I think what they mean to say is that by wearing earplugs when around all sources of loud noise (machinery, music, etc.) that over time the level of tinnitus can sometimes subside. One thing for sure is that continuing to expose yourself to loud noise is not going make it get any better, and likely worse.
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Tinnitus is NOT incurable!
- Thread starter Joe Nerve
- Start date
- Oct 7, 2000
- 18,619
- 38,939
- Disclosures
- Endorsing artist: Musicman basses
It doesn't make it go away, it prevents it from getting worse when there loud stuff going on.
I have to LOL... right now I'm playing a private party at a firehouse. Anyone ever hear of a wet down? They're initiating a new truck about 50 yards from where we're playing. They have all their other trucks turn on their sirens and horns for about 5 minutes while hosing the new family member. And they're doing it like every half hour.
Let's just say my tinnitus isn't yet cured. But I know at least I can once again have days of complete silence. That's been impossible for at least a decade. And that's cured enough for me right now
.
If it only worked like that: The time you've been exposed to loud noises, and got tinnitus, should be sort of cancelled out if you spent equal amounts of time in total silence. Would work like a charm. Some kind of opposite phase going on, but drawn out in time.
But it still beats me, and no scientist, biological researcher, or doctor can ever tell us why humans have no possibility to grow back hair cells in the cochlea. All other hair grows back, even the cillium in the lungs. Now, how they could be broken, or damaged is another matter, another thread, and another forum. The main problem with our hearing is that you can't WINK with your ears. Shut ones ears! If some strong light is present that may damage eyes, you blink at a 20.000nds of a second and protects eyes from damage from too strong light. You don't need to put fingers before your eyes. The ears are not equipped with that "feature". You cannot retract muscles to close the earlobes, or close the hearing channel, you JUST have to use your fingers, and that's hard to do while playing.
But silence sure helps, not ever never cures, but mitigates it.
But it still beats me, and no scientist, biological researcher, or doctor can ever tell us why humans have no possibility to grow back hair cells in the cochlea. All other hair grows back, even the cillium in the lungs. Now, how they could be broken, or damaged is another matter, another thread, and another forum. The main problem with our hearing is that you can't WINK with your ears. Shut ones ears! If some strong light is present that may damage eyes, you blink at a 20.000nds of a second and protects eyes from damage from too strong light. You don't need to put fingers before your eyes. The ears are not equipped with that "feature". You cannot retract muscles to close the earlobes, or close the hearing channel, you JUST have to use your fingers, and that's hard to do while playing.
But silence sure helps, not ever never cures, but mitigates it.
I've had the high-pitched, white noise ringing for decades. I'm pretty sure it all started in my 80's rock concert / garage band days and never went away.
My pitch seems to be a constant high A to C - like the very top notes of the piano or maybe an octave higher.
I think that's the dreaded 4K range where the mic always feeds back during sound check!
My pitch seems to be a constant high A to C - like the very top notes of the piano or maybe an octave higher.
I think that's the dreaded 4K range where the mic always feeds back during sound check!
Not a cure for the ringing (THE BELLS! THE BELLS! 
) but we're ringing in a new age of possibilities - Australian researchers using silkworms to repair eardrums. Back the silken ear-worm, bab(elfish)y.
) but we're ringing in a new age of possibilities - Australian researchers using silkworms to repair eardrums. Back the silken ear-worm, bab(elfish)y.
Auditory aura actually. If not accompanied in a sudden "spike" in awareness (like you just got rebooted
) you're probably OK. I read about if few years back - most would choose a "don't ask - don't tell" policy as a doctor will tell you not to drive and such until extensive, expensive, time consuming testing.BTW I used to play with a pretty good drummer who can't drive because of epilepsy - he only has seizures in the morning and has his medical marijuana card which helps quite a lot. Unfortunately he can't host rehearsals at his place and transport became a problem
.
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I've had it in both ears for about 10 years (f'n drummers' cymbals!!) It sounds like locusts in the trees in late summer but constant. Presently I can tune it out but I have definitely noticed that I have some hearing loss as my wife constantly reminds me. If I get into another loud band I will have to wear ear plugs for sure.
I agree there is no cure YET. Someday medical science might get us one. Until then our ears will keep ringing. Sometimes more or less than others. There are psychoacoustic tricks you can play on yourself to temporarily lessen or eliminate the effects. But as of right now, sadly tinnitus is incurable. My advice, other than wearing plugs around any and all loud noise, is to get used to it and learn to ignore it.
Never really had an issue with it - just the morning after loud shows (mine or others'). But for the last year I've been playing with a loud rock band and we recently started gigging a bunch. The acute tinnitus has started stretching for 2-3 days, so I finally threw in the towel and started wearing Westone plugs. On the down side, it's just not the same, on the plus side, I can actually hear the bass better bc those abundant guitar highs are cut. And I would like to be able to hear a little when I get old.
had a jam Saturday nite. our guitarist played drums for grins. I thought he was pretty mellow on them. my ears say differently. I CHOSE to not wear earplugs and now I am on day 3 of high-pitched ringing......let's see how long it lasts.....from now on, if loud lead guitars and/or drum cymbals are involved, plugs go in.
I have been wearing earplugs since I started playing bass around 2001. Unfortunately I never wore them before that, and attended many loud shows over the years that did some damage (Van Halen and Living Colour are at least partially responsible). I have tinnitus in my right ear and midrange hearing loss in both. It's always there when I think about it, though I can often tune it out for a while. Just learned to live with it.
It hasn't gotten worse with the earplugs, but it's never really improved either. I am at the point where I won't attend a show or play live without earplugs, it's just too freaking loud.
It hasn't gotten worse with the earplugs, but it's never really improved either. I am at the point where I won't attend a show or play live without earplugs, it's just too freaking loud.
This music was designed to cancel tinnitus frequencies. It really works while listening and it can train your brain to cancel out the frequencies afterwards:
Yes, tinnitus IS incurable. Currently.
The causes of tinnitus are not yet understood so any attempts to "cure" it are not going to work. There are, however, options for management of it.
Some tinnitus is associated with medical conditions and treating those conditions could help the ringing. Some people can develop serious depression from the condition and it is important to address that if that is you. It is so much more complicated than "my ears are ringing because the guitar player won't turn down". Do your homework from reputable sources. A lot of audiologists may offer "tinnitus management", but they may just have hearing aids that have the programs on it. If it is bad enough to be seeking treatment, it is worth it to try to find somebody that is a bit more invested in the condition, but that is just my editorial thought.
I am an audiology student that is interested in focusing on tinnitus and noise induced hearing loss. "Tinnitus" comes in several forms which can make zeroing in on the cause even more challenging. We all get that brief, 20 or 30 second ringing in one ear that seems to come out of nowhere, but that goes away. If your ears are ringing after a concert, you've done damage to the mechanism even if it goes away the next day. That is "temporary threshold shift" and if you keep at it enough, one day it isn't going to go away. That's a post for another day.
The big points for now:
1. Tinnitus occurs in the brain. There is no external sound source and hearing loss is usually associated with it.
2. Supplements aren't going to fix it. Please save your money on bottled placebos and go see an actual doctor. Ear, Nose and Throat docs are a good starting point. They may send you to an audiologist for evaluation and then management, but you need medical clearance to be sure that it isn't something serious.
3. Sound is your best friend. White noise machines, radios, fans...whatever you need to distract you from that ringing. Since you can't make it go away, management involves masking the sound, distracting your brain from focusing on it and counseling to work on coping with the sound.
4. Hearing aids often have tinnitus management programs. Substantial progress can be made with hearing aids, but they are expensive. Sometimes, if you have a hearing loss and could benefit from hearing aids, just getting them can be sufficient to mask the ringing. Otherwise, some people get them more for the management program which is a type of noise generator that is customized to the pitch of your tinnitus. Hearing aids are more successful if the tinnitus is mild or moderate.
5. Some tinnitus is the brain's way of saying "wait a sec...why aren't I getting 3800 Hertz (or whatever the frequency/frequencies in question)?" It is thought that the brain is compensating for not getting signals at certain frequencies by generating them. Tinnitus therapy involves giving the missing sounds back to the brain to see if it can be appeased, or at least fooled.
Something to remember is that tinnitus that is ONLY in one ear needs to be assessed by a medical doctor. The auditory system loves symmetry and if something is only happening on one side, it may not be a problem but it is best to get that cleared by a doctor "just in case". A possible exception is if the ringing sounds like your pulse. In that case, it is more concerning if that is in both ears and needs to be cleared by a doctor.
There's some good general musician's hearing info here: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
It is thought that about 50 million people in the USA have tinnitus. It is no wonder so many hucksters have jumped on the herbal supplement or natural oils bandwagon. If you put drops/oils in your ear, you'll have a shiny eardrum and a greasy pillow but that's about it. If it did find a way to your auditory cortex where the ringing is though to originate, then you have a lot more to worry about than the ringing.
The causes of tinnitus are not yet understood so any attempts to "cure" it are not going to work. There are, however, options for management of it.
Some tinnitus is associated with medical conditions and treating those conditions could help the ringing. Some people can develop serious depression from the condition and it is important to address that if that is you. It is so much more complicated than "my ears are ringing because the guitar player won't turn down". Do your homework from reputable sources. A lot of audiologists may offer "tinnitus management", but they may just have hearing aids that have the programs on it. If it is bad enough to be seeking treatment, it is worth it to try to find somebody that is a bit more invested in the condition, but that is just my editorial thought.
I am an audiology student that is interested in focusing on tinnitus and noise induced hearing loss. "Tinnitus" comes in several forms which can make zeroing in on the cause even more challenging. We all get that brief, 20 or 30 second ringing in one ear that seems to come out of nowhere, but that goes away. If your ears are ringing after a concert, you've done damage to the mechanism even if it goes away the next day. That is "temporary threshold shift" and if you keep at it enough, one day it isn't going to go away. That's a post for another day.
The big points for now:
1. Tinnitus occurs in the brain. There is no external sound source and hearing loss is usually associated with it.
2. Supplements aren't going to fix it. Please save your money on bottled placebos and go see an actual doctor. Ear, Nose and Throat docs are a good starting point. They may send you to an audiologist for evaluation and then management, but you need medical clearance to be sure that it isn't something serious.
3. Sound is your best friend. White noise machines, radios, fans...whatever you need to distract you from that ringing. Since you can't make it go away, management involves masking the sound, distracting your brain from focusing on it and counseling to work on coping with the sound.
4. Hearing aids often have tinnitus management programs. Substantial progress can be made with hearing aids, but they are expensive. Sometimes, if you have a hearing loss and could benefit from hearing aids, just getting them can be sufficient to mask the ringing. Otherwise, some people get them more for the management program which is a type of noise generator that is customized to the pitch of your tinnitus. Hearing aids are more successful if the tinnitus is mild or moderate.
5. Some tinnitus is the brain's way of saying "wait a sec...why aren't I getting 3800 Hertz (or whatever the frequency/frequencies in question)?" It is thought that the brain is compensating for not getting signals at certain frequencies by generating them. Tinnitus therapy involves giving the missing sounds back to the brain to see if it can be appeased, or at least fooled.
Something to remember is that tinnitus that is ONLY in one ear needs to be assessed by a medical doctor. The auditory system loves symmetry and if something is only happening on one side, it may not be a problem but it is best to get that cleared by a doctor "just in case". A possible exception is if the ringing sounds like your pulse. In that case, it is more concerning if that is in both ears and needs to be cleared by a doctor.
There's some good general musician's hearing info here: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
It is thought that about 50 million people in the USA have tinnitus. It is no wonder so many hucksters have jumped on the herbal supplement or natural oils bandwagon. If you put drops/oils in your ear, you'll have a shiny eardrum and a greasy pillow but that's about it. If it did find a way to your auditory cortex where the ringing is though to originate, then you have a lot more to worry about than the ringing.
Bad news fellas. I done gone right past tinnitus to bout lebmitus or dozenitus. And it ain't looking good. I get to thirteenitus and all I'll hear is @Joe Nerve squealing like a little girl.
- Oct 7, 2000
- 18,619
- 38,939
- Disclosures
- Endorsing artist: Musicman basses
I get to thirteenitus and all I'll hear is @Joe Nerve squealing like a little girl.
I quit doing that two weeks ago, thank you.
buldog5151bass
Kibble, milkbones, and P Basses. And redheads.
Nothing I can say but a big congrats. I've always guarded my hearing zealously. My new band, I explained coming in that excessive volume was the thing I could not tolerate. I hope it continues.
You play in a rock band, or even orchestra, you're at risk. Luckily mine is constant but at a level that doesn't depress me, yet! I've had it for years (20-25 so I just got used to it) Since I started back into playing the bass and I got this Rumble 500 rig it has been bumped up a notch by the ear fairies. The weird thing is I can still hear stuff, even quiet stuff though the ringing is constant. If you drive on a freeway with your windows open you are hitting dangerous sound levels, it's not just music. I agree with the OP that it doesn't seem to be a physical thing, I never bought that 'little tiny hairs in your ears' thing. I have done some reading on it and it does seem to be a 'brain' thing. Maybe your brain likes loud rock and roll and finds it so satisfying that it is trying to demand you play it 24/7. Just a theory, OP, check it out. In the meantime, not making light of anyone who suffers from it, I DO know what it's like. It's no fun and many of us suffer from it.
In the meantime, not making light of anyone who suffers from it, I DO know what it's like. It's no fun and many of us suffer from it.
