they think the tinnitus is down to the fluid behind my ears and not the loud noise exposure?
Thanks in advance.
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sds111
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Fluid behind the ear drum can cause ear infections, which are a cause of tinnitus, and can be the source of the fullness in the ear which many people with T identify.
The presence of fluid in and around the ear is also visible, which is perhaps another reason why you are being offered specific treatments for potential ear infection, in the hope that this will diminish the tinnitus that you're already experiencing. That seems to be the case, which is great.
The tinnitus which you identify from exposure to loud noise isn't identifiable in the same way - there's no red flag for an audiologist to look for which has a simple resolution. If your hearing test had different results - recognizable hearing loss on an audiogram, let's say - then they can work to improve that with you.
Subjective tinnitus is much more difficult to treat - there isn't currently a biomarker or clue which can be used to determine how much it is affecting you or which part of your auditory system should be supported in order to improve things.
Stress can and does make tinnitus a lot worse - so if you can, have a look our guidance on tinnitus and stress to see what you might be able to do to get some control back over that situation:
It is most likely the loud noises u exposed yoursel to is the culprit.
Very loud low freqency noise can damage or rip off the silia closest to the entrance to the cochlear, this is permanent damage as those silia dont grow back. The silia are minute hair like sensors that transpond vibrations entering the cochlear into signals that can be interpreted by the brain. It is possible that Silia that are damaged or missing could be the source of your hissing. It is also possible that over time your brain will learn to ignore this hissing originating from the damaged area within your cochlear. If u make concious effort to listen for the hissing u will overide your brains attemt to ignore it, so dont listen to it. I had similar, and got into the habit of listening to see if it was still there, this had the effect of raising my sensitivity levels, the consequence being that the noise was percieved to be louder. . You can use a tuneable masker ( i use myNoise from the apple app store) to mask out the hissing. The odd thing here is that the masker essentially injects another noise into ear that is as loud as the hissing you are masking out, i have found that the masking noise doesnt bother me, this has to be psychological, probably because i can control the masking noise whereas i cant control the hissing
Thanks for the information, I'll look into the app. Really hoping it's the fluid that's caused the tinnitus, but I guess time will tell. Ear pressure feels better after a week, i now how have the sensation of my ears feeling wet and clicking when i move my jaw. I assume this is due to the fluid slowly draining?
If the fluid is due to an infection you would need antibiotics to clear it. Since that wasn't prescribed then the fluid is probably due to inflammation and will need to drain. Try the Valsalva manouver - hold your nose and gently blow to increase pressure in your sinuses then release. You may hear noises as the fluid passes through your eustation tubes to the sinuses. The steroidal spray is to reduce any inflammation of the mucosal membranes. You should also try antihistamine as well (OTC). The 2 together may reduce swelling especially if you have hayfever. It worked for me and don't think the tinnitus is permanent until you've had it for several months.
Many thanks for your advice. I have tried that but it just seems to block my ears so far. I'm not sure i dare blow too hard. 😀. Thanks for the tip with the antihistamine, I do usually suffer from hay fever at this time of year but the steroid spray seem to have had a positive effect. Maybe this has nothing to do with it? I'm almost 2 months in with the ringing so far but I've only been using the spray just over a week. I've noticed a decrease in the pressure so far but that's about it. The noise in my left ear has fluctuated over the last few days, a sign of the ear draining? How long did it take for your ears to clear and did it stop the ringing? If so, was this instant or over a period of time?
It was the combination of steroid spray and antihistamine. The tinnitus dropped off almost immediately. It does come back but usually goes again and is at a level I can cope with.
Hi, still not cleared with the nasal spray so going to look at the antihistamine. I note that some can cause tinnitus so can I check which one you use please before I buy any more. I do have some containing ceterizine, are these the safe ones? Thanks
been to see the GP funnily enough today and she mentioned they were safe to use. How long from having fluid in the ear did it take to be completely clear? I’m 4 weeks in and still have a little fluid apparently. The T level has not changed unfortunately. Could this change when the ears are fully clear? Thanks
It seemed to take quite a long time for the fluid to go and its difficult to measure. I have found that while my tinnitus is reduced it is still there but at a tolerable level to what it was. In my books, that is a result. I should stress that this may not work for you but it is something to aim for and hope it improves.
My left ear felt partially blocked at times but could be released sometimes by the Valsalva technique (hold your nose and blow). Yours sounds different but could still be a blocked eustacion tube. Sorry I can't be more help but good luck with finding out the cause of your problem because if you do you may stop the T as well.
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