- Does anyone else have this? (Palve said he noticed it as well)
and…
- What is it?
I’m not 100% sure on this, but from what I’ve been told, it’s the result of listening to/hearing very loud noises over your life time.
I get it too, it’s annoying as hell, ain’t it?
1.) Yes.
2.) Tinnitus, “a ringing or clicking sound in the ears in the absence of auditory stimuli. It is more a symptom of pathology than a disease. For example, tinnitus is one of the first symptoms of cochlear nerve degeneration. It may also result from inflammation of the middle or inner ears and is a side effect of some medicatins, such as aspirin.”
[SUB]From Human Anatomy & Physiology, 4th ed. Elaine N. Marieb[/SUB]
Sounds like (hah! I slay me) Tinnitus to me. I have it and have had it since I was 11 (21 now). I really doubt I got it as a result of loud noises or music since I was fairly young when it developed, I didn’t really listen to music until I was about 14 (and even then it was on a level 2 out of 10 volume) and I wasn’t really exposed to many loud noises over my 11 years.
You learn how to tune it out most of the time. Although sometimes it’s neat, when I’m in a silent room, to concentrate on it; sometimes I can hear up to 5 different tones at once! 
I have it too. I don’t find it irritating, but then again, I’ve had it as long as I can remember.
My vote: I think everyone gets tinnitus to some degree. Probably the “all is quiet” ringing when you haven’t yet been exposed to lots of loud noise is probably just “background noise”, etc.–your nerves still probably have SOME chatter, even when there’s no appreciable external sound input. Like the colors, etc., you see when you close your eyes at night.
Tinnitus. Most people have it to some degree. My brother said yesterday that about 20% of people verifiably have it. (From some bio/psych course he’s taking, I didn’t ask). It’s usually from loud noises and such. Sometimes indicative of some other problem, but that’d be less common.
I don’t find mine neat; It wasn’t so bad until last November, when I (seriously), went to see “James Bond - Die Another Day”. It was so loud in the theatre, I remember checking for Kleenex to stuff in my ears. (I wish now I’d left to find something). Getting out I experienced the whooshing/ringing I’ve heard a few times before after getting out of loud places - but the damned ringing never stopped! There are plenty of THX/DTS/etc. standards for theatre sound - you’d think there’d be one on maximum decibels so you could hear the next movie. :rolleyes:
Many years ago, I was told the cillia contained in the cochlear canal generate signals all the time, that are cancelled out by opposite signals from somewhere in the brain. When the cillia are damaged by something (ie, loud noise), the “cancelling” signal becomes noise itself. It’s apparently not a well understood field, from what I glean on the 'net. Mayhaps someone in the bio field will help.
Does it get worse as time goes on (if there are few loud noises that the ear is exposed to)?
I too have tinnitus Eg. the ‘white noise’ type ringing in the ears that I hear when it is quiet. However, does anyone else get the ‘Test Tone’. I may only get this once a month or so and it may only last 30-40 seconds but it is a single tone (ie. not noise). A bit like the sound a TV station sends out when programs end and the test card is displayed.
I’ve had the ‘test tone’ continuously for 16 years, and it is loud enough to be heard over freeway traffic. Yes, clayton_e, it does get worse the more you are exposed to loud noise. There is no cure, though there are lots of claims for various treatments, most of which are unproven in clinical settings. Mostly people have to just learn to live with it.
Sometimes you can get it temporarily after being exposed to loud noises. I don’t generally have tinitus, but I have had it on occassion after being at a loud nightclub.
I get the test tone too, MalFrog… exactly as you describe. kind of weird, but luckily doesn’t last too long.
I remember reading an article about a person placed in a soundproofed anechoic chamber, where they became very consciously aware of the sounds of their own heartbeat, breathing, circulation, digestion etc - there was also a mention of this whining sound and it was described as being the sound of the nervous system - I suspect this is bogus and that it isn’t actually a ‘real’ sound at all (at least not one that exists outside of the individual’s perception).
The nerve endings responsible for hearing are attached to hairlike structures bathed in fluid, as I understand it, these can be damaged by loud sounds, Ii suppose it is possible that they might get damaged in such a way as to be firing more or less constantly. Even for a person with completely intact hearing, maybe these cells just fire once in a while anyway (like the way that we can sometimes see flashes of light or patterns with our eyes shut).
Had that “all is quiet” ear ringing for as long as I can remember.
But noise doesn’t seem to be the only trigger for temporary tinitus:
- Drugs and alcohol. When I’m intoxicated on pretty much anything, ear ringing is rather noticeable.
- Anxiety. Hearing bad news will also make ear ringing noticeable (at least for me). It also seems to go along well with any ominous situation, more effectively (I think) than a soundtrack in a film.
- Injuries. When I get hurt bad enough, my ears start ringing. Especially if it’s bad enough to make me pass out (which has happened twice).
I have the long-term exposure to loud noise variety. My ears ring all the time, real loud. I can’t hear certain high-pitched sounds at all, especially in my right ear.
Most of the time it’s like a very loud flyback transformer. Sometimes it is modulated like a cricket chirping…in fact I have sworn it WAS crickets before, only to be told there were no crickets.
And sometimes it sounds like cicadas as well…same thing, swore there were cicadas, only there were no leaves on the trees.
I’ve grown accustomed to it, but I still find it extremely annoying.
And I STILL like loud music…:rolleyes:
I was told by a doctor that what I’m hearing is the sound of blood coursing through the veins. This seems to be different than if I’ve been exposed to loud or continuous noise for quite a while, which results in a dampening effect instead. However I too get the weird test tone thing too about once a month.
Has anyone here ever been in a sound-proof room (a real one, not just one designed for quietness)? Let me tell you, no matter how quiet you think the surroundings are, there is tons of background noise. A real sound-proof room feels a lot different.
I remember the first day I heard it.
I thought the computer moniter was on. I went to turn it off and turned it on instead. That is how it sounds to me, like a computer moniter turned on with the comuter off.
I hate it.
It’s not so bad. However, I dashed off to the doctor when I read about it. There was horror stories of people committing suicide because of it.
The doc looked at me and sent me off to do hearing tests. After I had a clean bill of health, he told me that they really have no clue what it is.
I pumped him for information…how common is it…does it get worse…etc.
He told me that he has had a gazillion patients with this and only 2 have ever had it get so bad it affects their lives significantly. He said that for many it doesn’t get worse with age.
If it stays like it is, I can live with it. I was/am mainly worried about it getting worse. For the past 7 years, it is about the same, I think. Sometimes, over months it gets worse, sometimes better. I hadn’t actually thought about it in months until your post.
I brought it up to my mom and she has/had it. She said she had it most of her life and it didn’t get worse. In fact, shortly after she turned 60 she said it went away
Honestly, floaters bug me more than Tinnitus right now…
Eighteen posts in this thread, and not one link to Uncle Cecil’s column, What causes ringing in your ears?, from page 94 of Triumph of the Straight Dope.
For shame. The re-education camp is going to be full tonight…