by Neil Bauman, Ph.D.
An audiologist wrote,
I am a newly qualified Audiologist who frequently sees patients that suffer from tinnitus. Most of the patients I see have had tinnitus for quite some time (more than 6 months). We have a very long waiting list at the hospital at which I work, and sadly patients suffering from tinnitus, as I’m sure you know, are missed, referred inappropriately or put off seeking treatment all together.
Many of my patients report that their tinnitus started after their ears were syringed, or after a middle ear infection. I am aware that the two are commonly linked, but I am not sure how to answer the patients’ questions about how and if there is some explainable physiological reason for the tinnitus beginning at this time. I have not been able to get any satisfactory information from the net, and my colleagues are also interested in finding out about this. I would appreciate it if you could enlighten me on this subject.
These are two good questions and I’ll certainly try to help you understand why tinnitus is associated with these two events. Let’s look at them separately.
First, why is tinnitus sometimes associated with syringing out a person’s ears?
Many people may be surprised to learn that having their ears syringed to remove wax can CAUSE tinnitus. The same is true if you shower and aim the shower-head directly into your ear canals.
John Currie at T-Gone mentions that syringing out ears with too strong a stream of water can indeed cause tinnitus (and hyperacusis too).
I have not experienced any long-term tinnitus from doctors syringing my ears, although I’ve had doctors use so much force that the water hitting my eardrum temporarily wrecked my balance.
Since then, and for a couple of decades now, I let the water from a reduced-flow shower head spray into my ear canals each time I shower. This has not caused me any tinnitus or balance problems. My existing tinnitus never changes.
The trick in avoiding tinnitus is to use a gentle spray, not a high pressure jet of water, whether syringing or showering.
She then asked,
What I’m still not entirely clear on is what is happening in the ear as a result of this syringing which would result in tinnitus. Does it have something to do with the tensor tympani going into spasm?
I doubt it is any of the tiny ear muscles going into spasm as the tinnitus lasts for weeks or months and I’d think a spasm would be of short duration. Rather, what I think happens is that the sudden “wham” of the water hitting the eardrum gives a similar reaction as a loud noise like a gunshot would—and that often results in tinnitus.
Actually, anything that violently moves the eardrum whether water pressure or air pressure (from a loud noise) can result in tinnitus, hearing loss, hyperacusis and temporary balance problems.
That is why, for some people, syringing or showering is the root of their tinnitus. John Currie recommends taking out wax using other means—not water and not suction—so you don’t push (or pull) the eardrum too much, and thus cause tinnitus.
Now to answer the second part of your question, “Why do middle ear infections often leave people with tinnitus, even after the infection clears up?”
You further explained, “What I found interesting is that even once the ear infection had cleared up and PTA [pure tone averages] revealed hearing within normal limits they were left with tinnitus. Could it be that the temporary threshold shift had made them aware of the tinnitus and even once their hearing returned they had formed a negative association with the sound and became fixated on it, or could there actually be some physiological damage to the middle ear during the infection which would cause this.”
I think there are two different factors. First, since ear infections cause some hearing loss, and since tinnitus often accompanies hearing loss (about 70% of the time), it should be no surprise that tinnitus can be associated with ear infections as a secondary cause.
Although your conventional testing revealed that hearing had returned to normal, this may not be entirely true because you typically only test hearing to 8,000 Hz., and not up to the upper limit of hearing around 20,000 Hz. Thus you don’t know how much hearing was lost and not recovered in the very high frequencies. Hearing loss in those high frequencies can also cause tinnitus.
Since tinnitus supposedly is often at the same pitch as the person’s greatest hearing loss, if a person has high-pitched tinnitus, I’d check their very high-frequency hearing to see if that might be the cause. (When you only test to 8 K, you could give a person a clean bill of health hearing-wise—and yet they could have severe hearing loss above 8,000 Hz—resulting in tinnitus.)
Second, and I think you hit the nail on the head when you mentioned a person fixating on their tinnitus, is that when a person fixates on their tinnitus, their limbic (emotional) system flags the sound. As a result, the tinnitus sound seems to become louder and even more intrusive, and consequently harder to ignore. At the same time, as I understand it, the brain grows “connections” that “lock in” the tinnitus.
Thus, whatever caused tinnitus in the first place starts the ball rolling—but the ball continues to roll on, even if the original cause is taken away. That is why it is so important for people that get tinnitus not to form any negative emotional attachments to their tinnitus. This only makes the “connections” stronger and much harder to break. It is ever so much better to nip this in the bud before these connections form.
Please see the product “Acu-Life Earwax Removal Syringe”. The water stream comes out sideways toward the ear canal walls, not directly at the eardrum. I wish the nurse had used this product instead of a conventional syringe to remove my earwax. http://healthenterprises.com/contentmgr/showdetails.php/id/631
I got an ear infection after swimming an a pool that hadn’t been treated. It was about a couple of weeks later that my ear wax was liquid and dried crusty inside my ear. This went on for months. I went to the ear doctor and he said it wasn’t red and didn’t do anything. Then I started getting the ringing in my ears and have had it ever since.
Hi Sandy:
You don’t say, but did you syringe the wax out of your ears or not?
Why do you think your tinnitus is associated with the ear wax since it began months later?
Cordially,
Neil
I cleaned my ears with a syringe I bought on amazon and five days after wards I got tinnitus, badly. Do you think the syringing caused the tinnitus? I felt no pain nor was my balance affected, I did feel mildly queezy at one point and my legs felt a little weak but I didn’t lose my balance or feel disoriented at all. I am suffering chronic anguish over this. I felt no pain at all and didn’t feel any great pressure on my ear or anything like that. Did I cause this?
Yes the Acu-Life Earwax Removal Syringe was the product I used and five days after my head exploded.
Hi Simon:
I’m curious why you suspect the ear syringe as causing your tinnitus when the tinnitus didn’t start until 5 days later.
I’m sure it is POSSIBLE that the syringing resulted in your tinnitus, but I don’t think it is LIKELY. I’d try to rule out any other possibilities first. Did anything happen 4 or 5 days later that might have resulted in tinnitus? loud noise? ototoxic drugs? stress? etc.
Regards
Neil
After having my ear irrigated at ENT Carolina I have had ‘crickets’ in my head since 08 June 2012. When I explained to the doctor I did not have this prior, she told me I might or might not get rid of it. Then, proceeded to print out information regarding tinnitus. I wish I never had it done because I am afraid I will live with this the rest of my life. I have one day in a week, if I am lucky that it subsides. Mostly, it consumes my life.
Had my ears syringed by a gp 30 years ago which was the beginning of my tinnitus. Would give anything to experience some silence in myhead – it is relentless.
I’m the same! 🙁 doctors should not be allowed to do this
I had my ears irrigated two days before Thanksgiving at CVS. The next day I woke up with pain. I went back to CVS and was put on a 3 day Z pack and ear drops. four days later I was in so much pain I went back. She said that %50 of the time that this occurs with that procedure. She said her hands were tied and referred me to an Acute Care Center. Make a long story short, 2 Cat scans, 1 MRI, two soft tissue scans, 4 ENT visits, 1 Neurologist visit and no result. I was told that it was unlikely that this constant pain I have in my ear came from that machine vibrating and spewing water in my ear. I am at my wits end. Have had major loss of sleep. I work at a Doctors office. Have fallen over and hit my head. Almost fell turning a corner caught myself against the door jam and hit the back of my head. Reading this article makes me feel like I have not lost my marbles. They tell me now that my L3-L5 show a sign of arthritis and think that this is the cause. I have been seeing highly recommended Doctors. having major doubts. Any suggestions? Still in pain. Just want it to stop.
Hi Silvia:
Are you saying you have balance problems now in addition to the ear pain? I wouldn’t be surprised if the irrigation resulted in what you are now experiencing. Maybe not a direct result, but indirectly. For example, perhaps they put your neck at a certain angle to do the irrigation and now it is “out”.
Does this make sense to you?
If so, I would more suspect CI and C2 as being “out” given your symptoms rather than C3 – C5. You could see a chiropractor. My choice would be to see an upper cervical spine chiropractor. These guys specialize on C1 and C2 which are related to ear problems.
Since nothing else is working, you might want to try is go to an upper cervical spine chiropractor (a special kind of chiropractor) and make sure that everything is in proper alignment. You can find one near you by going to http://www.upcspine.com/prac2.asp?rid=4 and clicking on your state.
Cordially,
Neil
Hi there, my name is Freya and I have had tinnitus and hearing loss since an infection where the ear drops prescribed got stuck in my ear for three days and the doctor decided to syringe them out. The moment she syringed my ear I had tinnitus but assumed it would go away. This was 8 years ago now. I am not sure what caused it but he tinnitus was immediate from the syringing. I saw many ENT’s but the first one (who spent only 1 minute with me) said I had otosclerosis and it was just a coincidence that it happened at the same time as syringe. The next one spent more time and said he doubts it’s otosclerosis but he couldn’t tell me anything more. Just that these things happen. I was so scarred by these appointments that I haven’t seen anyone since. And that was 7 years ago. It effects my daily life and gets worse when I’m stressed, sick and now pregnant. I’m also very sensitive to noise. I am finding it increasingly hard to even go to cafes.
Hi Freya:
How do ear drops “get stuck” in your ears for three days? If you could let the ear drops flow into your ear canals, just turning that ear down would let them flow out again.
What were these ear drops? Do you know what drug was in them? It could have been that the drug in them caused your tinnitus. Some ear drops are quite ototoxic.
That would be my guess, rather than the syringing itself–but if your doctor put too much pressure into syringing out your ears, that could have also caused or made the resulting tinnitus worse. It could have also caused the sound sensitivity.
If I were you, I’d go to an audiologist, not a medical doctor, and get a complete audiological evaluation to see that your ears are ok, whether you have a hearing loss, whether your ear canals are clear, and they can test you for noise sensitivity. Once you know the state of your ears, then you’ll be in a position to do something about your tinnitus and hyperacusis (sound sensitivity). I can give you some guidance on that once I know what the problems are.
Cordially,
Neil
My tinnitus started after ear syringing. It has been 3 months now and truly affects my living, especially at night. I cannot believe they still take ear wax out this way nowadays. My audio tests were perfect and my MRI did not show anything negative. Unbelievable!
It is a high pitch sound, in both ears, which increases with tiredness, exercise, and alcohol.
My tinnitus started after ear flushing at my GP’s office. The nurse had the water pressure so high that the pain made me throw up. I also got dizzy for several seconds and could not bear the pain of her going in to remove the wax with an instrument. My whole head and all down my neck hurt for about 1 and 1/2 days. Not sure if the tinnitus started right away or the next day, but it hasn’t gone away. The audiologist said I have severe hearing loss in that ear. The ENT said I have permanent nerve damage. Since the ENT is in the same group as my GP, he would not admit the flushing caused the damage. I am not a litigious person, but I wish my GP’s office would at least pay for a hearing aid. I love my doctor. I have been with her for many years and she has always gone the extra mile for me and my husband. I have no plans to take legal action, but still the ENT insisted I must have had a virus or something. Insult to my intelligence. Is there any treatment for tinnitus caused by nerve damage?
Hi Franny:
That nurse needs to be cautioned to NEVER use high pressure again. She needs proper training in proper wax removal techniques.
The high pressure acted on your eardrum just like a very loud sound would and deflected your ear drum in suddenly causing the bones in the middle ear to move just like they would for a very loud sound. The result can be hearing loss and almost certainly tinnitus.
Did you have any hearing loss before the wax removal? What I want to know is whether all the hearing loss is the result of this one ear flushing, or was there some preexisting hearing loss?
Probably the dizziness and resulting nausea was the result of the wrong temperature of the water. They actually do this when testing for balance problems–use hot and cold water bursts in your ears. But for wax flushing, the water temperature should be close to body temperature to avoid such reactions.
That nurse was clearly untrained or incompetent in wax removal.
Since tinnitus very often (90+ percent of the time) accompanies hearing loss, as long as you have the hearing loss, you may have the tinnitus. There are a good number of treatment possibilities, but none is proven to get rid of tinnitus totally. What you can expect from them is that your perception of your tinnitus will reduce so it will not bother you anymore.
You need to learn to treat your tinnitus as a common background sound that you generally totally ignore. If you focus on your tinnitus and treat it as though it is a threat in some way to your well-being, then it will not go away, and can even get worse. Therefore, focus on the loves of your life and by doing that, ignore your tinnitus and in time it will fade into the background and not bother you much if at all. In fact, hours can go by without your being even aware that you have tinnitus. This is your goal. It’s called becoming habituated to your tinnitus.
For example, I wasn’t aware of my tinnitus this morning until just now when I answered your post. Because I was talking about tinnitus (and thus focusing on it) my tinnitus quickly sprang into action and now I have loud tinnitus.
The good news is that because I am habituated to my tinnitus, in a few minutes when I think about something else, my tinnitus will quickly fade into the background again, and I may not be aware of it for a few more hours–unless someone else asks me a question about tinnitus.
Cordially,
Neil
My tinnitus started after I had my ear syringed. I thought I still had wax in my ear as my hearing was slightly less in my right ear, then I noticed the high pitched buzz before as I went to sleep. For the next few days I heard no buzzing at all but it still did feel like I had 100% of my hearing (unless, weirdly I pulled down on my earlobe, then my hearing would be perfect). After 5 days I listened to some music on my headphones, maybe a bit too loud and now I the buzzing is back and seems louder. I’m worried looking at these posts about people’s tinnitus never going away.
Hi Jason:
You probably did have some hearing loss as a result of the syringing, but fortunately your hearing returned then your tinnitus went away.
I suspect that you’ve been listening to music with your headphones set too loud quite a bit in the past, not just this one time. Your ears can only stand so much abuse before you start losing hearing and getting tinnitus.
In the future, you need to keep the volume down on your headphones– listen to music about the same level that you would listen to a person talking. That way you probably won’t damage your hearing any further. Nor will you cause tinnitus.
Cordially,
Neil
I’m not sure is if I have tinnitus or I’m completely losing my hearing. It all started when I went to the Hospital for extreme pain in my ear. The doctors argued about a bug in my ear. Two doctors said they didn’t see one. The main doctor said he did. So the doctor flushed my ear with a syringe for at least an hour and half. It all came down to me having a really bad ear infection. Now My ear feels clogged. I hear a buzzing noise. And my hearing is dropping each day. I’m not sure what is going on. But I need answers.
Hi Samantha:
from what you say it sounds like you have both a hearing loss and tinnitus. Syringe in your ear out for an hour and 1/2 seems excessive to me, and may have resulted in tinnitus if too much water pressure was used.
What kind of an ear infection did you have–an infection in your ear canal? Or an infection in your middle ear?
If I were you, I’d go to an audiologist and ask for a complete audiological evaluation including a tympanogram. from the results of the these tests, your audiologist can tell you whether you have a conductive loss (probably due to a middle ear infection) or whether you have a sensorineural hearing loss (an inner ear hearing loss).
Cordially,
Neil
Hey Dr. Bauman,
I had my ears syringed about a week ago and immediately experienced a hyper sensitivity to sound with also a bit of a white noise/ringing (like hearing to static or a stream) when in quieter spots. Things seen to be slowly improving — so I’m not in panic mode — but I am afraid that if the syringing caused a perforated ear drum I might be at risk of an inner ear infection which could lead to more permanent hearing issue. What precautions should I be taking to make sure I stay on the path to recovery (ear drops? avoid pools? can I shower normally? etc). And is that enough, or should I be in panic mode and have a specialist look inside right away? Thanks!
Hi Dave:
I sincerely doubt that the syringing caused a ruptured eardrum. What makes you think this might have happened?
Hypersensitivity and tinnitus are likely because of using too much pressure and “hitting” the eardrum just like a loud sound would. In other words your symptoms are the symptoms of noise trauma so the “cure” is also similar.
In your case, you don’t want to have your ears so roughly syringed. Gentle pressure is ok, but it’s so easy to “hit it too hard”. Even doctors can be much too rough. I’ve experienced it myself at a doctor’s hands.
Apart from that, protect your ears from louder sounds until the hyperacusis goes away. This could take a week or two or a number of months. This means wear earplugs whenever you are around louder sounds. However, be careful not to overprotect your ears (wearing earplugs when you don’t really need to) or you’ll make your hyperacusis worse.
If you really do have a ruptured eardrum, you’d be wise to see and ear specialist and avoid getting any water in your ear canals. But as I said at the beginning, I really doubt that is what happened.
Cordially,
Neil
I noticed mild tinnitus and assumed it was wax buildup. I ordered the elephant ear washer kit from amazon and attempted to flush my ears a few times. My left ear lost a good chunk of wax. After that I am now more sensitive to higher pitched sounds. Turns out I had a slight ear infection in my right ear when I went to the doctor. He prescribed me anti inflammatories for the ear infection. But the left ear that was flushed out is still sensitive to sound . Not to the point where it hurts thankfully. Just a little annoying and causes a bit more tinnitus. Will the sensitivity go away with time? 2 doctors said my left ear looks fine
Hi Branden:
I assume that you used a bit too much force in syringing out your ear canal and that caused the sound sensitivity. You should hear higher-frequency sounds better once the wax flushed out so that is good.
But if you are more sensitive to higher frequency sounds than you should be, I expect that given some time, your hearing will return to normal. This may takes several months. You should be careful to protect your ears from louder sounds during this time to give it time to “heal”.
Cordially,
Neil
Hey Dr. Bauman,
i was having too much ear wax on my left ear so i went to the doctor so he said there is too much ear wax and we have to remove the wax so he gave me some ear too soften the wax and after two days we will remove it so after 2 days i went to remove the wax he use some syringing type instrument and he pump two times in the left ear and too much wax came out from ear after that i hear some like stream buzzing sound .. and went i went to sleep i hear buzzing sound too much .. so i went to him again he told that you much be having this for beginning i have not doing anything wrong with and there nothing we can do about it much ….. there is no treatment for it .. My audio tests were perfect and my MRI did not show anything negative. Unbelievable! so what to do now ? i cant sleep too much at night and panic please reply
Hi Kamlesh:
First off, don’t panic. What you are hearing is a bit of tinnitus, probably from your doctor using too much pressure when syringing out your ears.
Hopefully it will fade away in a few days. However, in order to do that you must not worry that this is a threat to your well-being. If you think that, it can take on a life of its own. Therefore, ignore it as much as possible and ignore it as you do any other “useless” environmental sound such as the sounds your fridge makes.
Cordially,
Neil
thank you for your quick reply
but its been one month now still sound same but sometimes it seems it gone but when i think where the sounds gone then it come back with more louder then i have to mask it with some music or white noise … i been reading all over the net people been having over decade and still going on with there life . its my tinnitus is permanent? ….. please reply ..
Hi Kamlesh:
Whenever you think about tinnitus it comes back. That’s why I told you to totally ignore it and focus on other things. When I think/talk/write about tinnitus my tinnitus comes back too and that is often because I help so many people with tinnitus. But even so, I don’t let my tinnitus bother me, even if it is always there when I stop to listen for it.
Your tinnitus may be permanent–but so what–if you don’t hear it at times and you don’t let it bother you when you do hear it. That is called becoming habituated to your tinnitus. That’s all you really need. I’ve had tinnitus for more than 60 years so I know what I’m talking about.
Cordially,
Neil
from couples of days i am hear tinnitus in my right ear also ? but in silence i notice more in left ear .. but why do i hear from right also as its was problem in my left due to wax removal ? and also i went to another doctor here in india he said your ear are fine .. so what to do now ? any suggestion will be very much helpful!
Hi Kamlesh:
I thought they syringed both ears out, even though your left ear was worse.
I’ve already given you the advice you need to follow in order to best deal with your tinnitus.
Cordially,
Neil
Hi I have pulsating tinnitus a d a high frequency pitch sound together with crickets chirping for the last 2.5 yrs. Worsened after using waxol drops. Ust been told I have Menieres disease but I have no vertigo. Is this possible? I was prescribed Serc which is a beta histamine. Could that help my tinnitus. Heard that some heavy antibiotics stopped tinnitus.Thank you for your responses.
Hi Radhi:
Apparently Waxol drops can worsen tinnitus in a few people.
Vertigo is one of the main symptoms of Meniere’s disease. If you don’t have vertigo, you don’t have full-blown Meniere’s disease. You could have vestibular hydrops though–but then you’d also need vertigo.
Serc is basically a waste of time for tinnitus. Studies have shown it to be no better than a placebo. It is not even approved for use in Meniere’s in the USA because of lack of efficacy in Meniere’s, although it is used in the UK and Europe.
I’ve not hear of antibiotics stopping tinnitus. But almost all the antibiotics can cause tinnitus. I hear from people all the time that get severe tinnitus from taking antibiotics.
What makes your doctor think you have Meniere’s disease since you don’t have vertigo? And if you do have Meniere’s, you would do well to read my article on how to cure Meniere’s disease. Doctors don’t know this, but you can read it at http://hearinglosshelp.com/blog/atlas-adjustments-alleviate-menieres-disease/ .
Cordially,
Neil
i having tinnitus for past three months now but from few days i am hearing too much zzzzz noise too much where i dont even notice first three months and its getting louder then before i think .. and i am too afraid what will happen next and having suicidal thoughts too. its my life over i am 30 year old male unmarried i cant take this anymore cant sleep the sound is always there and there is little pain also in my ear nearby area dont know where. please tell me what to do …
Hi Kunal:
What happened a few days ago to make your tinnitus so much worse? Did you take a new drug or increase the dose on an existing drug? Did you expose your ears to loud sounds? Did you have a cold or virus active in your body?
If a drug is the culprit, then you need to stop taking that drug as it is just making your tinnitus so much worse. (See your doctor about this.) That’s your first step.
Then contact me again.
Cordially,
Neil
i went to a bike ride with my friend . yes i was having this body pain so was having paracetamol tablets for few weeks . no i never listen to loud music or sound . yes i am having little cold in my nose when ever i swallow in i heard some sound in my both ears . i went to the doctor he said your ears are normal and nothing can do about your tinnitus .
Hi Kunal:
Do you think it was the Paracetamol you were taking that caused your tinnitus? Paracetamol is known to do this.
And a cold virus can also mess up your ears and cause tinnitus.
Cordially,
Neil
Good afternoon,
I had my ears lavaged due to impacted ear wax. Specifically my left ear. The next day I heard this faint noise like a cricket. However, it’s been two weeks now, and throughout those two weeks, I hear nothing but a faint cricket noise, but other days, like today, the sound is so loud that I cannot sleep or focus. It sounds like a million cicadas in my ear. Not sure what to do?
Hi Jason:
Well, you know one thing NOT to do–never go back to the person who lavaged your ears. They obviously used too much force and now you have to pay for it.
Why is your tinnitus so loud on some days? What was different to make it louder? Did you not sleep as well? Was your neck tight those days? Did you eat something different than usual?
The best thing to do in any case, is learn to ignore your tinnitus by focusing on the loves of your life. The more you think/worry about your tinnitus, the louder it gets. So you need to stay emotionally free from your tinnitus–neither like it (as if you would), or hate it (which is easy to do). When you treat it as a totally useless, meaningless sound, you give your brain permission to ignore it and it will fade into the background. This takes time so don’t be impatient.
You might also want to try certain supplements such as you would use for noise-induced tinnitus. You can read about this in two of my articles at http://hearinglosshelp.com/blog/vitamins-a-c-e-combined-with-magnesium-help-prevent-noise-induced-hearing-loss/ and at the bottom of this article http://hearinglosshelp.com/blog/loud-music-and-hearing-loss/
Cordially,
Neil
Hello
My wife shouted directly on my ear as a joke, when I was laying in bed, head onside (she made her hand to a tube and yelled straight in my ear for 10sec) Just before this she was shouting at me and I asked her to stop as it was hurting my ears. I felt pain in the ear and I jumped up, ear felt full afterwards and tinnitus started. Doc said there is wax ,could not see drum so asked me to put olive oil in it and go back. Could it be I have a viral infection, or drum is burst? Would you carry on with the oil, Tinitus was better today but oil made it worse I think (the loud noise in ear from the pippet?) What do you think?
Hi A:
Shouting directly in a person’s ear for 10 seconds is enough to cause ear trauma and permanent ear damage. There are several types of damage you could have experienced. One is that she ruptured your eardrum and/or dislocated the bones in your middle ear.
I don’t believe the wax had anything to do with anything. And that could be why the oil is making things worse–if it is getting into your middle ear via a ruptured eardrum.
Two, the loud, sustained volume could have damaged the hair cells in your inner ear and the result may be that you now experience all/certain sounds as too loud. This is known as hyperacusis and is common with noise trauma.
Three, the loud sounds could cause permanent sensorineural hearing loss–one reason why your ear feels full. This is actually a blocked feeling because your brain no longer hears the normal sounds it used to, so thinks your ear must be blocked.
Four, the underlying spiral ganglian synapses have been damaged leading you to have trouble picking out one person’s voice in the general babble of numerous people talking such as at parites, groups, etc.
You need to get the wax out of your ear–find a competent professional to do it–and do not use any liquid until it can be determined that your eardrum is not ruptured. You also need to give your ear a rest from all loud sounds–wear ear protectors if needs be. Just be careful not to overprotect your ear, or you will make hyperacusis worse.
And NEVER, never allow anyone to ever yell in your ears again. Even just a strong kiss on your ear can cause similar problems, so that is also a no-no.
Cordially,
Neil
Thank you for your help; is it an audiologist that can remove the wax? Do you recomnend suction? What are mu chances of recovery? I feel pain in my other ear, wondering if I had an infection already making me sensitive to noise. Should I be take any medication or supplements? I am extremely thankful for your help.
Also my wife informs me it was 3 seconds vs 10 seconds – do you think that significantly reduces risk of perm tinitus/damage? Again thank you so much for your time.
Hi A:
Damage is caused by volume times time–so if you cut the time in thirds (10 to 3 seconds) but keep the same volume, on the average, you will do less damage.
Cordially,
Neil
Hi A:
It depends where you live. In some states/provinces, audiologists can indeed remove ear wax. In others they are not allowed to and you’d need to go to a medical doctor. So you’ll have to ask and find out the rules for where you live.
If you have a suspected ruptured ear drum I’d suggest they “pick” at the wax, rather than suck it out. You don’t want to pull on the eardrum (suction), or push on it (syringe).
If you want to take supplements, I’d suggest zinc picolinate and magnesium threonate as well as N-acetyl-cysteine (NAC). And vitamins B, C, D and E.
I’d think your chances of recovery are pretty good–but you may be left with a bit of hearing loss. If you have hyperacusis, it can gradually fade away in time–a few months to a year depending on a number of factors.
Cordially,
Neil
Hi, i had tinnitus for 10 years, never knew the reason why. It wasnt very bad and there were very long periods of time when i habituated and never even remembered that i have it. After 2-3 months of recent health anxiety 1 day i remembered that i have tinnitus, the next day i woke up with a very loud tinnitus mainly in the left ear but also 2 weeks before the spike started i had a night with medium ear pain, i went to my gp and she said the ears need wax removal so she can see the ear drums, i went home and used some wax softener oil for the night, the next day she used a device to shoot water in the ear for a couple of seconds and she cleared my ears, she checked the ear drums after and she said it was fine, the experience was unpleasant and a bit painful but not much, i didn’t have any pain after that. Can the ear wax removal 2 weeks before the spike be the cause, or is it psychological and my OCD and health anxiety shifted focus on my existing tinnitus and made it much louder? It was never this loud for 10 years.
Hi Sergiu:
I tend to think the ear wax syringing was NOT the cause of your tinnitus as it waited for 2 weeks to appear, but it’s always possible it was a contributing factor.
There could be other factors you haven’t mentioned such as medications, but just anxiety and focusing on your tinnitus could have made it flare up.
Ignore your tinnitus and see if it fades into the background again.
Cordially,
Neil
Hi, thanks for the reply. The only medication was Lymphomiosot a homiopatic medicine that i took maybe for 1 week, i stoped when i noticed the ringing. It flares up when i wake up, some days its better some are very bad, i am also very tense in the back, neck and jaw, can the stress cause muscle tension that contributed to the tinnitus ?
Hi Sergiu:
For sure–stress manifesting itself as tight muscles in your back, neck and jaw can cause tinnitus. So going to a chiropractor, massage therapist or equivalent can often get things into proper condition and tinnitus from this cause then fades away.
But just stress without a tight neck/face/back can also cause tinnitus–so you need to learn how to effectively deal with your stress.
Cordially,
Neil
Thank you very much, hopefully i can get it back the way it was and forget about it.
Hi,
I had my blocked ears syringed a few months ago and all seemed well at first. My hearing was exceptionally good immediately following the treatment. But a few days later I developed what I think is tinnitus. Whenever I’m in a quiet place all I can hear in both ears is a rumbling or roaring noise. As soon as there is any other normal background noise it stops. And then when it goes silent again, within one second the noise starts again. If I sniff or cough or move my head the noise stops for one second, and then returns. Is this tinnitus? Could it have been caused by the syringing? I never had it before the syringing. Will it go away over time? I’m not remotely interested in any litigation, I’m in the UK where our medical treatment is free so I’m not looking for money to pay for future treatments, I just want to get better. I really do understand about not focusing on it will help, and this is definitely helping me quite a bit.
Any advice appreciated.
Many thanks.
Nick.
Hi Nick:
If you are hearing rumbling or roaring sounds, those are two of the many different tinnitus sounds. It is possible that the syringing ultimately caused your tinnitus, but there may have been other factors you haven’t mentioned.
I can’t say for sure whether your tinnitus will go away or not. You can always be hopeful–and especially if you continue to ignore it as much as possible. But even if it doesn’t go away, it is soft and should not bother you. Just treat it like any other background sound that you hear when it is quiet–ignore it.
Cordially,
Neil
Hi,
In a few posts you have mentioned stress and tinnitus, anxiety and tinnitus, and tight neck, jaw and back muscles and tinnitus.
Can you explain about these connections in more detail?
I am guessing that once you have tinnitus, anxiety about it wont help. But I am interested in knowing about life stress actually causing tinnitus..?
Also about the brain laying down “tinnitus” pathways. What are effective ways to prevent this from happening or to reverse it?
Not focusing on tinnitus, as you often mention, must be one way. Are there others? Can the pathways be erased?
As a tinnitus sufferer since last September, and getting worse it seems, I agree with many of the comments people are making…it is not a pleasant condition at all.
Thank you.
Kind regards
Lid
Hi Lid:
Stress in itself isn’t bad–it gets you up in the morning! It is improperly-handled stress that causes the problems because it leads to anxiety where you can’t relax. Essentially you are in fight or flight mode and in this mode your hearing is made more acute so you can hear better and unfortunately, that lets you hear previously-unheard tinnitus or existing tinnitus better. This in turn heightens you anxiety and your tinnitus becomes louder. You focus on your louder tinnitus and it just gets worse.
This is how your brain enhances tinnitus pathways where none existed before. Eventually, tinnitus takes on a life of its own–even after the stress/anxiety go away.
Stress/anxiety also tighten your muscles in your back, neck and face and when you this two things can occur. First, the tight muscles can pull your top two cervical vertebrae out of proper alignment, thus “pinching” the vestibulo-cochlear nerve that can result in tinnitus.
Second, the tight muscles in your torso can send more messages to your brain. Some brain neurons start multi-tasking and end up erroneously sending “muscle” messages to the auditory centers of your brain where they get interpreted as sound–in this case tinnitus.
Stress doesn’t have to lead to tinnitus, but in some people it does. So learning how to properly deal with stress is the key.
To get control of your tinnitus you need to do several things. One is to accept that tinnitus is NOT a threat to your well-being. Two is that you then are free to ignore it–precisely because it is NOT a threat to your well-being. Three is that when you ignore your tinnitus by focusing on other things and not getting upset over it, the limbic system in your brain turns down the internal volume so your tinnitus fades into the background. The result is that you may go for hours without even being aware you have tinnitus (although it may still be there in the background, just like fridge noise, but you are so totally habituated to it that you don’t consciously hear it.
Thus these tinnitus pathways may not be erased, but they largely fall into disuse and get overgrown. This is what you want to happen.
You are new to tinnitus–only had it about 8 months. In contrast, I have had tinnitus for more than 65 years–but I choose not to let it bother me–and thus hours go by without my being aware of it.
One thing that brings my tinnitus back is thinking about it–like right now as I am answering your questions. My tinnitus is “screaming away” at me now. But just before I began answering your email I wasn’t aware of it and within 5 minutes of completing it and turning to something else, it will have faded into the background where I’ll also not be aware of it. This is how habituated I am to my tinnitus.
Earlier today I answered a long email about tinnitus and it flared up then, but went away and I don’t think I “heard” my tinnitus (be aware of it) until now when I’m answering your questions.
What I am saying is that having tinnitus is no big deal once you realize you can take control of it so it becomes basically a non-issue. Sure I’d like for it to stop–but it is a hazard of helping people with tinnitus–I have to think about it and my tinnitus comes screaming back every time. If I didn’t help people with tinnitus, probably I’d seldom be aware of my tinnitus. But this is my choice.
Cordially,
Neil
Hi Dr. Bauman;
Wow I can’t believe you’ve suffered from Tinnitus for over 65 years, you must be a pro at handling it. I just started hearing a ZZZZZ a few weeks ago because I had cerumen in both my ears specially on my left ear. They were plugged also but I could still hear well. My ENT Specialist recommended to have them washed with a special machine, which she did yesterday. She did take out a good amount of wax but the ringing which is not loud its a medium tone continued. I’m wondering if this could be permanent? I’ve never liked loud music or any loud noise. Always worked in an office environment. The Specialist at the Clinic did do a hearing exam and everything was ok with my ears, I just want the little buzz to go away. After a cleaning does this happen? And for what amount of time? Thank you for your time.
Hi Archie:
You’ve got the wrong idea Archie. I’ve had tinnitus for nigh on to 70 years that I can remember, but I haven’t suffered from tinnitus all the time. it’s true that sometimes my tinnitus tries to annoy me, but I have habituated to my tinnitus so that it is not a problem. It is just there. I don’t “suffer” from it.
If you suffer from tinnitus, obviously you have not habituated to it, and habituation is the goal.
Since I spend considerable time helping people deal with their tinnitus, obviously I’m thinking about tinnitus a lot. That is the worst thing you can do if you have tinnitus. You want to focus on other things and thereby ignore your tinnitus, but, instead, I focus on tinnitus and that always makes my tinnitus worse. So even though I am habituated to my tinnitus, whenever I think or talk or write about tinnitus like I am doing now, my ears are ringing away pretty loudly.
the good news is that because I am so habituated to my tinnitus, within five minutes or so of completing this comment and assuming I move on to another topic, I probably won’t even be aware I have tinnitus.
Now, to answer your questions. When your ears are plugged with wax, you have some degree of a conductive hearing loss. Since tinnitus almost always accompanies hearing loss, I’m not surprised that you had some resulting tinnitus. When your ENT remove the wax, I’d expect your tinnitus to fade away in a few days if not sooner.
Don’t focus on your tinnitus, or it can take on a life of its own. So ignore it, and let it fade away.
Cordially,
Neil
Dear Dr Bauman,
I’m at my wits end, and so angry at myself that I may have caused the issues you have described here. I would appreciate a reassuring, understanding perspective.
About a week and a half ago, I had impacted some earwax using cotton buds (my first mistake, and one I will sorely regret for the rest of my life). Then, exactly a week ago (a few days after the impaction), the deafness caused by the impacted earwax was annoying me so much (I had no other symptoms at this point – no tinnitus or anything), that I STUPIDLY made the decision to lavage my own ears out. I had been using olive oil for a few days, but had no relief with the wax.
I have a high pressure detachable kitchen tap/faucet which I removed and aimed into my ear as a water stream. I felt the pressure on my eardrums but no pain except for one tiny second of tenderness in one ear. I perhaps did two lots of 30 seconds in each ear, placing olive oil in each ear for 30 minutes in between, and this was successful in removing the wax, so I was initially overjoyed as I no longer had the deafness from the impacted wax. However, shortly after I realised there was an intense ringing, which has not ceased in the week since I washed my ears out. I have seen multiple doctors, including an ENT, who have all said my ears are clear up to the tympanic membrane and there is no inflammation or remaining wax. This has led me to fear the worst – that in applying the water into my ears and onto my eardrum (a STUPID decision I regret more than anything), I have irreparably damaged my inner ear and am stuck with this mind-numbing tinnitus forever. The sound is not mild, rather it is an excruciating, high pitched whine which is louder than all background noises I have attempted to use to distract myself (radio/tv/music) accompanied with some hyperacusis. I’m in total despair – is there any hope for me at all?
Many thanks in advance for your perspective.
Hi Esme:
First, you need to quit beating yourself up. What’s done is done. You can’t change it. So learn from it and move on. I’m sure you’ll never do that again.
Note: using low pressure spray is ok, but not a high-pressure spray. I’ve been squirting water in my ear canals daily when i take my shower and have not hurt my ears after doing this for probably 3 decades now. The emphasis is LOW pressure. My ear canals are squeaky clean every time they get checked so it is working. But remember, I started with clean ears, not impacted ones.
Doctors can be too rough too–using too much pressure like one doctor did to me and caused me to lose balance for a few minutes. Others grab the wax and pull and when it releases, the eardrum snaps back with a force similar to the sound of an explosion and can cause damage. So even the professionals don’t always do it right. You have to be gentle and slow whatever method you use.
Now, moving forward, what can you do? Well, first of all you need to calm down. Tinnitus feeds on emotions. So the more you focus on your tinnitus and obsess and worry about it, the worse it will become–and you definitely don’t want that. Furthermore, by focusing on it, you can cause it to become an endless loop and thus become permanent–and you don’t want that either.
You are doing some things right–like trying to mask your tinnitus with other sounds. These sounds don’t have to be so loud they totally hide your tinnitus. In fact, that is not a good idea. You wast them loud enough to hear so they reduce the difference between silence and your tinnitus, but not so loud they mask your tinnitus. Then you basically ignore this background sounds and along with it your tinnitus.
Next, you need to focus on the loves of your life. When you focus all your energy on something else, you have little cognitive “horsepower” left to focus on your tinnitus so it tends to fade into the background.
And most importantly, you need to realize and accept that tinnitus is NOT a threat to your well being in any way. When you consider it a threat to be overcome, the limbic part of your brain HAS to bring it to your attention (that’s one of its jobs–bring threats to you attention to help preserve your life). When you treat your tinnitus as some background noise that is totally unimportant and not a threat, that gives your limbic system permission to turn the volume down until hours go by without your realizing you even have tinnitus and it will not bother you.
So treat your tinnitus the same as you do the sounds your fridge makes when it is running. You don’t even think about it. In fact, if I were to ask you whether your fridge is running or not, you’d have to stop and specifically listen in order to hear it. This is because it is such an unimportant sound that your limbic system basically filters it out of your consciousness. When you treat your tinnitus the same as fridge noise (not a threat, but totally unimportant background sound) your limbic system will treat your tinnitus the same. This is called being habituated to it so it no longer bothers you.
Just thinking about your tinnitus will almost instantly make it worse. For example, as I write this my tinnitus is screaming away because I am focusing on tinnitus. (I couldn’t even hear my tinnitus before I began answering you.) Now here’s some good news. I am so habituated to my tinnitus, that within five minutes from now, because I am finished with this topic, I won’t even be aware I have tinnitus anymore. You can learn to do this too.
Cordially,
Neil
Dear Dr Bauman,
Thank you for your quick response and for dedicating your time to helping people in my situation.
I will try to bear in mind what you said about emotion and tinnitus, though it feels hard to regulate how I’m feeling or ignore the tinnitus when it feels so unbearably loud and unpleasant. I am also worried that I have caused some noticeable hearing loss in my left ear, which I exposed to the water for longer and which has more severe ringing.
Do you think that there is substantial evidence to support the fact that a pressure stream of water can cause damage to the inner ear, as a loud sound would, even if there is no pain? If the procedure felt at all similar in terms of pain to that I’ve experienced with loud sounds, I would have certainly stopped immediately, as in general I’m extremely cautious of my ears (I have always been cautious of loud sounds and am not the type to blast loud music via headphones or go to rock concerts etc). I think that is partly why I’m so devastated – if I’d had any suspicion that the procedure might have caused permanent harm I wouldn’t have even remotely considered attempting it – I just wish there was some warning as to the potential damage to your inner ear that can be caused by factors other than sound, as I had always believed.
In any case, I hope that you are right and that this becomes manageable as at this moment in time it has stripped me of any motivation/joy and I’m feeling very isolated and depressed.
Thanks again,
Esme
Hi Esme:
I’m not saying it is easy to separate your emotions and feelings, but it is necessary. So the more you focus on everything else, the less time you focus on your tinnitus–and that is all to the good.
Don’t worry about possible hearing loss for a couple of weeks or so. Let your ears “settle down” and see what the final result is.
As far as I know, too much pressure in your ears typically results in tinnitus and not obvious hearing loss, so you likely did not damage your hearing although it is possible.
Pain isn’t a good indicator of whether you have caused damage to your inner ear or not since your inner ear doesn’t have pain sensors as such. And if you squirted a steady stream on your eardrum, it would push it in (mimicking a loud sound) but then hold it in (so no further signal is generated), thus maybe it doesn’t do the same damage as loud sound would that vibrate the ear drum, rather than just suddenly push it in. (I really don’t know, but this is what I suspect.)
In retrospect, you should have read my article before you cleaned your ears–but hindsight is always so good, isn’t it?
Don’t let your tinnitus rob you of your joy of living. Go ahead and live–that is what I am doing and I’ve had tinnitus for more than 65 years now.
Cordially,
Neil
Hello Dr Bauman,
thanks so much for your very informative blog. I’m worried about my mother she had her ears syringed in October and now has a blocked ear feeling in one ear and an echo sound (more with her own voice than when others are talking).
Her hearing specialist told her the hearing in that ear has gone way down since she last got checked just a few months ago, think they said hearing loss as bad as you would expect in a 10 year period! Asked her if she’d suffered a bang on the head or a loud noise (she hasn’t)
She has an appointment in Feb to check it out further but I’m worried about it being serious like a tumour or something. It seems like it must be from the syringing though? It happened very soon after, she has no pain or anything else just the hearing loss, echo and fullness in one ear. Been having her ears syringed for years without a problem but I’m furious if they have damaged her hearing so badly, she was already quite deaf before.
Any advice greatly appreciated,
thanks,
Rachel
Hi Rachel:
If her hearing went way down, that would be consistent with experiencing a blocked feeling since fewer sounds are getting to her brain so it thinks the ear is blocked–hence the feeling.
But the feeling could also be due to the Eustachian tube not working properly due to the syringing as well if the doctor put too much pressure into the syringing. You have be be gentle with ears–even if the wax is stubborn to avoid such problems.
Is your mom on any drugs–especially any new drugs she began last fall or changed the dose on any existing ones. There are ever so many drugs that can cause hearing loss. Maybe one of them was the culprit and not the syringing. I can’t tell from the little bit of her history you have written.
Cordially,
Neil
Hi Dr Bauman,
Thank you so much for the reply.
No she is not on any new meds or changed her old ones, there is nothing obvious I can put it down to except the syringing. She has not been ill, no cold or anything that would block the ear-I think it “pops” from time to time too, just like if she was on a plane. Yes I read about the brain making the blocked feeling-it’s fascinating how it does that.
If it’s the Eustachian tube not working is this permanent?
She has a new hearing aid and they adjusted it when they realised her hearing was worse but she has been unable to wear it because it keeps whistling. Maybe it’s just because she is not wearing it properly or maybe the hearing aid is detecting a blockage or issue of some sort I don’t know.
The hearing specialist said they couldn’t see anything blocking the ear though. I’m just thinking February might be too long a wait to see what’s wrong. Over here in the UK the appointment is with the NHS but if I thought it could be serious I’d push for an earlier consultation privately.
Rachel
Hi Rachel:
If you mom’s hearing aid is whistling, that means that sound is feeding back into the microphone. This means that typically the earmold or hearing aid isn’t inserted properly to get a tight seal so sound can’t leak out and get to the microphone. It is also possible there is an internal problem with the hearing aid allowing the feedback, but that is pretty unlikely.
Sometimes, if a chunk of wax is at the end of the ear canal, it pushes the hearing aid/earmold out so it can’t seat properly and hence the feedback. But this shouldn’t be a problem as she just had her ears cleaned out. She should go back and see her hearing aid dispenser and find out exactly what is causing the whistling and learn how to insert the hearing aid/earmold properly.
I don’t have any further insight into her blocked feeling from what you have said.
Cordially,
Neil
Thank you doctor for the hearing aid advice much appreciated. She’s been wearing aids for years so not sure why this new one is different-but I did tell her she is just probably not wearing it properly! I’ll give an update later on when she has been to the ENT specialist on what the problem is with her ear (if we ever find out)
Thanks again for your help and advice.
Rachel
Hi
I’m 40 weeks pregnant woke up last week with ringing in ear went to an audiologist who said there was a build up of wax in left ear and flushed it out. The blockage is now gone but ringing is still lingering. The audiologist said it should subside. I’m worried that it will not.
Hi Holly:
I’m with your audiologist, your tinnitus should fade away in time. But you have to do your part. If you worry about it, you will just make it worse. Thus, forget about it, ignore it and focus on the loves of your life. Your baby will keep you busy and hopefully your tinnitus will disappear in the next few months. Don’t expect instant relief. It typically is a process that takes time.
Cordially,
Neil
Hi Dr Bauman,
I started getting symptoms of tinnitus about 8 months ago probably due to loud music but it was never bothersome. I narely could notice it. However I stopped listening to the ipod and kept my music down regardless.
All of a sudden 7 months later the tinnitus spiked for no reason. I went to see a doctor and she told me I had a clogged ear, so upon reading excessive earwax causing tinnitus it I was kinda relieved. Just needed to get rid of it so I could go to the audiologist for a good hearing test. In order to get a hearing test the doctor said I needed to take ear drops and get the ear irrigation to remove excess wax. I used the prescribed eardrops and that seemed to clear up my earwax according to the nurse. The nurse said I didn’t really need to them cleaned. I was always reluctant to get this ear irrigation but I still could hear a bit of ringing and the doctor insisted on ear irrigation anyway so I went ahead with it and oh my god! Now my ear is FAR WORSE! The nurse said I didn’t even need it done this so irresponsible.
Upon reading your replies to questions you talk about the high pressure of the syringe and you know what it was pretty aggressive the way she cleaned my ear! I am completely and utterly furious at this whole ordeal. The doctor and nurse knew I had tinnitus. This should have NEVER happened and now the ringing in my head is beyond tolerable. As soon as I woke up bells and whistles were going off in my head. Such a high frequency noise. I’m not sure if i’m going to be able to cope with it. Both doctor and nurse moreso the doctor is totally irresponsible for this decision and has ruined my life.
I had my ears syringedabout a month ago right was full of wax the left the nurse said there was nothing but carried on syringing straight afteru right ear was fineu left ear. I had tinnitus and couldn’t hear I am a very stressful person I had tinnitus over ,,30yrats ago but noptr until now
Dr. Neil, is it possible for fluid to end up in the middle ear after irrigation or does the eardrum automatically prevent that? I have tinnitus in both ears and when I swallow it almost sounds like there’s fluid in there, but maybe just inflammation? Is it possible?
Hi Doc, recently been dealing with cluster headaches and seemed to develop Tinnitus in my left ear. I also cleaned them out with a QTip figuring maybe my ears are blocked. My primary looked and said it looks fine not a lot of wax and no visual damage. Do you think it can be related to the headache and will this ever go away? It’s a constant high pitch noise.
Hi Martin:
I doubt that cleaning your ears with a Q-tip caused your tinnitus. Although headaches and migraines do not actually cause tinnitus as far as I know, they are often associated with each other so one may seem to cause the other because the same underlying condition that produces the tinnitus can also produce the migraine/headache. I think this is what has happened in your case.
Thus, maybe finding out the cause of your cluster headaches and eliminating them may also let your tinnitus fade away too.
In any case, don’t focus on your tinnitus as this just makes it worse. Rather, focus on the loves of your life and let you tinnitus fade into the background.
Cordially,
Neil
Hello I had both my ears syringed last November one ear was completely blocked and the other ear was partially blocked. When I had my ears syringed a few weeks later I started to hear a weird noise in the ear that was partially blocked I hear a squeaking noise and I hear popping and clicking noise I hear this other noise but I don’t know how to describe it. I hear the noises when I’m resting, sitting and laying down. My ears sometimes feel itchy aswell. Do I have tinnitus and is it temporary or permanent. I’m going to an audiologist this month to find out what is going on with my ear. Do you know what it could be?
Hi Maria:
I don’t think the syringing is related to the sounds you now hear at times since they didn’t occur until a few weeks later.
You could have a partially obstructed Eustachian tube/middle ear causing the clicking, popping and squeaking sounds.
The itchiness is in your ear canal and can be caused by some microbes living there. Often, just using a dilute solution of hydrogen peroxide or vinegar can take care of that.
Cordially,
Neil
Hello if I have an partially obstructed Eustachian tube / middle ear why did the noises start a few weeks later after ear syringing I didn’t hear the noises before the ear syringing. If I do have am partially obstructed Eustachian tube / middle ear is it temporary or permanent and is there any treatment for it?
Hi Maria:
It could be because you have or had a cold or virus or allergy the few weeks later that caused your congestion. Normally, if that was the problem, it will go away once your middle ears/Eustachian tubes drain and your ears will return to normal. Typically, you just let your ears drain naturally and in a few weeks things should be back to normal.
Cordially,
Neil
Ok I have been hearing the noises since last December so I have been hearing the noises for 6 months and the past few days I started to feel dizzy sometimes is this normal? You know how I’ve heard the noises for six months is this also normal or how many months do I have to wait for the middle ear / Eustachian tube to drain? I’m sorry if I’m asking too many questions I’m just curious.
Hi Maria:
Dizziness can be an inner ear problem from taking drugs for example, but it can be from low blood pressure too, like feeling dizzy when you stand up. This is called orthostatic dizziness and has nothing to do with your ears as such.
Unless you have ongoing allergies or something that keeps your middle ears and/or Eustachian tubes clogged up, I wouldn’t expect you to hear those sounds more than 2 months. Therefore, you may have something else going on. It’s hard to tell sometimes from people’s descriptions of what they experience as people use different terms from each other and I have to try to guess what they really are meaning.
Cordially,
Neil
Hi Dr. Bauman,
I have quite the series of unfortunate events to present to you….
The last week in April, I was on vacation in Florida for a week. I picked up what seemed like a cold on Wednesday. By the time I was flying home (2 hour flight) on Saturday night, I had full blown cold symptoms….runny nose, crackling in my ears, etc…. I had never flown with cold symptoms before. There was a lot of pressure in my ears on landing and my right ear wouldn’t pop.
When picking up our bags, my right ear hurt like an ear ache. Then the weirdest thing happened when we were driving home (about an hour after landing)…I heard a loud noise blared into my right ear for like 2 seconds. My ear then popped for a second, but then went back shut again.
The next day, I tested positive for COVID, so I quarantined for a week. My cold symptoms subsided, but I was still having problems with my ears popping and sometimes aching very lightly. It was my doctor’s turn to be on vacation, so I didn’t get in to their office until 3 weeks later (and I still could only see a nurse practitioner). She said my left ear looked good, but she couldn’t see my right ear due to wax.
So, she decided to flush it with an ear irrigation kit. It was very loud against my eardrum and the pressure was bothersome, but I never felt that it “hurt”, it was just uncomfortable. After about five minutes,she finally got it out and she looked at my ear drum. She said it looked “hazy”, which can indicate fluid behind the ear drum. So, she gave me a prescription for Amoxicillin. My ear felt shut due to the water, but I didn’t notice anything too odd besides that. A few hours later, the water finally came out.
Sometime the next day though, I began hearing a high pitched ringing in my ears. It was odd….I had never had ringing in my ears that had lasted more than a few seconds. This was lasting all day and into the night! I continued taking the amoxicillin for that week.
Fast forward two months, the constant tinnitus persists. It seems more noticeable in my right ear, but sometimes also can be heard in the left and/or middle of my brain.
I’ve seen ENT and had my hearing tested twice. I have a dip in the 2-4k range, but it is still above the 25 hz threshold for “normal” hearing.
So, at this point, I’m not sure if the ear infection/fluid in my middle ear, COVID, the ear flushing/irrigation, and/or the antibiotic has caused the tinnitus….or if it’s a combination of it that could be the issue. Of course, flying with the cold/COVID I believe started this whole mess in the first place and I’m angry that it timed out that way.
I understand what you’re saying regarding the connection between emotions and it flaring it up.
I dont need this to go away….I just need for it to get better or to habituate to it. I’ve been taking vacations with my family, doing activities I enjoy, spending as much time outside and protecting my ears with ear plugs only when exposed to loud sounds.
I am just 2 months from the onset. Is there still time for the ear to improve if it was like acoustic trauma from the ear flushing?
Thanks for any advice! I’m open to taking any supplements that may help too.
Hi Joe:
For your future reference, if you are going flying and are congested, take a decongestant about an hour before take-off and another one about an hour before you begin your descent at the other end. This really helps people with colds that have to fly.
If it’s optional, don’t fly when you have a cold and your ears are clogged up.
It’s also a good idea to chew gum so you swallow regularly while you are ascending and descending when you are flying, even though your ears aren’t clogged up. This will keep the pressure equalized so you don’t have any ear pain, etc.
Since you didn’t experience tinnitus until after the ear cleaning episode and the amoxicillin, my guess is that the actual flight didn’t cause your tinnitus. Probably the amoxicillin as it is know to do that, and the ear syringing could be another factor.
Since two months have now gone by and your ears are basically back to normal–you can pop your ears at will when you yawn or swallow–I think you need to work on your tinnitus and learn to habituate to it. This can take time–a few months to a couple of years, depending how you treat your tinnitus.
From what you have said, you are basically trying to ignore your tinnitus and focus on the loves of your life–and this is right and good. Remember, you don’t want to think of your tinnitus as a threat to your well-being in any way, but rather a sound that is totally unimportant and thus safe to ignore, then ignore it. When you do this, you give your brain permission to ignore this sound–and slowly you will habituate to it.
Cordially,
Neil
18 days before ENT clean my ear wax because of ear infection
After ear wax removed my ear
is ringing
some times I feel normal
But today my ear ringing very loud
Whenever i go noisy place it become severe
I am too worried
Plz help
Hi Sarita:
Was the ear infection in your ear canal, or in your middle ear?
How did they remove the wax–tweezers or syringe?
Did you get any antibiotics for the infection? If so what was it?
If your tinnitus gets louder as the background sounds get louder, then you probably now have reactive tinnitus which is a combination of tinnitus and loudness hyperacusis.
Cordially,
Neil
Hi Dr. Bauman. I’m not sure if you still check this thread but I figured I would give it a go.
6 weeks ago I went to Utah and traveled up and down at high elevation in a car. I could feel a lot of popping in my ears. When I returned I felt like my right ear was becoming clogged. I used hydrogen peroxide for a few days and my right ear became completely clogged.
I went to the doctor after a week and they said both of my ears were significantly impacted by wax. A nurse used a squirt gun like device to syringe the wax out. It felt like she used it excessively.
Immediately after, my right ear still felt blocked. I’ve had tinnitus in both ears ever since the syringing. My ear continued feeling blocked, with popping, clicking sounds, and intense pressure in the right side of my head. An audiologist said the tympanogram showed I did not have Eustachian dysfunction but do have mild hearing loss in my right ear.
I have had right ear hearing loss since I was a baby after an eardrum rupture, and a hearing exam I had 10 years ago showed the same result.
An ENT told my my ears look perfectly normal and that it’s just a coincidence that my tinnitus started after the syringing. They said most likely my tinnitus will not go away because of the hearing loss.
I wonder, if I have always had this hearing loss, why am I just now having such loud and high pitched ringing following syringing? I’ve been using Flonase and a neti pot daily. My ear feels much better but sometimes I still feel a crackling / popping sensation deeper in the ear. Is this my Eustachian tube possibly? Is it possible that my tinnitus will go away over more time or should I prepare for this to be my new reality?
Thank you for any advice or help if you can.
Hi Eva:
Any time anyone posts under any of my articles, I receive an email so I always know what is going on.
Driving in Utah can have it’s ups and downs. When we were there I went over one pass at 9,800 feet or so. That can give your ears a workout for sure.
Having wax blocking your ears can just exacerbate the problems.
After the syringing, did the nurse check that your ears were entirely free of wax?
If so, then the blocked feeling, popping, clicking sounds and tinnitus are not due to your wax. Assuming your audiologist is correct and you do not have Eustachian tube problems, then I’d say that you have tonic tensor tympani syndrome (TTTS) where your tympani muscle goes into spasms at times causing the clicking and popping sensations as well as a blocked feeling or feeling of fullness and it can also cause ear pain.
This would likely be due to the excessive force she used in syringing out your ears.
Your ENT was wrong in saying that the syringing did not cause your tinnitus. You had a direct cause and effect relationship between your syringing and your tinnitus and that is far more likely than the nebulous “coincidence”.
Incidentally, did your ear drum heal up after it ruptured so many years ago? I assume it did as syringing out your ears with a ruptured eardrum would be the wrong thing to do. In that case she should have “picked” out the wax or possibly used suction, not water.
I think your clicking/popping will go away in time as the startle reflex action of your tensor tympani muscle calms down. So relax and don’t get upset over this.
As for your tinnitus, it may or may not go away. The best thing for you to do is totally ignore your tinnitus (and definitely don’t focus on it as though it were a threat to your well-being) and instead, focus on the loves of your life and in time it should fade into the background so you often won’t even be aware you have tinnitus. And if you are anxious, learn to calm down. This will help both your tinnitus and TTTS.
Cordially,
Neil
Thank you so much for your response!
To answer your questions, my ears were free of wax after the syringing and my ear drums both look normal with no scarring. I have had the syringing done before with no issue, but I think this time the wax was likely very hard and it had been several years of buildup since the last cleaning.
I currently feel a rumbling sensation in my right ear and the ringing feels painful. My allergy symptoms have diminished significantly so what you’re saying about TTTS makes sense.
I do have generalized anxiety which I think is exacerbating things for me. I will try to ignore the ringing and get on with life. Thanks again for your reply!
2 months ago i had visited a clinic because my left ear was getting clogged time to time, then doctor sent me to a nurse and she did a painful ear syringing (i was feeling overpressure). she didnt use more than 300ml water for each ear, on the same day after going home i was dizzy and i was feeling decreased hearing, ear pain and tinnitus. 3 weeks after ear syringing i visited another clinic and explained them the situation. they did tympanometry (normal) , audiometry (10db at all frequencies for air conduction, 5 db at all frequencies for bone conduction) and told me everything looks normal, however i am %100 sure that i had no tinnitus before ear syringing and i was hearing better, It has been 2 months and tinnitus decreased compared to first day but i feel like hearing is still not as good as before , for example despite normal audiometry results when i listen to sounds i feel like they are more distant than before, can it be something like barotrauma?
Hi Sari:
When you are left with ear pain, dizziness as well as hearing loss and tinnitus, your nurse obviously used too much pressure–or more likely SUDDENLY used excess pressure. She needs to learn how to syringe ears properly. If she had slowly built up the same pressure, you should not have had these symptoms, but hitting your eardrum with sudden excess pressure can certainly bring on what you experienced.
When they test your hearing and tell you that you are “normal”, realize that that is a range of anywhere between -10 dB and 25 dB. That is a range of 35 dB. What does this mean? It means that if before the syringing you have hearing at -10 dB (fantastic hearing) and now you have hearing at 25 dB (the bottom of normal) the difference in how you perceive sounds would be a factor of 26 TIMES and that would be very noticeable. Even if your hearing changed by just 10 dB you’d perceive hearing as only half as loud–yet you’d still be well inside the “normal” range.
However, since you did not have a baseline test before, they have no way of knowing whether the syringing caused any hearing loss since you are still in the normal range.
And as for you tinnitus, since tinnitus typically accompanies hearing loss, your brain notices the reduction in sound and you get tinnitus.
Cordially,
Neil
Thank you for your reply, what i am wondering is , arent higher frequencies easier to detoriorate? For example in cases of inner ear related hearing loss like when a person gets exposed to very loud sounds their audiometry shows deterioration in higher frequencies, when i look at mine, its just 10db at all frequencies, so there is no worse hearing at 8000khz for example, so this makes me think ,it may not be inner ear problem, then when i check my tympanometry, it is normal too, so it is also unlikely to be middle ear problem, i cant really understand in which mechanism ear syringing has caused tinnitus and worse hearing compared ot before, it is also weird that they still use a syringe to remove earwax in 2024
Hi Sari:
Yes, typically you lose hearing first in the high frequencies and then it works down the frequency spectrum. But this is not always the case–it just occurs in the vast majority of cases.
If you show hearing at 10 dB at every test frequency and bone conduction at 5 dB, something doesn’t seem right. Maybe the audiometer is out of calibration or the test wasn’t done correctly somehow.
Personally, I’d go to another audiologist and get a second opinion to be sure. It’s too bad you don’t have a previous audiogram to use as a baseline to see if there were any changes.
You weren’t tested in the frequencies between 8 kHz and 20 kHz and you could have hearing loss up there and consequent tinnitus.
What’s so weird about still using syringing to remove ear wax. It’s a perfectly good method if used properly and not too much pressure used.
The other two methods–suction and “tweezers” can also cause problems if not done correctly. I hear from people that have problems from those methods too.
It’s not the method that’s the problem, but people doing the method wrong that causes all the problems.
Cordially,
Neil
thank you dr bauman for your fast replies!
actually they have done it in different hospitals after ear syringing, the first audiometry has been made 20 days after ear syringing and the result was as you wrote, then 1 month after the first audimetry i have visited another doctor and he also did the same things (tympanometry and audiometry) then they told me its normal and sent me back, so audiometry has been made 2 times at different times / clinics and my hearing was really 10 db at all frequencies at air conduction. however as you said, maybe testing till 8khz was not enough to diagnose properly, as far as i can perceive i have around 5-10db hearing loss and tinnitus for 2,5 months after ear syringing , do you think it can be as good as before maybe after a few months and tinnitus can disappear? how are your experiences with that kind of patients? if you were to give a percent, how likely it will be normal ?
also in terms of ear syringing, yes its a good method if done properly (5 years ago an ENT doctor had done it and i had no complications at all)
however i also have concerns that ear syringing can cause perylimph fistulas and that kind of complications as it changes the middle ear pressure suddenly, i had never seen a reported case like that without eardrum perforation but as it happens to divers,maybe it can happen to patients who get ear syringing too. while microsuction at least more unlikely to cause barotrauma.
also doctors mostly give this job to nurses and nurses dont get good training for ear rinsing (even on youtube i see that some nurses use excessive force even though the patient is screaming in pain during ear rinsing), when it comes to microsuction i havent seen any doctor that gives this job to a nurse, so that might be another positive thing.
thank you again in advance
Hi Sari:
10 dB is perfectly normal hearing, but without a previous baseline, you don’t know whether your previous hearing level was 0 or -10 dB. In that case, you’d notice a bit of hearing loss, but hearing down to 25 dB is considered normal by doctors and audiologists.
Your tinnitus could fade away in time, but in order for that to happen, you have to ignore your tinnitus and focus on other things instead.
Proper syringing doesn’t change ear pressure any more than does suction or using tweezers. So I don’t see that a perilymph fistula is any more likely from one way as opposed to another (as long as they are all done properly).
Cordially,
Neil