Echo in head and Tinnitus/Hyperacusis

[John48]

my wife suffers from Tinnitus, Hyperacusis and anxiety. She is also in tapering/ eradication in the use of Diazepam . Recently she now has a constant echo of all sounds in her head, regardless of whether standing or lying down. Has anyone else experienced this echo feeling and what were the causes and any solution? Thankyou for any feedback.

[Happyrosie]

I see no-one has responded to you yet, which probably means that no-one is having your wife’s symptoms and is still a contributor to this forum. There must be very very many people (as T is so common) who have tinnitus and been helped here or elsewhere, and they don’t necessarily want to be reminded of it so don’t visit here.

I don’t have the echo feeling that you describe, though in the with years I’ve had T I might possibly have done. We all experience T in different ways - but it doesn’t really matter about the sounds and the echos, it’s still the devil sitting on your (or her) shoulder!

There are many different ways to deal with T - remembering there’s no “cure” as such only advertisers wanting to take your money, To access these ways just go to the website of Tinnitus UK.

When you and she have absorbed the tips there, do come back to us here and we might be able to help you with encouragement and sympathy.It is perfectly possible to habituate to tinnitus, just like you habituate to cold weather in the winter - you might grumble about it but you just get on with life regardless.

[John48 in reply to Happyrosie]

Thankyou for response. I especially like the analogie between habituate to tinnitus with winter weather acceptance.

[LunaVi]

I have severe T&H. My ears respond to all sound with additional pain/distortion. I have had a constant echo of all sound for almost 7yrs which came on initially after an acoustic trauma. Unfortunately I haven't found anything that helps reduce this other than limiting exposure to sound but I have found various distraction and relaxation techniques help me cope better. I hope this eases off for your wife 🤞

[John48 in reply to LunaVi]

Thanks for your reply Luna. We’re hoping facial physio may help. Time will tell.

[daverussell]

What she describes could be ear blockage. I had a similar issue until recently - or more of a reverberation I got used to. Maybe wax build up, or a hearing aid dome in my case.

All the best.

[John48 in reply to daverussell]

Thanks for your feedback Dave.

[Mille23]

It could be due to open eustacian tubes , called tuba aperta. One of the symptoms are echo in your head or you can hear your own voice. And the feeling of fullness in your ears. Hope the best for your wife.

[John48 in reply to Mille23]

Hi Mille, thankyou for your response. We’ll have a look into the tuba aperte aspect.

[Suz_2]

hi John - I suffer from severe T and also have hyperacusis (for past 2 years ). I have recently developed an echo on my left side after a very loud noise incident which happened 4 wks ago. 5 weeks prior to this my left ear felt blokced with reduced hearing. this all point to eustachian tube issues so i will be returning to (private) ENT . I believe there are treatments for eustachain tube issues

[John48 in reply to Suz_2]

Hi Suz, thankyou for your reply. We are hoping that learning to relax more and become far less anxious, together with facial physio may help relieve the echo and also help the tinnitus levels. Would be interested in hearing sometime what your ENT has to say and recommend.

[Suz_2 in reply to John48]

I am having a hearing test next week and shall see ENT consultant in the New year at Circle health private hospital nearby ( coz NHS would take too long) . I shall get back to you about what the consultant thinks about my new symptoms ( the T seems worse because of these as well). I hv never taken any meds so inmy case this is not the issue . Does she have this echo sensation all over head or does it feel like its at side in ear(s)

[John48 in reply to Suz_2]

Hi Suz, her echo sensation is in her head, not just one side in ear(s). Thanks in advance for letting us know any conclusions from your consultant visit.

[Suz_2 in reply to John48]

hi John - i was chatting with you in early Dec . I had a hearing test and have some new low freq hearing loss. I will see ENT soon. I suspect I may have an issue with Eustachian tube , which can cause the echo when listening to TV , speaking etc. I shall chat again after the ENT assessment

[John48 in reply to Suz_2]

hi Suz, thx for your update. My wife also has a test and ENT appointment here in The Netherlands next week. So we can compare notes. She also has Eustachius tube disfunction, which also maybe influenced by chronic anxiety and stress over the years.

[CoconutPi]

Hi. This lady has some good info on tinnitus.

Joey Rememyi “healing tinnitus use neuroplasticity” on YouTube- I wasn’t able to post the link. Also interestingly I recently watched a video from an audiologist who said that diazepam can blunt neuroplasticity and inhibit the process of habituation (increasing tolerance/decreasing attention on tinnitus etc) so your wife may find reducing/stopping diazepam may help- always proceed with care when changing medication. Some other medications can affect tinnitus especially ones that have a side effect of teeth grinding.

[rabbits65]

Hello , John I just want to say what a very kind considerate person you are , your wife is very fortunate to have your kindness as she is suffering a great deal and you speak like your in all this together, how nice to have this togetherness. All of us on this site are learning to cope with our tinnitus and funny symptoms and it must be so much easier if you have a considerate partner to share it with..

Take care. 😃

[John48 in reply to rabbits65]

Hi , thankyou for your very kind words. It is sometimes also difficult for partners, but of course no where near that of the person actually suffering Tinnitus and associated symptoms. Always nice to get supportive feedback. Thankyou.