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Why is the loud ringing in my ears attacking me ?
Hi , I am a 61 years old . I have had ringing in my ears off and on for several years and it has never posed much of a problem until about 2 years ago when the ringing became constant and very loud .
In my left ear the ringing is constant and high pitched , in my right ear the ringing is constant and high pitched and it changes tone if I grit my teeth. The ringing is very loud in both ears.
I have been experiencing blurry vision , short term memory loss , confusion while trying to complete simple task and sometimes I have difficulty carrying on conversations because I have difficulty speaking especially if I’m frustrated .
Sometimes the ringing pulsates and gets louder as it pulsates as if it is attacking me and at times it is so intense i can feel a sharp pain in my ears .
I do have an appointment with an ENT next week and hopefully can find some relief.
I have become depressed and don’t know how to live with this condition that has become debilitating to me .
Can anyone relate to what I’m experiencing ?
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I have similar issues. Make sure to mention pulsing. Pulsatile tinnitus is a different problem than "regular" tinnitus and needs addressing. Regular tinnitus so far has no treatment other than masking with other sounds or, basically, acceptance. In my experience the brain does adjust.
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1 ReactionHi @crazydad. I have also had tinnitus for many years from a couple of causes but you are also experiencing a bunch of other neurologic symptoms. You probably need some diagnostics done (scans, etc) and perhaps see a neurologist. If your ENT visit does not produce some diagnostic procedures then I would ask your PCP for a neuro referral. Is your PCP aware of your current issues?
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1 Reaction@crazydad I have not found ENT's to be helpful. Sorry to say but unless you have pulsatile tinnitus, they will tell you to "put it on the back burner." The enlightened ones may suggest retraining programs or masking with white noise but for me those cause vertigo- maybe they will help for you. The problem with tinnitus (not pulsatile) is in our brain, possibly auditory nerve (recent research) and not in our ears.
Again pulsatile requires imaging and other diagnositic techniques (you can google) and can have a variety of causes including neck issues, heart issues, vascular malformations, anemia. If a vascular issue, a neurointerventionalist is the specialty to see.
@crazydad , it's horrible isn't it? I developed tinnitus and "musical hallucinations" (didn't know the name for it til a doc, not an ENT, mentioned it. ) That and hearing loss (up to 75% occurred after contracting COVID in late March/early April 2023 despite being fully vaccinated at that point - and since. The tinnitus and musical hallucinations vary from day to day and hour to hour. Often it's like a flock of birds or children on a playground; sometimes it's songs I can identify and other times it's a constant musical sound that just goes round and round. It has sounded sometimes like an alarm going off or the fan on our HVAC. I saw an ENT who diagnosed other issues and sorta shrugged about tinnitus, saying there's no 'cure.' Yet in the long COVID group on Mayo, someone wrote that hearing aids (second audiology test if in Jan. and a fitting for hearing aids) helped lessen the tinnitus. Others have said they don't. It is horrible. It is never not there. For work, instead of phone, I use Zoom so I can wear a headset that is far better for me for hearing and for a time, I can ignore the tinnitus.
IF you had COVID, mention it. Your ENT may have no clue. Mine said they've had other patients who lost hearing (and developed tinnitus) since having COVID. Like w/ all COVID things, there seems to be not much we can do. For tinnitus, I wish you sanity. I think anyone with it sympathizes and empathizes about the nightmare it is.
Wishing you well as best you can.