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Tinnitus question (Original Post) steve2470 Aug 2014 OP
Do you take muscle relaxers or opiates for pain? NightWatcher Aug 2014 #1
no I don't, I take 3 meds but none of them are in that category nt steve2470 Aug 2014 #2
Sterroids will do it too. Baitball Blogger Aug 2014 #14
yes, don't take steroids either steve2470 Aug 2014 #20
Kind of. Chan790 Aug 2014 #3
best wishes with yours ! nt steve2470 Aug 2014 #4
Oh, it doesn't bother me much. Chan790 Aug 2014 #5
Mine went away nt LiberalElite Aug 2014 #6
Generally, no - Ms. Toad Aug 2014 #7
Actually, hearing aids DO help. . . Paula Sims Aug 2014 #8
Wrong range for it to be more useful than annoying. Ms. Toad Aug 2014 #11
I have had it for many years and it has never ceased. RebelOne Aug 2014 #9
Volume changes pfitz59 Aug 2014 #10
Left ear only, and definitely not associated with hearing loss. 3catwoman3 Aug 2014 #12
I've got a bad case and it's never gotten better. Hearing aids only help me .... Scuba Aug 2014 #13
I've had it for over 6 months now PasadenaTrudy Aug 2014 #15
I started going to (mostly metal) concerts over thirty years ago OriginalGeek Aug 2014 #16
Not really. Miles Archer Aug 2014 #17
Funny. Mine is currently buzzing away. And I didn't even notice it until I saw this post. Purrfessor Aug 2014 #18
Yes, your mind seems to block it out. RebelOne Aug 2014 #22
My partner says his has lasted about 50 years now (from a gun blast). 2 things help.... Rowdyboy Aug 2014 #19
thanks, good luck to your partner as well ! nt steve2470 Aug 2014 #21
Not in my case IDemo Aug 2014 #23

NightWatcher

(39,343 posts)
1. Do you take muscle relaxers or opiates for pain?
Sat Aug 9, 2014, 12:16 PM
Aug 2014

If so, try to limit them or take a day or two off at a time. That worked for me.

steve2470

(37,457 posts)
20. yes, don't take steroids either
Mon Aug 11, 2014, 06:30 PM
Aug 2014

I hate to admit it, but years of loud music did it to me, which I hate. I LOVE playing my music loud, in my headphones only, but I know I'll go deaf pretty fast if I do. Ugh.

 

Chan790

(20,176 posts)
3. Kind of.
Sat Aug 9, 2014, 12:35 PM
Aug 2014

I have severe tinnitus. It doesn't go away or get better...but much like scratches on your glasses, your brain generally learns to ignore it so you won't notice it as often. (Also, this is why you can't see your nose regularly even though it's near-totally in your field of vision.) Mine is only really an issue when I'm eating...I can hear it then and my ears pop. (actually it's more like the sound of someone crumpling sheets of plastic.)

 

Chan790

(20,176 posts)
5. Oh, it doesn't bother me much.
Sat Aug 9, 2014, 01:46 PM
Aug 2014

It's the lesser of a number of irritations regarding my ears.

I was born deaf and they had to repair incomplete and plugged Eustachian tubes...today it's a fairly minor procedure. 30 years ago when I was pre-K age, it was in-patient surgery because it was basically roto-rooter for your head. They told me that I'd have issues down the road...given the choices, I'd rather hear and have the aggravations.

On the plus side, I can lip-read and retain some ASL...though it's rusty, it comes right back if I take a refresher course and use it regularly.

Ms. Toad

(33,915 posts)
7. Generally, no -
Sat Aug 9, 2014, 11:56 PM
Aug 2014

unless it is medication induced. I've had it for at least 2 decades - related to hearing loss in the frequency range of the buzz. In the early years, it was induced by quinine. I was taking it as part of a treatment for restless leg, but it is also found in tonic (quinine) water. If you're drinking it, you might want to try cutting it out.

Doctors keep trying to convince me that there are hearing aids that will make it less noticeable - but for now I think the hearing aids would bother me more than the constant high pitched whine.

Paula Sims

(877 posts)
8. Actually, hearing aids DO help. . .
Sun Aug 10, 2014, 10:33 AM
Aug 2014

If your tinnitus was caused by hearing loss (esp high frequency hearing loss). The audiologist explained it to my husband and me like this:

Your brain is expecting to hear and process a full range of sound. If there is a range of sound that's not there (for whatever reason), the brain "makes up the vacuum" by filling it in with noise. Think of a radio trying to find a station and only gets static (ask your grandparents about the concept -- snark).

It's helped my husband tremendously. Some models are more comfortable than others, both in their outer design and the domes (the parts that go into the ears). It's an issue of trial and error, and keep going to the audiologist for adjustments.

If you're at the point there they think you'll need hearing aids (even for "just tinnitus&quot , you'll be surprised how much you're missing. And your memory will improve (you're straining less to hear and more relaxed), you're hearing things you've forgotten that make a sound (think of papers rattling), and it will improve your personality (having hearing loss can make you snappy without noticing it). Yes, there is a bit of a break-in period, just like with new shoes. If unbearable, perhaps that model isn't for you, but that doesn't mean the hearing-aids aren't for you. And many people that are diagnosed with dementia are just hard of hearing -- they just sit there and smile and nod because they can't hear what's going on so they just pretend. It's not dementia -- it's hearing loss!

Truly, give it a chance. You might be surprised. Oh, BTW, my husband's tinnitus went away (while wearing the hearing aids) and just has to deal with the small time between lying down and falling asleep. At one point the tinnitus got "louder" the the hearing aids didn't work. The reason? His hearing got worse so we just needed another adjustment. Truly truly truly -- it works.

E-mail me if you (or anyone) have any questions.

Paula

Ms. Toad

(33,915 posts)
11. Wrong range for it to be more useful than annoying.
Sun Aug 10, 2014, 05:07 PM
Aug 2014

My hearing loss is in the range of a high pitched alarm clock. It is a range that isn't terribly useful, except for hearing that high pitched alarm clock - or for locating the direction sounds in that frequency range are coming from (since I still hear that frequency out of the other ear). Otherwise, my hearing tests in the normal range.

I'm not disputing that they may be useful for people whose hearing loss is in the speaking (or more useful sounds) range - or for people for whom tinnitus is a significant distraction. But there is nothing in that frequency range that impairs my day to day activity because I miss low volume sounds in that range in one ear. It doesn't interfere with me hearing voices, or papers rattling (which are NOT in the high frequency range), or the wind blowing through the trees - just low volume artificial sounds which are intended to be an alert of some sort. And as long as sounds are loud enough, or my left ear is not stuffed in a pillow, I can even hear those - and, for now, hearing aids would be more bother than benefit.

I'm glad they worked for your husband - but your husband's experience is not universal, nor does the benefit outweigh the burden for everyone - and "giving it a chance" is a very costly proposition to address a problem that really isn't one. Hearing aids are not cheap - and they are generally not covered by insurance. You don't always get the right hearing aid for your ears the first time - which can increase the costs significantly - and while there is some success in treating tinnitus, none of the doctors who suggested it even suggested the success rate was much more than around 50%. That rate of "cure" combined with how little either tinnitus, or my high frequency hearing loss, impacts my life - not worth it.

And no, I'm not snappish because I can't hear you , I just get tired of being sold a very expensive solution to a non-problem. I offered it in this thread because for SOME people, tinnitus is debilitating - and for those people, it is definitely worth exploring.

RebelOne

(30,947 posts)
9. I have had it for many years and it has never ceased.
Sun Aug 10, 2014, 12:08 PM
Aug 2014

I have learned to pretty much ignore it except when it gets exceptionally loud. There are a few times it has stopped, but that is usually when I am drinking wine.

3catwoman3

(23,812 posts)
12. Left ear only, and definitely not associated with hearing loss.
Sun Aug 10, 2014, 09:37 PM
Aug 2014

Mine is a type called pulsatile tinnitus - it's like listening to a constant ultrasound of your heart. I don't notice it much during the day, but it is annoying as hell once I turn the lights off at night. Volume varies, and sometimes it is so loud I'm surprised my husband can't hear it, too. It stoped for many months a while back, but came back, much to my disappointment.

To add to the annoyance factor, I sometimes have runs of an irregular heartbeat, which was determined to be completely benign, but it's what cardiologists refer to as "irregularly irregular" - no pattern. On nights when that is acting up, I lie there courting the number of beats between pauses and wondering why there are usually an odd number of beats between the skipped beats rather an than an even number.

An app called Sleep Sounds Pro is a reasonably effective distractor while awaiting sleep. I have mine programmed for a combo of cats purring, creek burbling, and soft crickets

 

Scuba

(53,475 posts)
13. I've got a bad case and it's never gotten better. Hearing aids only help me ....
Sun Aug 10, 2014, 10:11 PM
Aug 2014

... when I'm in a one-on-one conversation in anotherwise quiet area. Basically, I've learned to ignore the ringing and say "what?" alot.

PasadenaTrudy

(3,998 posts)
15. I've had it for over 6 months now
Sun Aug 10, 2014, 11:13 PM
Aug 2014

It started when I was put on Wellbutrin. I went off after a few weeks, but am stuck with the constant ringing. Like a hiss.

OriginalGeek

(12,132 posts)
16. I started going to (mostly metal) concerts over thirty years ago
Sun Aug 10, 2014, 11:47 PM
Aug 2014

I started wearing earplugs to concerts about 3 years ago.




Apparently, that was about 30 years too late.


I have a high pitched tone with me all the time but I don't notice it so much when I'm in a loud environment - like a concert.


So I go to a lot of concerts.

Miles Archer

(18,837 posts)
17. Not really.
Mon Aug 11, 2014, 01:15 AM
Aug 2014

Laying down in a completely silent room usually makes me more aware of it. Right now I am sitting here with the TV on and a fan blowing so I don't notice it at all. I do think that stress aggravates it because stress aggravates EVERY physical affliction, so your practice of sitting quietly is probably the best medicine I could recommend.

Rowdyboy

(22,057 posts)
19. My partner says his has lasted about 50 years now (from a gun blast). 2 things help....
Mon Aug 11, 2014, 06:24 PM
Aug 2014

1. A fan. We have one running 24/7 in whichever room we're in
2. A white noise machine. I go to sleep every night listening either to the sound of the surf, a rainstorm, or a brook.

Good luck! Hope yours fades.

IDemo

(16,926 posts)
23. Not in my case
Tue Aug 12, 2014, 12:24 AM
Aug 2014

I've had a high pitched squeal in both ears for about 25 years. It's the first thing I hear when awakening, and I am aware of it now just because I'm thinking about it. The mind does its best to mask it during the day, but any quiet moments generally will turn up the volume.

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