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Tinnitus anyone?
- Thread starter Omega Man
- Start date
Well, at the age of 67 I've joined the tinnitus gang, just barely. A recent cold that ended with eustachian tube irritation also created a moderate case of tinnitus. Comes and goes and is instantly turned on by caffeine and too much salt. Doesn't disturb sleep or drive me nuts, yet..Might even go away- who knows..
Now I know I'm going to have to be more careful about ear protection on the bikes...
At least the 3x weekly dialysis will help keep any salt issues in check.
Now if I could just get going in the AM without coffee..
To the poster who was wondering how to fix a tinnitus problem caused by eustachian tube/ drainage issues- I know an answer but you may not like it. It is- take up scuba diving.
When I was young I lost an eardrum (torn 270 degrees around the periphery) to a 120 mph squash ball at point blank distance. It left scar tissue and probably some clots that blocked ear drainage and for years afterward I had pressure issues and periodic ear infections. Then I took up diving and eventually progressed to technical (deep) diving well beyond the depths of compressed air only. For some reason, probably the constant substantial pressure changes divers undergo, my ears cleared permanently and I have never had an ear infection or pressure problem since. ENTs are always dumbfounded when I tell them this story- they are accustomed to seeing divers with barotrauma caused by (IMO) simple lack of diving skill.
Now I know I'm going to have to be more careful about ear protection on the bikes...
At least the 3x weekly dialysis will help keep any salt issues in check.
Now if I could just get going in the AM without coffee..
To the poster who was wondering how to fix a tinnitus problem caused by eustachian tube/ drainage issues- I know an answer but you may not like it. It is- take up scuba diving.
When I was young I lost an eardrum (torn 270 degrees around the periphery) to a 120 mph squash ball at point blank distance. It left scar tissue and probably some clots that blocked ear drainage and for years afterward I had pressure issues and periodic ear infections. Then I took up diving and eventually progressed to technical (deep) diving well beyond the depths of compressed air only. For some reason, probably the constant substantial pressure changes divers undergo, my ears cleared permanently and I have never had an ear infection or pressure problem since. ENTs are always dumbfounded when I tell them this story- they are accustomed to seeing divers with barotrauma caused by (IMO) simple lack of diving skill.
cehlbeck
New member
That was my symptom along with the tinnitus too. Then back in November I was fitted with a pair of Phonak behind the ear hearing aid/sound generators. The constant sound helps immensely with the tinnitus and the hearing aid part is amazing. Mine are pretty basic units and were well worth the cost. At the 2 month follow up visit they added the "playlist" feature and I now have a "normal" setting like I had along with a specific program for restaurant type situations.
exgman
Active member
Auditory Nerve Issues = Tinnitus
I got the analysis from the Doc at the Mass. Eye & Ear Infirmary two days ago. My tinnitus is not the result of all the FBI-related gunfire to which I was subject, it's due to some sort of deterioration/damage, or whatever to the auditory nerves in my right ear. My left is just fine. It seems I have to live with it, and a hearing aid for the diminished hearing in my right ear is not applicable due to the nerve situation. MRI of my head for diagnosis resulted in the good news: there's a brain in there (some have questioned that), but the bad news: no clue as to what caused all this. I continue to ride with full-foam earplugs, and wear two layers of protection (plugs & muffs) when shooting.
Long story short, hearing aids may not be of any help to some people.
PS- FWIW - I'm 69YOA now.
I got the analysis from the Doc at the Mass. Eye & Ear Infirmary two days ago. My tinnitus is not the result of all the FBI-related gunfire to which I was subject, it's due to some sort of deterioration/damage, or whatever to the auditory nerves in my right ear. My left is just fine. It seems I have to live with it, and a hearing aid for the diminished hearing in my right ear is not applicable due to the nerve situation. MRI of my head for diagnosis resulted in the good news: there's a brain in there (some have questioned that), but the bad news: no clue as to what caused all this. I continue to ride with full-foam earplugs, and wear two layers of protection (plugs & muffs) when shooting.
Long story short, hearing aids may not be of any help to some people.
PS- FWIW - I'm 69YOA now.
26667
the Wizard of Oz
hearing aids, dudes! really
certainly yes to any kind of earplugs while riding, the quietest helmet you can find, and windscreen that works. protect what you've got.
BUT my ENT told me to get hearing aids! Partly because I had some hearing loss, and because by putting more of the sound of reality in your head via the hearing aids, one becomes less aware of the imaginary sound of the tinnitus. It's not immediate. But it does in fact happen that way. I have to think about the ringing to find it. I never wear them while I ride. the earplugs would make it difficult. In my case health insurance paid for 1/2 the initial cost. They're modern; chipped, and can be easily calibrated to enhance only the freq's you need. They're small. invisible unless you really look closely. Plus I can almost hear normally. Almost. At least my friends aren't ridiculing me anymore
It's bad enough to be an old fart, but worse to be a stupid old fart.
certainly yes to any kind of earplugs while riding, the quietest helmet you can find, and windscreen that works. protect what you've got.
BUT my ENT told me to get hearing aids! Partly because I had some hearing loss, and because by putting more of the sound of reality in your head via the hearing aids, one becomes less aware of the imaginary sound of the tinnitus. It's not immediate. But it does in fact happen that way. I have to think about the ringing to find it. I never wear them while I ride. the earplugs would make it difficult. In my case health insurance paid for 1/2 the initial cost. They're modern; chipped, and can be easily calibrated to enhance only the freq's you need. They're small. invisible unless you really look closely. Plus I can almost hear normally. Almost. At least my friends aren't ridiculing me anymore
It's bad enough to be an old fart, but worse to be a stupid old fart.
Bullett
New member
Your "judge analogy" ticks me off!Whats the good to come from a public official making comments like that when it attacks a disabling condition? Many in our society would have us "pop a new ears pill"? as zero tolerance for others not hearing. When you view all the "accommodation stuff" (access,etc.) in our USA, when it comes to noise, there is more of a lean toward noise pollution than noise solution.
Might be a different & purposeful context if it's the teacher saying , "Johnny pay attention in class"! Otherwise it's plain old demeaning! In many ways(noise exposures I couldn't control) JUDGE-IT'S NOT OUR FAULT! Does the same judge make light of one legged folks that don't come to the bench fast enough? Off my box...
Well. . . FWIW, he was a friend of mine, and he was known to lack appropriate judicial temperament
. He's a much nicer guy now that he is in private practice and has more time for golf.
BlackdogGS
New member
I'm getting my hearing aids next week!
I belong to a group of riders that meet for breakfast every Saturday. I found that I simply could not follow a conversation with the normal restaurant background noise. It was very embarrassing, when someone spoke I could hear noise but I could not understand a thing. I had to stop going. If I'm in a quite room I can have a normal conversation. I can hear my cell phone when it chimes (when I get an email) before my wife who has great hearing. My tinnitus and hearing loss happened at the same time.
SeabeckS
New member
Update...
My tinnitus spike turned out to be just that..a temporary spike. Thank goodness! Now back to "normal" levels with a bit of aspirin/Tylenol and hot compresses. not looking forward to one more dental appointment for the crown installation...
Sort of educational reading this thread and a whole big bunch of web info on the malady. My struggles with this are really minor compared to so many others. Been pretty careful with ear protection for many years, but exposure to sirens, pumper engines, chainsaws, etc, etc, in my early days probably didn't help. LOL
As far as a motorcycle connection...always hated the loud pipes stuff. Worn full face, quality helmets for a few decades, and most of the time with ear plugs, particularly for any sort of distance rides.
If I can affix blame to anyone, it's probably the guy next to me at the range years ago. Shooting hot loads from a 44 Mag. My 357 was sorta like a 22 next to him...LOL
Take care all!
My tinnitus spike turned out to be just that..a temporary spike. Thank goodness! Now back to "normal" levels with a bit of aspirin/Tylenol and hot compresses. not looking forward to one more dental appointment for the crown installation...
Sort of educational reading this thread and a whole big bunch of web info on the malady. My struggles with this are really minor compared to so many others. Been pretty careful with ear protection for many years, but exposure to sirens, pumper engines, chainsaws, etc, etc, in my early days probably didn't help. LOL
As far as a motorcycle connection...always hated the loud pipes stuff. Worn full face, quality helmets for a few decades, and most of the time with ear plugs, particularly for any sort of distance rides.
If I can affix blame to anyone, it's probably the guy next to me at the range years ago. Shooting hot loads from a 44 Mag. My 357 was sorta like a 22 next to him...LOL
Take care all!
cehlbeck
New member
Pretty similar to me. Although both the audiologist and the ENT made it clear that the sound of tinnitus IS NOT imaginary but that your brain can be trained to ignore it to a degree. The analogy they give is the hum of a refrigerator. "You don't normally hear it, but now you do because I made you think of it." You are very right about the hearing aids too. Mine are also quite small and barely noticeable while being invaluable. The "chip" also allows them to be forward upgradeable. The programming they do in the office is quite amazing. The little devices can tell the audiologist how long they've been on and how much you play with the volume! Because my issue was mostly tinnitus along with some hearing loss, mine make a low white noise all the time to help with the tinnitus. Sometime in the future (like the next 12-18 months) they hope to turn off the white noise (or lower it significantly) and use the hearing aid part alone.
SeabeckS
New member
True that! A lot of .22 shooting (12 gauges too) as a youth with no ear protection. That dude with the 44 was too loud even WITH ear protection. Always tried take a position at the far end of line when he was at the range...
26667
the Wizard of Oz
Yeah, the magnum revolvers certainly didn't help mine. Had both a 357 and 44, and yes that 44 had everyone on the line flinching 
. I remember once we were shooting in a gully outside Black hawk and when I back after a break I forgot to put my muffs back on. Let one loose and the ringing was instant. Made me wonder how law enforcement deals with it when they have to use their service revolver. Of course many are semi auto now with lower pressures.
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. I remember once we were shooting in a gully outside Black hawk and when I back after a break I forgot to put my muffs back on. Let one loose and the ringing was instant. Made me wonder how law enforcement deals with it when they have to use their service revolver. Of course many are semi auto now with lower pressures.Sent from my DROID4 using Tapatalk
cehlbeck
New member
SeabeckS
New member
Yeah, the magnum revolvers certainly didn't help mine. Had both a 357 and 44, and yes that 44 had everyone on the line flinching
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Really don't want to start a gun thread...but never could figure out a 'good' reason to carry a 44 as a duty weapon. My qualification scores were always better with a puny 357 then my friend and his 44. Enough said!
I wonder if he has any hearing left?
Take care!
Bobmws
Curmudgeon At Large
Yeah, the magnum revolvers certainly didn't help mine. Had both a 357 and 44, and yes that 44 had everyone on the line flinching
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FWIW: r.e., "made me wonder"comment above- Law enforcement(unprotected) noise exposure is typically nothing remotely close to the military-in combat! Cops don't go out(thankfully for them) & shoot at the bad guys in unprotected mode much of the time.
SeabeckS
New member
Some time ago I was talking to a friend who is a retired logger - specifically, a tree faller - and the conversation turned to our respective hearing loss and the probable reasons for it. (Don't remember a discussion of tinnitus.) In his earlier years as a faller, not only was hearing protection unheard of, he PUNCHED HOLES IN THE MUFFLER to get more power from the chainsaws of the day. Any of you have run reasonably modern chainsaws know how loud THEY are. You would think one day of running such a saw would cause complete deafness - and he did it for several years - before saws improved and hearing protection came along. That guy hears at least as well as I - no hearing aids.
Guess he is kind of like the person who smokes two packs a day since he was 13 and dies in a car crash at 92. It happens. Not a good idea to bet your hearing - if you have some left - that you too will beat the odds. And unlike cigarettes, I don't find noise in any form an addictive pleasure. Of course, I don't ride a Harley with open pipes. Different strokes...
Must ask him about tinnitus. Seems to almost always accompany noise-related hearing loss.
Guess he is kind of like the person who smokes two packs a day since he was 13 and dies in a car crash at 92. It happens. Not a good idea to bet your hearing - if you have some left - that you too will beat the odds. And unlike cigarettes, I don't find noise in any form an addictive pleasure. Of course, I don't ride a Harley with open pipes. Different strokes...
Must ask him about tinnitus. Seems to almost always accompany noise-related hearing loss.
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