Posted on 09/27/2004 1:18:43 PM PDT by Red Badger
Little John
I've had tinnitus for the past 40 years! Have had my head x-rayed all over the world, including Japan, and no one was ever able to come up with a solution. When docs suggested I try an Iraqi physician decapitation came to mind and I abstained. I've gotten so used to the damn thing that I would miss it if it ever disappeared!
I think my tinnitus is a combination of frequencies similar to my wife's voice. ("Huh, what?")
Just crank up the stereo and put on "MacArthur's Park", followed by "You Light Up My Life" and "Mandy".
You'll forget all about "Feelings" in no time!
Have you seen an oto-neurologist or neuro-otologist? There are a couple of coping strategies which have helped my severe case--white noise therapy (Tinnitus Retraining Therapy-TRT) and meds to help with the anxiety which is often induced by the T. Go to American Tinnitus Association.
My tinnitus stopped for good. I had it for a couple months.
It seemed to go away when I cut my salt intake and took B vitamins, but then maybe it was going to go away anyway.
Can't ever remember a minute of my life without this constant racket in my head. I'm eager to find out what its like.
I'm 51, a student of the classical guitar and have been a shooter all my life. I've been a serious shooter for the past 13 years. I became aware of my tinnitus 7 months ago following a loud church service. The ring is 24/7 and it was initially quite disabling. However, with the help of an oto-neurologist I'm able to function and hope to habituate to the ring in time.
When shooting I "always" wore plugs and muffs and can recall only a handfull of exposures when I was unprotected. All gun fire does permanent damage to the cilia in the cochlea. But, I shot alot. Multi-day courses, culminating in many hundreds of hours of formal training in handgun, defensive shotgun, tactical carbine and long range precision rifle. The irony--I think a loud church service I attended 7 months ago is the straw which broke the camel's back. A ring started then and has never stopped.
For some of us the ring is [unconciously] perceived as very threatening and initiates a conditioned response (fight or flight). The autonomic nervous system (ANS), which is also stimulated, feedsbacks into the amygdala and increases the perceived volume of the ring. (I think I've correctly stated LeDoux's view in the "Emotional Brain.") Most people who suffer from T (85%) can habituate the sound, relegating it to the host of other background noises. But the 15% who perceive the sound as a threat cannot. That's where TRT (Tinnitus Retraining Therapy) comes into play and in my case may permit me to habituate to the ring over a 1.5/2.0 year period. (80%+ have some degree of success.)
I'm cautiously resuming my shooting avocation, under my Dr's oversight. I use the best plugs I can find (NRR 33)and very carefully insert them. In the past I was not as careful. I also wear the best [passive] muffs I can find (NRR 29). It is now clear to me that plugs or muffs by themselves are not sufficient protection against ported weapons and short barrelled rifles whose sound intensity can exceed 170dB. Noise impulses >140dB are instantly damaging to your hearing. A muff rated an NRR 25 may, if properly worn with a good seal, attenuate the impulse by its OSHA rating down to 145dB or better (see below). If you wear eyeglasses (who doesn't wear eye protection at a range), the NRR will be reduced slightly by the leakage in the breakage of the ear cup seal caused by the frame. Long hair? A cap? All these detract. The upside--the OHSA rating is for continuous noise, not impulse noise, which plugs and muffs do a better job of attenuating (6-18dB better according to Dr. William Kramer--a Ph.D. in Speech and Hearing Science and a scientist dedicated to Hearing Conservation.)
Ear plugs are notoriously difficult to insert properly. Look for "occlusion"--that perception of a stuffy head--for a proper fit. Ears are different sizes. Some plugs may not be wide enough or long enough. For kids, they may be too big, too long. (E-A-R makes PVC plugs of various sizes). I use the Howard Leight "orange" plugs. I seem to be able to insert them properly. I'm also experimenting with some E-A-R PVC plugs I received. They are very comfortable and seem to breath better than the polyurethane plugs (a good thing here in Arizona during the summers), although their NRR rating is slightly less (NRR 29).
Finally, I limit my shooting/exposure time to give my ears a break. They may not be as resilient as healthy ears for whatever the reason--existing damage, age, .... I started with 20 minutes. I'm up to 80 minutes (with 3 target breaks) during non-prime time. I look for after-effects (increased ringing, fullness in the ears, pain) to see if I've overdone it. I've also been advised by my oto-neurologist to take a shooter's anti-oxidant "cocktail" 3 days before/after the shooting event consisting, among other things, of N-acetyl-cysteine which is also thought to be helpfull in protecting the ears (along with a good multi consisting of magnesium, vitamin-E, vitamin-C).
When I go to concerts or church I wear musician's plugs when the music gets loud. These attenuate 12-20dB while preserving the full audio spectrum (unlike the shooter's plugs.) It's the price I pay to not furthur aggravate the tinnitus.
Hindsight is 20/20. These are things I should have done. But these are what I do now so that I can continue to enjoy Bach, Beethoven and Mozart. I've returned to shooting very cautiously. I avoid the busiest days/times at the range and have been shooting a muzzle loader (which is marginally quieter (on average -3dB than my other centerfire weapons.) Time will tell what I can do safely.
The June 2002 issue of "Tinnitus Today" has an excellent article my Dr. William Kramer on "Gunfire Noise and Hearing Protection." (See back issues .
I've gone on at length, but the time seemed ripe to share this with you and hopefully others will benefit.
thanks for that.
Thanks for your thoughts. As I said I always wear hearing protection when shooting. I have often thought of wearing both plugs AND muffs but haven't tried it yet.
The worst part is that it is relatively impossible to wear hearing protection at the shows I'm playing. At the last concert, I could only hear my own instrument and the drums, I'm also supposed to be hearing guitars and vocals. That is one area that is, at least for now, an unavoidable occupational hazard. I don't know exactly what I'm going to do about it!
Mine is caused by taking too much asprin.
I believe that may have exacerbated my symptoms years ago, too...
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