Somatic Tinnitus....... Any Success stories out there?

[Drummer45]

My Tinnitus was caused by poor posture and TMD. can modulate and cause spikes by turning my head, tilting my head from left to right with ears toward shoulders, pushing on the sides of my nose, pulling down on my scm muscles, Shrugging my shoulders and bringing my shoulders way back, swallowing. jutting out my jaw, etc.

These are temporary spikes that go away and back to baseline (mild and some days not even noticeable) when released or moving the affected body parts back to normal position.

Lack of sleep or any type of heavy lifting will cause an increase of baseline until muscles have stopped spasming and more sleep and rest are achieved.

Used to be so bad i was suicidal when it first came on (It was extremely debilitating) however cervical work on my C1 and C2 as well as cleaner eating, Magnesium citrate and glycinate supplements, vitamin D3, Liposomal C, B12 shots once a month, and plenty of water have helped tremendously.....along with swedish massage of all my head, neck, shoulder, and upper back muscles are a work in progress and will be starting with a PhysioTherapist specializing in Myofascial trigger point release of affected upper body and head muscles.

[Hidden]

Hi, i hope you dont mind but i just wanted to thank you for posting your experience as people i know personally have T but not somatic, so its hard to relate, i have been struggling with this, and the T is off the scale at times, have a retracted shoulder and wonder if thats creating all this?? i am having CST and tomorrow will try and get to see a physio i have been doing certain shoulder exercises, Tai Chi, heat, arnica balm, its all very distressing, my T hisses when i move my jaw, i have droning and roaring which i presume is my ET getting compromised by tension, i really wish you well on this journey.

[Drummer45 in reply to Hidden]

If your T is not caused by hearing loss or damage to the ear in any way and you have upper body head neck shoulder muscle / skeletal problems than you are most likely dealing with some type of somatic T. Does it spike when you move your head around? Does it change when you move that shoulder araound?

[Hidden in reply to Drummer45]

Hi, not so much my shoulder but definitely my jaw. Today i had my third CST session, my therapist massaged my neck and told me there was definitely a start of a release of a blockage, i have had a blocked feeling there for some time, its possible my lymph glands have been compromised as i have no thyroid, my shoulder and neck muscles are very tight and no doubt impacting the ETD on one side, i will be seeing a physio tomorrow and hope to get some exercises to relax all this area,.

[Healthymetoday in reply to Hidden]

ET - do you mean Eustachian tube?

[Hidden in reply to Healthymetoday]

Hi - yes sorry i should have put just ET - Eustachian Tube leading to Eustachian Tube Dysfunction.

[Pipster25]

Hello Drummer. I have somatic tinnitus, exactly as you describe. 4 months duration since it flared up from what was I ordinary tinnitus. My base level seems like it is more intrusive than yours though. Two things I am doing which you aren’t. One. I have been to the dentist and had a plastic shield made to prevent TMJ teeth grinding at night. You may be doing it without knowing. Two. I am using a tens machine with one pad placed immediately behind each ear. This is for two hours a day for at least two weeks. It should is said in some reports to have reduced tinnitus in 60% of users. Set at the highest comfortable frequency and no more. So far I can only say there has been a slight improvement but I have only done the tens a short time. If I get any major success I will report back on the forum.

[Cookie24 in reply to Pipster25]

Please report on your progress with TENS

[Drummer45 in reply to Pipster25]

Yes please keep us updated on the Tens unit. Could you possibly post a picture of the unit you are using? Name brand and where you got it please?

[Pipster25 in reply to Drummer45]

I am away for a break at the minute Drummer so will get back to you later:

[Jimbob7]

Another Somatic here. Roughly the same as you - can play tunes with the T by articulating jaw, facial muscles and the rest of it. Was despairing to begin with - just over 2 months in have changed outlook, feel better about it, have the odd spike which is hard going but getting there. Good luck everyone and stay bright.

[Karlos99]

somatic here also. Goes extremely high pitched when I open my jaw wide or move my neck into certain positions. Tried massage, dry needling, chiropractor and acupuncture but was no help. Going to see another chiropractor Thursday to see if they can help. All the best.

[Drummer45 in reply to Karlos99]

I have a lot of relief by having Swedish gentle massage to my head neck and shoulder / upper back muscles once a week. I also have my cervical spine checked by my atlas orthogonal specialist once a month to once every couple of months. Also, NO HEAVY LIFTING!!! And, if i try to stretch my arms above my head to work on something like cleaning or moving things it spikes my T....UGH!!

[sixapple in reply to Drummer45]

Hello Drummer 45 - I was very interested to read that you visit an atlas orthogonal specialist as it has been suggested that it may help my pulsatile tinnitus - I would be very grateful if you could recommend someone to me - many thanks - kind regards

[Enort]

I guess you are a drummer?!Do loud noise affect that at all?

[Drummer45 in reply to Enort]

I am 60 years old and have played drums for 45 years. I never used hearing protection until the last few years since i got sick and had this T problem come on (Long Story) My hearing tests the last 3 years show mild high pitch hearing loss completely normal for my age... no damage from drumming....i am extremely lucky in that aspect. When the T came on it was like a freight train low his and rumble constantly with no letup... i had hyperacusis at that time. However all of the work i have done to my body through chiro / cervical specialist / ultrasound treatments to shoulder and neck / diet / supplements / have made the hyperacusis go away and bring the beast to its knees and only deal with a very high pitched his that can be drowned out at 8-12,000 hertz of T videos on youtube.

[Enort in reply to Drummer45]

Same hiss freq spectrum as mine. I am a musician and sound engineer and have been blasting my ears with loud music for the past 30 years.All it takes is wearing headphones at low volume for a couple of hours the the hiss just go high in volume.

Lack of sleep makes it worse for sure, and reading on this forum actually makes you aware of the hiss, hence paying attention to it.

I try ignoring it majority of the time and it kinda works.

Extensive teeth treatment and 2 teeth loss, plus malocclusion is though to be a second cause of it.

Have now had since 2016

[Jimbob7]

I got severe T suddenly after a fall just over two months ago. I've just started getting this hypersensity to loud noises - Hypercusis??? It's like certain noises (generally high-pitched and shrill anyway) come right in to the inner ear and vibrate and grate in a really nasty way. Like someone has stuck a screwdriver into my ear and is giving it a waggle. Oh well, along the mad T Road we go.

Stay strong everyone. We're bigger than the T and it knows it.

[jelly1234]

hi, I have somatic T caused by teeth grinding and clenching at night. (Been doing it for many years - dentist noticed my teeth had worn down 15/16 years ago!). Had T since April 23 in my right ear and it was also severe and debilitating, the same as you. Had chiro, dry needling on my masseter, physio, TMJ massage, take magnesium, B12, and wear a nightguard. Over the past year to this point, it has gradually and slowly improved (with many spikes along the way) and sometimes I don’t even know I have it - but it has not yet completely disappeared. If I have a night of clenching (maybe I’m stressed) it does increase slightly and sometimes fizzes but then the next day it will reduce again for a few days, sometimes weeks at a a time. I am hopeful that it will eventually stop but have been thinking about Botox which is supposed to help but not ready for that yet! Have only been able to modulate my T by clenching my jaw but only slightly. Good luck with the physio. I also might try a tens machine so thanks Pipster25!

[Drummer45 in reply to jelly1234]

I am thinking about trying botox as well..... my orthodontist does them... they are not cheap however my sanity is hard to hang a price on.

[jelly1234 in reply to Drummer45]

Yes indeed! I’m going to try a Tens machine and see if that helps at all. I did read somewhere once that somatic T tends to be the most debilitating initially. And now that my T is low and I would say more localised, I can almost pin point the muscle in my face that is causing it when I have a spike - some days it almost feels like it is vibrating!

[Drummer45 in reply to jelly1234]

On bad days i can put my front teeth together and they chatter as if i am freezing to death and i honestly would have no idea that my jaw muscles were spasming unless i put the teeth together. I just had major sinus surgery and am getting back into head neck and shoulder physio massage as it calms it down a lot. The more sleep i get the better it is however at my age getting more than 5-6 hours a night is tough

[Tal-r789T]

Hi I'm believing my T is somatic, as by stretching jaw I can affect pitch etc. I do a lot of heavy lifting, and am keen to explore if T could be as a result. I am trying to find a physio to help me look at this, thanks for info on your experiences, it gives me areas of possible focus.

[Drummer45 in reply to Tal-r789T]

Lifting heavy weights and having bad posture can def cause problems. I am seeing a myofascial therapist to see about working my deep upper back muscles

[Ana20]

Thank you for the very useful information!

Good health!

[sixapple]

Hello my doctor has suggested atlas orthogonal treatment as I have pulsatile tinnitus - please could you recommend someone - many thanks.

[Drummer45 in reply to sixapple]

Where are you located?

[sixapple in reply to Drummer45]

I live in Yorkshire but would travel anywhere to get relief - kind regards

[Drummer45 in reply to sixapple]

I am in the UN- United States of America and they are few and far between over here. I got lucky finding one about 90 minutes from my town.

[sixapple in reply to Drummer45]

Thank you for your reply Drummer - a bit too far for me to travel!