I’ve had a constant ringing in my ears for the past couple weeks. From what I’ve gathered from net searches I have a feeling that it may be tinnitus. Have any of the posters here had or have this condition and what treatment and results have you had? I should state that I live approx. 200 miles from competent medical services and it isn’t convenient for me to make the trip at this time. Am I being foolish or can it wait for a couple weeks when I’ll be going that way on other business?
Sorry moderator, I posted in the wrong thread obviously. Maybe this is starting to get to me!
Just to provide an answer, I have had a constant ringing in my left ear for the past 20+ years. When I say constant, I mean that it never stops and (probably) never will. My condition is due, I am told, to a degeneration of the bones of the inner ear–I have a 60% loss of hearing in the left ear, to go along with the ringing.
I implore you to seek expert medical advice as soon as possible. If there is a treatment for your condition, get it now.
i’ve had tinnitus since i was 11. i’m 20 now. both ears ring constantly and i can always hear it. it bugged me for a bit, but now i’m used to it, so i learn to “filter” it out in a way, pushing it into the background.
i was always told “it’s because of that loud music!” the funny thing is that i never listened to music loud at all when the ear ringing started. in fact, i didn’t listen to music loud at all until junior year of high school (where i said to myself, “fuck it! if you already have ear ringing, might as well enjoy your music loud!”).
the volume ranges. sometimes it’s rather quiet, and sometimes it’s very loud. i have a constant “eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee” along with everything i hear. it really sucks when i get sick and my ears get blocked, because then the ringing reverberates and is at least twice as loud.
my mom took me to an ear/nose/throad doctor to have my hearing checked. ironically, although i have tennitus, he said my hearing was better than most people’s! apparently the frequency (range? i forget which) that i can hear is much broader. i believe he said, “her hearing abilities are closer to a dog’s than a person’s”. man, was my mom pissed; here she takes me to get my hearing checked because i’m always saying “what?” to her (she talks so quiet! it’s not my fault!), and she hears, “man, what great hearing she has!” 
I’ve had tinnitus all my life. The only thing I’ve found that lessens the volume is valium, but that’s not a reasonable alternative seeing as daily valium would create more problems that it would alleviate.
I would see a doctor at your first opportunity, though. There may be something else that’s causing the noice you hear.
Feel free to substitute an “s” for a “c” in my previous post anywhere you feel is appropriate.
I’ve had to deal with it since I suffered a rather severe ear infection as a little kid. It’s constant but most of the time it’s part of the background noise that I’m able to tune out. Sometimes, however, it’s enough to drive me crazy. The worst times have been when I’m just waking up after a night’s sleep. I’ve no idea why this is.
I’ve spoken to a doctor who suggested taking niacin and it does seem to alleviate it somewhat. Eventually I’m going to check out the Canadian Tinnitus & Hyperacusis Centre in Whitby, just outside of Toronto. They apparently specialize in Tinnitus Retraining Therapy. I know little about it but I’m planning on doing further research.
I should probably add that it’s not a good idea to dose yourself with Niacin without talking to a doctor as taking too much can cause serious side-effects.
Yep, it’s me again. I thought I’d toss out a link to the Tinnitus FAQ so you can do further reading.
I have had persistent tinnitus in my left ear for about two years now. I did some research and found among other things the faq in the link provided by hodge. I was particularly fascinated by feedback therapy, listed in the faq under treatment possibilities. It sounds like something I could concievably set up myself with the computer and the right software. One of these days I’ll get around to trying it…
Thanks for all the responses, I’ll go in for a check in 2 weeks. In the meantime I’ve started taking ginko biloba which is available here and I’m trying to ignore ithe ringing the best I can.
At age 55, I had something that seemed like a cold that hung on for several months. During that period I had tinnitus. Afer the cold cleared up, the tinnitus remaines. I went to an ear specialist. He said the tinnitus was permanent and that I should have come to him right away. That was 4 years ago; I’ve learned to live with it.
So, I recommend you go to a specialist immediately.
I’ve had it pretty bad for about 4 years now. It’s like your power supply is always being interrupted or your building is always on fire. Damn ringing just won’t stop. Eventually you get used to it and while it’s constantly there if you think about it, many noises can help “drown” the ringing out. I sweep with a fan on and that seems to help.
I went through the full testing awhile back. MRI, water in the ears, rocking in that port-a-potty audiology lab, pointing at dots, etc. Doc said too much loud noise in the past but no brain abnormalities. Uhhh, right.
I’d always listened to Zepplin on 9, hunted w/o hearing protection, etc. It finally caught up. Plus, I get really dizzy spells and bouts of minor nausea sometimes. His final conclusion? Menear’s Disease.
The Ménière’s Pageseems to have lots of useful information.
I’ve had it pretty bad for about 4 years now. It’s like your power supply is always being interrupted or your building is always on fire. Damn ringing just won’t stop. Eventually you get used to it and while it’s constantly there if you think about it, many noises can help “drown” the ringing out. I sweep with a fan on and that seems to help.
I went through the full testing awhile back. MRI, water in the ears, rocking in that port-a-potty audiology lab, pointing at dots, etc. Doc said too much loud noise in the past but no brain abnormalities. Uhhh, that’s a pleasant surprise.
I’d always listened to Zepplin on 9, hunted w/o hearing protection, etc. It finally caught up. Plus, I get really dizzy spells and bouts of minor nausea sometimes. His final conclusion?
Menear’s Disease.
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I expect you didn’t want this down here in the Pit. I’ll throw it on up to General Questions for you.
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