4 weeks on from my incident, I’m going insane. I tried to join another forum but my posts kept being deleted (for some unknown reason - not very helpful or supportive), so I’ve come here.
My bf & I went to a gig. Stood @ the front, but gradually found ourselves opposite the speaker as people kept pushing in (I know, incredibly foolish, & I’m constantly beating myself up over this). Anyway we both left the gig, ears ringing but we thought nothing more of it. A week later, my bfs ears had stopped ringing. Mine had not. Concerned as my ears hadn’t settled, I went to Boots for a hearing test. Ears checked, hearing test complete = no issues identified. Advised if ringing persisted, consult GP. A few days later no change so I went to my GP. Ears checked, told ears were fine although they looked ‘round’ & a bit red. Advised to take ibuprofen & see how I go. I then started to experience intermittent ear pain which settled until one day I went to work (I work in an open plan office), & my ears were hurting. This went on for a few days before settling, & then returning again. Unable to cope, I went back to my GP. This time I had the Tuning fork test, as well as asked a series of Qs. Dr said hearing is ok, given her findings with the fork. But the Qs asked, she concluded new strain of Covid is causing havoc with ENT, & has put it down to that. She has prescribed amoxicillin to see if that’ll help clear out any residual infection that I may have.
Not convinced with the Boots hearing test, I visited Amplifon. Explained what had happened. Another hearing test conducted, & audiologist was happy with results. Told to get on with my life; symptoms will subside with time. If no change, consult GP.
My ears right now - my left ear feels good. My right ear however feels ‘blocked’, unbalanced, not equal, along with the tinnitus (in both ears). It is driving me nuts. I can hear which I am taking as a good sign. But I seem to have developed noise sensitivity. Small children, screaming, I want to hide & run for cover it is that painful @ times. I haven’t protected my ears, as I want my ears to get used to sound again. But will do if I feel some environments are too much.
I’m also due to fly in a few weeks time so feeling anxious about this as I don’t want to be in major discomfort on a 10 hour flight
I guess why I’m posting this is I feel like I’ve gone down a ‘rabbit hole’. I’m constantly googling as this is so new to me but also petrified that more & more symptoms are going to appear. What I’ve read online is very frightening, & I’m at a loss as to what I should do next.
so far you’ve done all the right things, and it looks as your doc has too.
It takes a while to get used to tinnitus, but you can get lots of really useful information from the charity Tinnitus UK. As far as my own research goes this is the best site to get I formation from.
No-one, not even you, knows whether or not your flight will be uncomfortable or not. Personally, I find that the noise of the plane masks the noise in my head and whilst the tinnitus ramps up a bit when I’ve got to my destination and started to relax (because my brain is seeking the noise) this fades quickly. Information on flights in Tinnitus UK.
As time goes on you might want to think about cognitive behavioural therapy. For example, you may think: “this is the worst thing that’s ever happened to me”, or “will this be my life from now on?” A cognitive-behavioural approach might replace these ‘catastrophic’ thoughts with questions like: “how much control does tinnitus really have over my life?” or “how do I know that my future outlook will not change?”.
In the meantime, practice controlled breathing. A good source for this is the NHS site
Hello. I’m not a trained physician but was wondering if your GP suggested any cortisone medication . Our body’s first coping mechanism to trauma is inflammation. Maybe a short course of prednisone will help. I hope you feel better
Judging by your username, I assume you are a fellow ABBA fan It does sound like you've had an acoustic incident. We all have regrets in exposing our ears to loud sounds and in this day and age I'm sure there will be lots of people following in your footsteps (not meant as any comfort).
While I'm not an ENT expert, you seem to have some hyperacusis associated with your tinnitus. I think you do right to not shield yourself from everyday noise, otherwise the hyperacusis might get worse, although you may find ear protection useful in some situations - screaming kids are to be avoided at the best of times.
I think these things are worse at the outset. Tinnitus tends to settle down after a while as the brain gets used to the noise and pushes it to the background. You just have to be patient but it would help by trying not to give it so much attention and get on with your life.
A blocked feeling in your ear is often attributed to ear wax or eustachian tube dysfunction (ETD). I have also experienced similar feelings which I have thought was due to a tensed muscle in the ear. If you've still got this feeling towards the time you're about to fly, I would probably question whether I should be doing it - it might be best to seek professional medical advice first. If it persists, I would see an ENT specialist - I know the NHS waits are prohibitively long, so spending a couple of hundred pounds on a private consultation may give you peace of mind.
In the meantime, try not to do so much Googling and give yourself time to heal and habituate without worrying about what might be.
Who doesn’t love a bit of ABBA ☺️. I’m actually a Dancer. So I think that’s why this incident is aggravating me more than anything, dancing is my whole life.
The holiday, the hotel, flights, everything is booked & paid for. I’m going to visit family I’ve not seen in 3years. I’m also travelling with my partner who is very excited to be going. I’m tempted to pay the ££, & see someone privately as the NHS waiting times are ridiculous. But also whilst online information is good, & I’ve seen 2 Drs, 2 Audiologists at the hearing centres, seeing an ENT specialist might give me some further comfort on the situation as you have suggested.
I’m trying to keep myself as busy as I can. Although sometimes I cannot help but reflect deeply on this situation, & I go into a deep dark rabbit hole. But I will try & remain positive about the situation.
Many people on this forum will know exactly how you feel. When you have a problem like this in your head, it seems so much bigger than, say, a poorly foot and tends to preoccupy you to the point of obsession. But that preoccupation actually feeds tinnitus and prevents you from adjusting.
I can understand how you feel about your holiday. Again, I'm no medic but I suspect that flying would be a possible issue only if your problem is pressure-related - that is, an ETD issue. But you've got several weeks to rule that out and it may well subside by then.
I think a private ENT consultation may be worthwhile. GPs seem to have a very patchy knowledge of ear issues and some are clueless when it comes to tinnitus. I don't think most audiologists that you find in the High Street are medics, although they work with hearing all the time, so may be able to provide some insights.
One more thing, you mentioned Ibuprofen. This is an ototoxic drug (poisonous to the ear), as is Aspirin. In reality, I understand that they are only ototoxic in large doses or after prolonged use, but still tend to be avoided by people with tinnitus. The painkiller of choice for tinnitus sufferers is usually Paracetemol. Generally, we have to be careful with potentially ototoxic medications.
The ibuprofen I was wary of taking when the 1st Dr suggested I take it. But thought I’d give it a try. I got fed up of taking them so eventually stopped. Plus I don’t like taking ibuprofen for prolonged periods of time due to damage it can cause to liver. Paracetamol, I cannot take - allergic so a little stuck on what I can take to alleviate any kind of pain symptoms. That said, I’ve not taken any pain meds for over a week, as I’m just riding through it in the hope it’ll eventually settle, calm down.
There’s a hearing centre I’ve located which is £65…this is the first place I’ve found that’s charging for test. Assuming this is a reasonable, decent cost? They advised that they do a full audiogram, although I have asked for more info - as they say testing lasts for an hour but so did Amplifon, & I was on there for about 20-25mins. The lady was lovely, just that I expected a longer consultation.
I often reflect on the Tinnitus because the sounds I’m hearing, aren’t unfamiliar to me (mine sounds like a radio station with no signal). So i’m wondering - have I always had Tinnitus but never actually knew what it was? It has only heightened now because of the acoustic trauma..?
I guess the Hearing Centre is another audiologist, although a one-hour test sounds thorough and £65 may be worth paying for that. However, I don't know whether they will be able to give you a medical diagnosis.
An out-of-tune radio was always my standard description of my tinnitus. Nowadays it varies but that is still a reasonable description of it much of the time. It's possible that you've previously had it at a very low level but you're currently going through a 'spike'. I suppose the good news is that this sort of tinnitus can be habituated to more easily than some sounds.
I’ve made enquiries with the Hearing Centre, just awaiting a response.
I’m reflecting & I’m certain this isn’t a new sound to me. I’ve always had it, just never paid any attention to it. I just wish the ear pains would go away 😔. What I don’t understand why wasn’t the pain immediate? Why did it take a week to 10 days to come on? Am I likely to get more symptoms? I know you’re not a health professional so apologies to fire so many Qs, I’m just trying to get my head around it.
I imagine we all have 'electrical nerve noise' in our ears at an extremely low level and we hear it as tinnitus when the brain turns its internal volume control up - at least, that's how I understand it.
Is the ear pain in response to sound? If so, such pain is often part of hyperacusis. I have found that ear issues sometimes take time to evolve rather than all appearing at the same time, so it doesn't really surprise me that the pain didn't manifest itself immediately.
Hi Dancing Queen. I do a lot of long haul flying over the years and find the noise of the jet engine a good masker for my T. However it does spike my T for 2-3 days at my destination so I take a sleeping pill or 2 on my first night at the hotel and avoid alcohol which is oxotoxic for T. I wouldn’t spend anymore of your hard danced cash on advice from ENT consultants
Thank you for your response, much appreciated. Do you wear ear plugs during flight…?
I’m debating whether to see the Audiologist 1) will I get an appointment before I travel, & 2) are they going to say anything different to what I already know..? I’ve had 2 tests - Boots & Amplifon who advised hearing is good, ok so 🤷♀️.
Hi, just thought I’d add a few things to what others have said.
Flying will not make your tinnitus worse. Take off and landing can be noisy, but once the plane is up in the air, it’s no louder than a bus and certainly much quieter than the London tube. My advice is to invest in some air cancelling earphones’/headphones for take off and landing. Here’s a good comparison site: rtings.com/headphones/tools...
Rather than go down a rabbit hole regarding treatments, check out the advice on Tinnitus UK’s website. Here are a list of treatments grouped by ‘safety’ and ‘effectiveness’: tinnitus.org.uk/tinnitus-tr...
It might also be worth joining a support group. I run one in north London, but there are loads dotted around the UK: tinnitus.org.uk/support-for...
Thank you for your response. Did you take anything to ease the ear pain, or did it just subside on its own…?
UPDATE:
I woke up….the pain (Hyperacusis) in my ears were not present this morning. Intermittently it appears but noway near as bad as yesterday. And this is what I had a few weeks ago, just as I thought my ears settled, something set them off. I find they tend to get worse when there’s a lot going on. Although saying that, I was at the airport this morning, lots of noise but no ear pains which was comforting.
Not quite sure how to read that but I’m taking this for the win? Right ear, still has the blocked feeling. Also I still feel like I have ‘unequal’ ears - assuming this will eventually subside..? I will keep working on it.
I posted on tinitus talk and got deleted not sure why Anyway I came here
Sorry to hear this. I bought a personal alarm thay seem popular at the moment and I set it of with me and my kids in the room and it was 140 decibels! I have been through so much stress 😩 with this from going to the Dr and having to explain how many decibels cause damage etc and being told, oh it wouldn't cause any damage in seconds! Even though over 120db you only need less than a second!
Anyway after doing a lot of reading I have discovered
I have reactive tinitus, as when the TV is on or I'm around traffic my ears ring louder and buzz
Tintius, all the time but it did get quite after 6 weeks I'm trying to be careful and hope it continues to get quter or at least stay at this level
TTTS, I get knocking and fluttering sensations
Hyperacusis (sound sensitivity)
Pain hyperacusis is if your ears hurt after noise exposure or during. I still have this but my ears feel sore not too painful
Loudness hyperacusis is when things seem louder I had this for about 4 to 8 weeks I think it has settled down a lot
Acoustic shock disorder, this is what I have diagnosed myself with as Dr's, audiologist a s Ent haven't diagnosed me with anything!
Hope that helps
This is just what I have found out for myself after doing a lot of reading
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It does sound like you've had an acoustic incident. We all have regrets in exposing our ears to loud sounds and in this day and age I'm sure there will be lots of people following in your footsteps (not meant as any comfort).
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