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Original poster

Anyone have tinnitus that's multiple noises?

38 replies

UnplainJane · 11/03/2021 10:03

And do you manage to ignore it at all? I've had tinnitus for 5 months now. Multiple weird noises, new one popped up a couple of days ago that sounds like bagpipes in the far distance..... Nice. Wish it would just stick to the same sounds so I can try and ignore. So distracting.

OP posts:
gamerchick · 11/03/2021 10:07

Not interchanging like that but I do get different noises.

The last one was similar to the high pitch those mosquitos make to stop teenagers hanging around. I was nearly in tears with it. I did half an hour strength training and took a beta blocker afterwards and it's went.

Total sympathies OP.

Original poster
UnplainJane · 11/03/2021 10:11

Thanks @gamerchick, sorry to have this too. Can't get over that this is life now - listening to the cacophony of noises my brain thinks I need to hear. Yippee.

OP posts:
gamerchick · 11/03/2021 10:24

Make sure you drink lots of water every day. Even slightly dehydrated they all become extra loud for me. Most of the time it's just like a background thing I learned to ignore.

White noise can help you get to sleep also.

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General health
Hailtomyteeth · 11/03/2021 10:36

Yes. I counted 23, once. Multiple, constant, lifelong.

YanTanTethera123 · 11/03/2021 10:40

Yes, multiple and various volumes but always there 😡🤬
I have had tinnitus in both ears for many years.
Commiserations OP 💐

BobRossPaints · 11/03/2021 10:52

Yes I do. I have a night pitched noise that is there all the time but I also occasionally here low rumbling noises, like there's a lorry parked outside my house with its engine ticking over.
When I'm trying to sleep I put a cushion on my head and try to concentrate on listening to my blood flowing!!

Billandben444 · 11/03/2021 11:25

I've had the basic whooshing noise for 10 years plus and this is augmented by different orchestral sounds. At the moment it is a tingly triangle but sometimes a screechy violin or high-pitched flute. I've accepted them all and don't let T disrupt my life but high winds (like today!) mean I stay indoors as that on top totally flummoxes me.

Laffinalltheway · 11/03/2021 11:25

16 years I've had Tinnitus. Horrible.
I get it from high frequency things like live music, tannoy announcements, and the worst is clattering crockery. It results in a high pitched buzz in my head which can last for hours. Sleep seems to be the only cure for me - until the next time...

FunnyWonder · 11/03/2021 12:02

My tinnitus is generally the same sound (a high pitched whine), but it changes pitch and volume and often undulates. For me, the biggest trigger for increased volume is lack of sleep, closely followed by stress. When my mum was diagnosed with breast cancer about 14 years ago, it went from being a mostly minor irritation to something very intrusive that I couldn't ignore. Since then, it has been peaks and troughs, depending on what is going on in my life. I don't notice it as much when I'm busy. Audiobooks help a lot.

MySocalledLoaf · 11/03/2021 12:05

Yes, I have various noises but one predominates. I’ve had it since I was 4 years old and don’t notice it any more unless I think hard about it. I don’t know what the magic number of years is to make that happen unfortunately.

IReallyNeedMoreGin · 11/03/2021 12:15

I've had if for 9 years now. The noises vary depending on how tired or stressed I am. Interesting to read a pp above saying dehydration is a factor. Never knew that!

My noises vary from a whooshing noise, to a whistle, at varying pitches and volumes. I tend to keep the radio on all day as I find background noise helps distract from it. You learn to live with it.

WeAllHaveWings · 11/03/2021 12:28

Mines is mostly a mid tone continuous drone 24/7 for last 8 years.

It occasionally, maybe 2-3 times a week, changes to a repetitive booming or high pitched shrill ring for a few hours before reverting back. Sometimes one ear will stay with the usual tone and the other changes.

I can't concentrate in quiet rooms, I need to have a radio/music/TV on in the background, I can still hear it but it takes the focus off it a bit.

In noisy rooms/open plan offices I struggle to hear a conversation if there is noise around me (but multiple hearing tests say there is nothing wrong with my hearing the problem is with processing it with all the other conflicting sounds).

The only time I don't notice it is in the car. As soon as the engine is switched on I don't notice it as it seems to be in tune with the car engine, but I don't hear the car the same way as I did before (hard to explain).

Skateosaurus · 11/03/2021 12:34

I've had it for years, in fact I can't remember a time without it, but I assume it must have come on during my teenage years and going to see a lot of bands, standing next to speakers etc. It's horrible and you have my sympathies OP.

I find back ground noise as frustrating as it affects my hearing though. I can't deal with the noise in my head and the noise in the back ground.

Wondering whether or not to get a hearing test, as DH pointed out to me the other day, that I need the tv up really loud to hear people talking. But then I wonder if I need a hearing aid, will I just hear the tinnitus even louder?

LilyRose88 · 11/03/2021 12:52

Yes, I have a constant whooshing noise plus variable high pitched whistles. They get louder when I am stressed. I have had tinnitus since I was 19 after a head injury and I am so used to it now that it rarely bothers me. I do find it difficult to hear people speaking in places where there is other background noise like pubs and clubs, and also during meetings in rooms where the acoustics aren't very good. I don't take any medication or use hearing aids as I have just adapted to the situation. It doesn't keep me awake either as it has become the background to my daily life.

Hopefully you will get used to the noises and learn to tune them out or adapt to them. If not, maybe it is worth speaking to your GP to see if they can refer you somewhere or offer some advice.

Original poster
UnplainJane · 11/03/2021 13:41

I wish I knew why I have mine, would make it easier to accept....

OP posts:
spiderlight · 11/03/2021 13:45

Yes - I have a permanent high-pitched whistle and permanent pulsatile tinnitus (the sound of my heartbeat), which I just tune out now and am not aware of unless I think about them, but the other week I randomly had a noise like a pneumatic drill that started up as I got into bed and was so loud that I immediately stormed downstairs to tell DH to turn down whatever he was watching, and spent quite some time saying 'But are you sure you can't hear that??' It lasted about an hour and then stopped as abruptly as it had started.

Original poster
UnplainJane · 11/03/2021 13:54

@spiderlight I hate the tricks it can play, although when the bagpipes started I was pretty sure it wasn't DH 😂. Glad it went away for you after a bit. I'm hoping that since mine is quite changeable it might one day change to nothing.....!

OP posts:
MaMisled · 11/03/2021 14:08

I live in a rain forest: water gushing, birds chirping and squawking, monkeys chattering and howling, wind rushing, leaves rustling, chainsaws whirring, trees breaking and snapping and angry voices shouting. Its been 5 years now. Hearing aids help but you do get used to it more. Its just hard to hear anything over it, especially others talking to me.

Original poster
UnplainJane · 11/03/2021 14:12

@MaMisled Wow! Some of the noises I have I can't even describe. I don't have any hearing loss thankfully so do any affect that at least.

OP posts:
igotdemons · 11/03/2021 14:21

I’ve got a very long history of ear issues, including hearing loss and I’ve had tinnitus for a long time, couldn’t tell you when it started. I went for a hearing test recently and found it really hard as the noises I hear in my head are very much like the noises they play you during the test! It was awful and very stressful. It’s loudest in my left ear, which is just a constant high pitched noise. I was on amitriptyline recently for nerve pain and when I upped it to 30mg, my tinnitus suddenly got much worse, at one point it sounded like someone was playing a muffled radio somewhere in the house! 😣 I just counteract it by wearing AirPods for as much of the day as possible, listening to podcasts and music to take my mind off it.

captainpantbeard · 11/03/2021 14:35

I've had it for years. I only realised a few months ago that not everyone has high pitched noises in their ears most of the time (I'm 48)

Mine gets louder at certain times, I'm not sure when but doesn't last more than a minute usually. It's like a radio has suddenly been tuned in, or rather untuned. And sometimes I suddenly hear on a different frequency. Well that's what it sounds like anyway. Also like a radio being retuned.

I hear my heartbeat throbbing in my right ear, sometimes it's really strong - I've just googled as someone mentioned it upthread and that's a tinnitus thing too. Well I never... you learn something new every day.

Walkacrossthesand · 11/03/2021 14:52

I have a sensorineural hearing loss from childhood, and tinnitus is part of the territory - I'm pretty used to it, and not knowing what silence sounds like! A range of 'whistles' of varying frequency and loudness.

Last night was odd, though, I thought I could hear a low hum in among all the wind/storm noise, which had me looking out of the window for a car with engine running or something - but it must have been in my head!

awaynboilyurheid · 11/03/2021 19:50

Total sympathies op, just one noise but as new to the horrible T it has moments when it has spiked and that’s been really awful as it was screaming and very hard to ignore. Trying to learn to tune it out but don’t always manage, hopefully will in time but hate it.

How do you all manage in noisy places like the cinema or theatre? Does it make it much worse afterwards.

0blio · 11/03/2021 19:59

Like other posters i don't know what silence is as I've had tinnitus for as long as I can remember.

It's mostly a high pitched whistling with pulsing, occasionally it's quite musical and from time to time I have clicking noises. I can hear perfectly well though which amazes me!

It can be very loud but at times I don't really notice it. I find having a cold makes it worse, or when I drink alcohol I'm more aware of it for some reason.

GreenandPinkFlowers · 11/03/2021 19:59

I have had tinnitus from I was a little girl, so I'm well used to it now. In fact, I thought it was normal until my 20s!

I mainly here 4 types of noises;
1: A high pitched constant squealing type of noise, like when a TV programme is having technical difficulties and the channel crashes.

2: A noise that sounds like a phone or silimiar is vibrating.

3: a very low humming noise, like a bumblebee flying by your ear.

4: a ringing noise.

Number 3 is the one I hear the most.