Tinnitus

[absolutevil]

I've had the ear buzz for as long as I can remember. Now I'm older my left ear is almost unbearable some days although I have the ringing in both. I have an appointment with a ENT dr and audiologist in a few days. Has anyone had any experience with having hearing aids with tinnitus? I'm sure I also have a loss of hearing.

 

[gjgalligan]

I have had tinnitus since I was a kid. Flunked the draft physical hearing test in 1971. Fast forward to 6 or 8 years ago I got a set of hearing aids from Costco that came with a free trial period. Useless as far as I was concerned turned them back in to get my money back.
Ringing in my ears is just a fact of life for me.

Good luck!

 

[Wrangler Rich]

I've had tinnitus for 50 plus years, the VA issued me a set of aids and they worked for me.YMMV

 

[blackdeuce]

My ears scream 24/7. Despite that, my other hobby is home audio.....

I went to an audiologist about a year ago hoping he'd be able to help. Nothing. He didn't think hearing aids would help. But, some people report that they do.

 

[-dW]

i've had tinnitus for 30-35 years and it has gotten worse over the years. I was screened by an audiologist for hearing aids years ago and they said don't bother.. I'm ready to go check that out again though just because my hearing loss has changed and maybe the technology will help me now.

a few years after the audiologist I went to an ENT who said that some people were helped by botox injections into their inner ear. I was all in for that, but it didn't help and it really sucked.

good luck to you, and i'd be interested to hear (get it?) how you do..

 

[absolutevil]

I'll report my visit. It's never really bothered me although until recently. I discovered my state retirement insurance will pay for a large part of the hardware, the actual hearing aids. So before I'm forced into Medicare I'd get checked out.

 

[A10]

Yeah, it rings a bell. For 60 years now. Nothing can be done. Hearing aids don't help with the tinnitus but do help with clarity. Dr's can't address it so they think its psychological.

Mine is worse when it's quiet, so I try to have background noise on, like the TV or radio.

 

[Mongo Safari]

I have a VA disability for hearing loss and tinnitus. I hate hearing aids, must remove them at the range and on my motorcycle, and no help with the tinnitus; I get to listen to the Cicadas serenade me year-round.

 

[TX-Dennis]

I've had tinnitus since I was a teen. Visited with an ENT about it back then. He said it is usually caused by high frequency hearing loss, but when he tested me my hearing was quite good. No cause could be determined. At first it drove me CRAZY, but I have learned to live with it.

 

[flash60601]

Cicadas. 24/7. Every one of them that sang in the maple trees last summer now sing inside my head, and have done so for fifteen years. The VA says it was my time on the flight line with those little screechers. Ten years ago, they gave me the best hearing aids they could muster which made it possible to maintain a high quality of life and when they were out, I had a hard time hearing conversation, but with them in, things worked well and the tinnitis was squelched nearly out.

This year, they fit me with the newest technology again, and I have no problem (though I still hear it) with tinnitis, but the volume of these new ones is an either/or proposition. Turn the volume up enough to hold a normal conversation at the dinner table, and each scrape of fork or spoon on plate is translated to an insane clang. TANSTAAFL.

 

[YeshuaIsa53]

I call the noise "marsh sounds", being an old duck hunter in the marsh. I hear ringing only every now and then. Hearing aids help to hear, though still can't understand some sounds. But the voice....

 

[bearman49709]

I have a VA disability for hearing loss and tinnitus. I hate hearing aids, must remove them at the range and on my motorcycle, and no help with the tinnitus; I get to listen to the Cicadas serenade me year-round.

I also have VA disability for hearing loss and tinnitus. With the hearing aids the VA gave me I don't notice the tinnitus at all.

 

[Jimbo41]

My doc says that hearing aids will greatly reduce my tinnitus, that it's caused by a loss of high frequency input due to hearing loss. I'm considering it.

 

[TXBryan]

Every specialist I've consulted agreed they don't know what causes it and there is no effective treatment or cure. There's a laundry list of "causes" but they can't pinpoint specifics and hearing aids help a few but not most. Cicadas have been residents in my ear canals for many years know and most of the time they can be ignored except when they can't.

I can still hear deer walking slowly through the woods 50 yards away but tracking a conversation with the soft-voiced in a bar or other noisy place can be quite frustrating. Good luck!

Bryan