Tinnitus? Am I the only one?

californiansun

Hi all,

I have tinnitus. I have no idea why, the ENT said my hearing is perfect. He said something in my ear (I don't remember exactly) is loose, which causes me to have tinnitus.

I am wondering if I am the only one! I feel very alone with my friends and family. I feel like I can no longer go to movies, concerts, etc. which causes me to be very isolated. (I'm only 22!!!) Can you still do things that are “loud?”

Does anyone have any tips on making it better? (I know it never goes away) Does it seem like diet helps you? People keep telling me eliminating salt has helped them.

Thanks!

californiansun

*bump* If anyone has any information, I would appreciate it.

TheDevastator

http://www.holisticonline.com/remedies/ear/tin_alt_diet-vitamin.htm

formersec

See an otologist, a specialist in disease and conditions of the ear. Sounds like you have a structural problem. The otologist can better take care of it than an ENT.

californiansun

Thanks all for the advice.

paigemarie93

Is tinnitus like after you've been to a concert & you have that ringing in your ears for a few days, but you have it all the time? I can imagine that's really annoying.

BrettPGH

I don't but my gf has it pretty bad. And I wish I had better news for you but she pretty much just suffers from it constantly. At night she makes sure to have a white noise machine or the tv on just to hear some other low sound to cancel it out.

You have my sympathies. It's really a tough thing to deal with. And you're definitely not alone.

peachNpunkin

I've had it for years. I just live with it. I don't let it affect my life negatively. I just tell people to speak up when its real bad. As a matter of fact, I have had it for so long that when they don't ring, I feel strange. So, It's just one of those things. You'll get used to it after a while.

Mine is from hitting my head on the steering wheel during a car accident. It knocked the little bones loose in my ears. I can get it fixed, but I don't want anyone messing with my head.

Di3012

Hi all,

I have tinnitus. I have no idea why, the ENT said my hearing is perfect. He said something in my ear (I don't remember exactly) is loose, which causes me to have tinnitus.

I am wondering if I am the only one! I feel very alone with my friends and family. I feel like I can no longer go to movies, concerts, etc. which causes me to be very isolated. (I'm only 22!!!) Can you still do things that are “loud?”

Does anyone have any tips on making it better? (I know it never goes away) Does it seem like diet helps you? People keep telling me eliminating salt has helped them.

Thanks!

Nothing helped me. Mine started when I was around six years old, I am 51 now. I hear it above traffic.

However, I have a job that entails regular medicals and hearing tests are always in those medicals - I always pass.

What do you mean about can you still do things that are loud? I go to concerts and watch live bands on occasion, it doesn't lessen the enjoyment. People will say that those two things are what caused mine, but I had this long, long before I even went to my first concert.

Why do you feel isolated?

alyson820

I have it from bad allergies, and I don't think it's really negatively impacted my life. It's just annoying. White noise helps me when it gets irritating, so I use a sound machine when I sleep.

Kittie_Kat

I've had it since I was about 10, I went to the ENT when I was in HS and he said it was a fractured inner ear bone causing mine. Sometimes its worse, sometimes its better but during ht day I just ignore it. Mine is a loud ringing. At night when I sleep I have to sleep with a fan otherwise its unbearable. Otherwise I don't have anything that I know of that helps and it sucks! I feel ya!

hklaquadra

I have tinnitus also and sometimes it seems so loud to me that I wish I had an off switch in my ears, I would rather hear nothing than hear the ringing and sssssshhhhhshshshshsh.....I believe mine comes from ear damage because I worked around airplanes in the air force and also because my husband played in a rock band (yes, i was his #1 groupie)

Definitely see someone who specializes in the inner ear. I have also heard that sometimes it's a vitamin deficiency.

Akijade

I've never been diagnosed, but I always have a faint ringing in my ears. I've always had it as long as I can remember, and it's completely normal for me. It doesn't stop me from going to concerts or anything. The worst I get is sometimes I can't sleep because of the ringing (very rare), or sometimes it gets really loud, but for the most part... it's just a thing. It happens. I continue on with my life.

marquesajen

My husband has tinnitus. He's a musician,has played guitar for 15 years, and it doesn't get i the way of that, but at night when it is quiet that is all he hears. We have a fan going in our room to block it out for him. His dad had it and it just went away one day. I think it is different for everyone, I saw an article on the BBC a week ago about an official who has it and to him is almost sounds like voices.

hipdrummer1

Hello, I am a musician (Drummer) and developed Tinnitus in my left ear two years ago. The ear has folicals that gent bent over and cause a ringing or in my case crickets at certain frequencies. Diet does play a large part in Tennitus and I have refrained from sugar, caffine and chocolate. It did take some time to subside but it has gone into remission. In addition to diet I have also protected my ears from loud music, machinery or other things that i may even think would trip the Tinnitus off. I use ear filters to limit the volume of anything to 12 decibels. They have helped tremendously and are very economical. Hope this helps. Good luck.

twkelly

I've had tinnitus for the past 5 years. Its a symptom of the Menieres disease I have but could also have been cause by a car accident I was in when the driver-side window shattered. Tinnitus is a pain in the *kitten* but it doesn't stop me from enjoying movies or doing anything else involving noise. I'm pretty much used to it now so I don't use white noise or anything. I just live with it.

I drastically reduced my sodium intake upon learning I had Menieres. This helped lessen my vertigo but really had no effect on the Tinnitus. I have also been taking a 1000 mcg of B12 supplement daily for the same ammount of time which also has not improved my Tinnitus.

Don't let Tinnitus stop you from enjoying life and don't feel alone. Your hearing is still fine, you may just have to concentrate a bit harder to distinguish conversation from the ringing. I find that if I turn my head slightly my non-Tinnitus ear is strong enough so that I don't miss any words during a conversation.

Good luck. Be strong.

AZackery

I have tinnitus in my right ear. What other symptoms do you experience, besides the ringing in the ear?

TheDevastator

I would try vitamin therapy first. 50 mg of zinc gluconate / picolinate a day got rid of my noises. you can get 360 pills for about $10. If that doesn't work I would go to a specialist.

Meggles63

I've never had it "officially" diagnosed, but I have swoosh, swoosh, like a pulse in my left ear. Never sure when it started, and sometimes it's worse - head colds, allergies, etc. I have to run a fan at nite so I don't have to listen to it.

biggerted

Nope you're not the only one. It's a real pain isn't it?
I've had it for a few years now, cause = old age.
Apparently cutting out the salt is a big YES, also look up Meniers, hope that you’re not affected.
My big worry is the possibility of not hearing the grand kids chatter and not hearing music in the future.
Never mind enjoy it when one can and keep on with the weight loss.

Meditation is supposed to help, I can't really say as the maditation just sends me to sleep, it's a hard life!

Stay happy

biggerted

Nope you're not the only one. It's a real pain isn't it?
I've had it for a few years now, cause = old age.
Apparently cutting out the salt is a big YES, also look up Meniers, hope that you’re not affected.
My big worry is the possibility of not hearing the grand kids chatter and not hearing music in the future.
Never mind enjoy it when one can and keep on with the weight loss.

Meditation is supposed to help, I can't really say as the meditation just sends me to sleep, it's a hard life!

Stay happy

sollyn

Hi, I have been diagnosed with Tinnitus, I went thinking I was going deaf and was told like you that I have perfect hearing. I take quinine every day and have been warned that it is toxic to the ears. (whatever that means)

californiansun

Someone asked me about what symptoms I have, I have vertigo (I haven't had it in about 6 months), when I have vertigo I throw up. I was told I could have a brain tumor (really freaked me out) so I had an MRI done, which came out fine. (Thank you God!)

I also have VERY bad TMJ, which I am getting a night guard for this afternoon from my dentist. TMJ can cause tinnitus and vertigo.

I have allergies, which I take allergy pills for. I live in central CA, and the air quality is very bad.

I stopped taking vitamins, I just started taking a multivitamin and I'm going to see if that helps me.

If I go to movies (without ear plugs... I haven't tried it with ear plugs, I'm too afraid.) my ears ring SO loud that I can't ignore it. Not even my fan at night will help. This is why I do not go to movies or concerts anymore, I am afraid I'm going to go deaf.

I'm going to try to have my sugar and sodium intake down. I drink tea everyday, I'm going to try to cut it down to one or two cups a day, not 3 or 4 since I've hear caffeine doesnt help you.

I'm really glad I am not alone with this, I feel way to young to deal with tinnitus.

emalbright

I work for an ENT and he found a regimen that the Shea Clinic in Memphis, TN says reduces greatly or completely resolves the tinnitus.
3 month treatment
1. Ginkgo biloba 60mg twice daily
2. Lipoflavonoid 1 tablet 3x daily with meals
3. Take these for 90 days then stop the medicinies
4. If the noises in your ear(s) are still present 14 days after completing
the medications, you may start another 90 day cycle of the medicines

The Shea Ear clinic reports that 89% of patients who strictly comply with
this program report zero ringing or significant reduction of symptoms after
90 days...hope this can help!

Captain_Tightpants

I have it but I've become pretty good at tuning it out - except at night when it's really quiet. It's my own fault - too many loud gigs as a teenage metalhead.

Wish I could be more positive for you but the ear is an astonishingly mysterious and complex thing. My wife's ear specialist (she has loss of hearing in one ear) called it one of the last great frontiers of medicine. Tinnitus is very often idiopathic (no discernable cause)... or even if it's structural there's not a lot in there they can repair with much success. Sometimes steroids or surgery can help, sometimes not. Sometimes a hearing aid helps cancel it out, sometimes not. Sometimes it even just recovers spontaneously, but not often. I can tell you it gets easier to live with as time goes by though.

californiansun

I work for an ENT and he found a regimen that the Shea Clinic in Memphis, TN says reduces greatly or completely resolves the tinnitus.
3 month treatment
1. Ginkgo biloba 60mg twice daily
2. Lipoflavonoid 1 tablet 3x daily with meals
3. Take these for 90 days then stop the medicinies
4. If the noises in your ear(s) are still present 14 days after completing
the medications, you may start another 90 day cycle of the medicines

The Shea Ear clinic reports that 89% of patients who strictly comply with
this program report zero ringing or significant reduction of symptoms after
90 days...hope this can help!

I've heard that, but I am worried of the side effects. Do you know if there is any?

njmp

I have tinnitus...so annoying yes? But if anything, I find being in an environment where there is some noise is most helpful. I noticed the onset earlier this year, and at first no matter what I did, there was ringing. I now sleep with a white noise machine, and find that if I am nto concentrating on it I don't even notice it. Right now, for example, because I am thinking about it, it's very noticeable. Or if it's very quiet.
I had a hearing test done in December. I was told that I have lost the upper frequencies of my hearing, but I can't say I notice it.
My best helpful tip is to always have some light music playing, or any kind of background noise, it helped me a lot!

LorinaLynn

I had it, with a host of other problems, from my jaw being misaligned with a slipped disc. Google TMJ and see if you have any of the symptoms. Lots of docs missed it. I was misdiagnosed for months until by a freak chance a friend mentioned it. Then it took another 6 months or so before I got the RIGHT treatment for it.

njmp

If I go to movies (without ear plugs... I haven't tried it with ear plugs, I'm too afraid.) my ears ring SO loud that I can't ignore it. Not even my fan at night will help. This is why I do not go to movies or concerts anymore, I am afraid I'm going to go deaf.

Man that really sucks...I guess my above advice is of no use to you??? I have never heard of the ringing getting worse in presence of noise...

firesoforion

My mom has it and says apple cider vinegar makes it better. Evidently there are some studies linking it to your liver.

Deka61

I have mild tinnitus, and find that zinc supplements help to reduce it.