Tinnitus Support Group

-Seems to come and go, sometimes stays for a long time (current bout has been bothering me since early June.) It's been bothering me on and off for perhaps 4 years (I'm in my early 40s).

-Not 100% sure that this is the case, but seems to often coincide with swimming. (That is, swimming may trigger it.)

-It's always only in my right ear.

-I won't bother to describe the ringing I hear as I don't think that it's relevant.

-In addition to the ringing, I also have difficulty hearing when this kicks up -- I have reduced hearing in my right ear and it also distorts the sounds I hear, which is distracting

-Popping my ears (like what happens on airplanes) can sometimes make the ringing go away/hearing improve for a short time, but it doesn't always work.

-It's not just a hearing issue, my ear also feels different when it's bothering me. It feels as though my ear is congested, or that it's under water, or that it's under some sort of pressure. It doesn't hurt, it just feels different.

-Certain sounds/frequencies seem to reverberate in my right ear such as electric guitars or deep bass. It's almost as if I can feel them distorting in my ear (if that makes any sense...)

I visited my doctor and a hearing specialist a couple of years ago. Unfortunately, the ear wasn't acting up at the time. Test showed that hearing in my right ear was slightly poorer than my left, but still above average. The doctors' advice: let's watch it, and make sure it doesn't get any worse.

I'm posting here because though I've read a lot online about Tinnitus, I haven't come across many very good descriptions of what experiencing Tinnitus is like (apart from the ringing), and because of this, was wondering if this is indeed what I have -- or perhaps I should be checking to see if it is something else.

Thank you for any insight!

I've gotten to the point where I just live with the little sounds that once bothered me. I had expensive hearing aides (digital) and they can amplify your weaker areas of the sonogram.

Captain Kirk of Star Trek had tinnitus so bad that it was driving him nutty. He got some kind of aide that somehow helped, but I imagine they are expensive.

A good ear doc sounds like what you need. When you swim, how about wearing ear plugs to avoid getting water in the bad ear?

I hear strange static (white noise), like when you leave those old CRT TVs on.

It doesn't bother me that much, but I can hear it if I am in a quiet place, and sometimes it used to bother me when I went to sleep.

These days I ignore it but I am not sure if it's Tinnitus or not as the noise isn't very loud and when I do hear it, I am sure it's my head processing stuff.

Is it normal compared to those with Tinnitus?

It might be worth you looking into a condition known as Menieres Disease. It has similar symptoms to tinnitus but also symptoms like 'aural fullness' which you describe when saying your ear feels congested or under pressure.

Hearing loss is also associated with Menieres and this may get worse over time.

Perhaps a visit to a ear,nose and throat specialist might be a good idea, they would have more experience than a regular doctor, I would imagine.

leonard j