hearing
 

Good morning to you all.

I am curious if any of you have problems with your hearing or, more precisely, with understanding speech.
I have had tinnitus in both ears for about 22 years now and it gets a little worse every year.
Having a conversation is very stressful and watching TV or listening to music is not the pleasure it used to be. I might as well watch a silent movie or listen to an instrumental performance rather than a song.

The only way I can follow a conversation is, if there is no background noise and the person is speaking very slowly and and enunciates very clearly.
I have seen an otolaryngologist and had ear tests done and the verdict was, loss of high-frequency hearing but, I seem to hear high musical notes quite well.

In the accident that caused my RSD I also sustained a brain-injury and I now wonder if the hearing or understanding problem is RSD related or due to the brain-injury. It seems to me that the brain does not process the input from the aural nerve fast enough and gets overwhelmed by the constant stream of signals.

If any of you have any experience with this or any ideas, I'd appreciate your input.

Thank you.

Woodsman

HI ,,, I will keep you all lifted up in prayer,,,,,,,,,,bobber

Its not uncommon for older people ,,exspecially the elderly,, to lose the ability to hear high pitch sounds,,,exspecially smoke detectors,,i know alot of elderly family memebers and friends, that have this problem,,,bass sounds they can hear,,or may be a little hard of hearing ,,but its not uncommon as we get older not to be able to hear high pitch sounds,,personally,i would think it would be the other way around,,but its not,,i would still seek the advice from your dr,,,good luck,,bobber ,,,,,,,,,,,plus its dangerous to them and you when driving or walking thru a populous place,,and not able to hear a smoke detector,,,they do make devices to flash lights in your house when your smoke detector goes off,,,and or change the sound,,,good luck

I wonder too if it might be some sort of cognition issue..
foggy brain type of thing..??
which could go back to the brain injury.
Is it only sounds that are a problem, or comprehending what is being said?

When my RSI/TOS was at it worst I had trouble following conversations in a crowded places or large groups, I couldn't multi task at all.
I had to focus on one thing at a time, it was kind of like I had ADD & a bit of Alzheimer's for awhile..

Hi woodsman,
I have had tinnitus in my right ear for about 15 years...it is a constant screeching sound..when i first noticed it, I almost had an anxiety attack because it was constant and there is not way to escape it..

After i started neurontin the tinnitus has become worse, much louder..
During the day, the noise of the day drowns out some of the tinnitus, but at night it is deafening...i have a selection of C.D.s that I listen to as I'm trying to fall asleep.

just wondering if your issues might be related to any meds you might be taking..
hope4thebest

re: hearing
 

Good morning.

Thank you for your reply hope4thebest.
The tinnitus may be part of the problem and that may be related to medication.
Initially I took large amounts of Tylenol3, Talwin and Atasol30 but, I soon realized that those meds did not do a thing for the pain and I gave them up in 1984. After that I took Anaprox, 275mg three times a day for 23 years but quit that as well after my heart attack. When I stopped taking Anaprox, I found that this med had not done a thing for the pain either; Anaprox may have caused the heart attack since I don't have atherosclerosis.

Jo*mar, you may be right on the money with the "cognition issue", that has occurred to me as well.
Some problem with sounds may be related to the tinnitus; the phone seems to be ringing at the same frequency as my ears so that I have trouble hearing that. When it comes to speech though there seems to be another issue.
If it were loss of high frequency hearing I should have more trouble understanding women than men but, that is not the case in all instances.
Watching TV I can understand some female newscasters quite well and some males not at all. TV adds, where the volume is kept at a constant amplitude, I can understand without problem. The highest note on my keyboard is C7 at 2093 Hertz, well above the limit of a woman's speech and I can hear that even at low volume so, high frequency hearing loss does not seem to be the problem.

Turning up the volume is no help and only leads, eventually, to pain.
If someone speaks slowly and clearly I have no problem following the conversation especially when there is no background noise. If two people speak at the same time I am lost so, cognition seems a more likely culprit than hearing.

bobber, you are correct of course that, as we get older we lose some hearing but, I am only 65 and other than speech and the telephone I don't seem to have a problem hearing sounds. I sing in two choirs and would expect to have a real problem with learning new songs if my hearing were impaired. The problem I have is, understanding what is said and, remembering and concentrating.
Maybe it's a combination of RSD and brain injury and I will just have to live with it. The Otolaringologist I saw was no help; when I told him that something in my head, around the ears, felt swollen all the time, he very curtly said, " nothing is swollen." It seems that Doctors around here are not interested in pursuing any difficult problem; it interferes with looking after their, admittedly very high patient load.

Anyway, thank you all for your input, I appreciate it.

woodsman

Howdy bro,

I have some serious hearing problems too, and it feels like my ears are stuffed up. At first I would always be messing with my ears as if there was wax build up. Also there is the annoying constant tinnitus, and I would also get a roaring sound every so often that would lead to a round of vertigo.....that was always fun.

I used to love to listen to music too, and now that joy is pretty much gone because it just doesnt sound right, the bass sounds like it is distorted. I have the same problem hearing people as you do. If we are in a busy place I can almost forget it (I just sit there with this cheesy grin :D), or if a TV is playing in the background, this too will make it nearly impossible to understand what people are saying.

I do believe the RSD has added to the effects of the troubles by somehow affecting the nerves in the ears. My ear nose and throat doc says it is highly possible as my hearing drastically got worse since getting the RSD. I have had the meniere's for about 30 years, and since RSD have had the most trouble with it.

I guess there really isnt much they can do to help it, and the darn hearing aids dont really help either because we hear the sounds coming in all fuzzled up, and it hurts LOL.

I wish I had some ideas on how to help, or what you might try, but im kinda in the same boat. Have tried all the little gadgets from TV, and trun the TV up with little luck. Got tired of saying "huh", or "what was that again", or my favorite...."SPEAK UP!". :)

Hi Allen!
My mother is severely hard of hearing..also has severe tinnitus in one ear...
She had a hard time hearing the T.V. and would crank the volume up to where her neighbors were "enjoying " the same show...
I got a pair of speakers from Radio Shack and hooked them up from the t.V. to a little table next to where she sits...now all she has to do is control the volume on the speakers and she can hear the T.V. perfectly from the speakers!!
I hope this helps!!

hope4thebest

right on Allen
 

[QUOTE=allentgamer;547948]Howdy bro,

I have some serious hearing problems too, and it feels like my ears are stuffed up. At first I would always be messing with my ears as if there was wax build up. Also there is the annoying constant tinnitus, and I would also get a roaring sound every so often that would lead to a round of vertigo.....that was always fun.

Hi Allen.
You describe the problem very well Allen.
The stuffed up feeling, the roaring and the vertigo. I frequently lose my balance
and stagger like a drunk. When I lie down, I have to start out on my left side. If I try to lie on my back, I get nausea and everything starts to spin. After lying on my left side for a while I can turn onto my back without problem.
I have told my ENT about the RSD but he didn't respond; doesn't have a clue or doesn't want to deal with it like most other Docs.
I will just have to grin and bear it it seems.

hope4thebest,
the solution you found for your mother sounds like an idea worth trying. I'll see what I can find here in the line of speakers and try it myself.

Thanks for your input.

woodsman

Hi Woodsman,

I suffer tinnitus as a result of a reaction to a drug that was administered to me for my RSD (IV Pamidronate) apparently a very rare side effect, the story of my life. I also developed vertigo now mostly triggered when I travel on planes, trains or boats which is often. When I first got tinnitus it was like a loud roaring motor inside my head. I could not hear what anyone was saying to me over top of the motor noise in my head, it was very frightening. The doctor gave me a course of prednisone, along with 20 sessions in a HBOT chamber. My vertigo started after the HBOT dives. Ultimately between the 2 treatments it calmed things down but the tinnitus kept coming back sometimes quite significantly other times just a low buzzing sound.

My ENT specialist did not want to keep giving me prednisone because of my history with RSD bone loss and rare side effects.

He offered me a little known treatment that stopped the loud roaring noise in it's tracks. He gave me 3 treatments of a steroid injection directly into the eardrum. At first I rejected it for fear of the pain but I honestly got to the point where I was loosing my mind so I decided to go ahead and try the injections and I'm very happy I did as it has made a big difference for me. (now I know why Van Gogh cut his ear off, they say he suffered from tinnitus too). Apparently one of the few treatments that offer any significant relief from tinnitus is IV lidocaine, which I also have every 3 weeks

Now my tinnitus is mild a very low buzzing sound that still comes and goes but no where near as bad as the loud motor, mainly it is intensified typically when I have a head cold or when I fly.

In the end I did lose part of my hearing in the high frequencies so I can related to the frustrations you have with background noise causing confusion. I don’t like to be in loud places trying to have a conversation.

The question is was I predisposed to tinnitus because I have RSD or is it my RSD that causes it to flare up? I recently read that it is now thought that the noise originates in the brain and not in the ear, as was previously believed. If the ear is damaged by exposure to loud noises or certain medications (including aspirin), the brain may try to compensate and end up producing electrical signals that a person hears as a ringing in the ears. .

Here is a link to the Mayo Clinic that discussed causes of tinnitus.
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/tin...SECTION=causes

MsL

I meant to mention that I also suffer from TMJ in my left jaw a long standing problem since childhood. I think that when it gets flared up it affects my tinnitus and I do think that my RSD has made it worse.

Do you have any problems with TMJ? Also did your Otolaringologist do an MRI on your brain?

MsL

Hello All,
Woodsman,
I have rsd, and tbi, from separate incidents, 15 years apart.
I had the tinnitus from NSAIDs, and, tapered those off to methadone.

After the head injury, I got all kinds of weird "sensory" things.
Hearing, I got some tinnitus, hearing odd things, Not hearing things, etc.
Weird sense of smell. Sometimes I think the place is on fire, I get up and look around.
Sight, more weirdness.

It has calmed down for the most part, but I still have vertigo, and general "weird" feelings, that aren't strictly pain...

I also take aricept 5mg. in the AM, to clear the general "fogginess", to clear my thinking.
It really helps.

Good luck and good feelings to you, and all!

Pete

Hey woodsman you sound as though you might have meniere's disease. When the doctor says he doesnt see swelling, but you feel swelling, that is one of the symptoms.

The full feeling in your ear is from fluid build up from eating salty things, or fluid retention from medication, or it can be from allergies. The meniere's usually comes and goes, and progressively gets worse over the years. The attacks of vertigo can last from an hour to as long as a week or more. And they are no fun at all because you cannot do anything at all if it is a severe attack.

I dont spin much anymore because the darn disease has pretty much damaged the inner beyond repair. I am pretty much deaf in the left ear, and have some hearing loss in the right ear. The left ear is constantly ringing, but it does make for a good nights sleep LOL.

Just put the right ear in the pillow, and a bomb can go off and I wont wake up LOL! I do have that off balance feeling all the time though, and have to be real careful turning. If I turn to fast I can wind up on the floor, or in someones lap :D. And I cannot watch traffic or trains go by, oh man talk about makin someone dizzy LOL!

You might ask the doctor about meniere's disease and see what he says. He can give you something for the dizziness, and also a diuretic.

Hey hope4thebest, that speaker idea is a real good one, gonna try that one out. Will let ya know how it goes! :winky:

TY!:hug:

re: TMJ and more
 

Thank you for your posts.

Msl,
I know that TMJ can cause tinnitus but, I don't have that and, no, the Doctor did not do an MRI on my brain.
An MRI is an expensive procedure and MRI machines are not plentiful around here so, a hearing/understanding problem is not serious enough to warrant an MRI. Since the ear tests didn't show any problems with my ears, I assume that the problem originates in the brain as you mention in your 12:30 reply yesterday.
I have read the article from the Mayo Clinic, thanks for the link, and others on tinnitus and don't believe that my problem with understanding is caused by tinnitus. The tinnitus I can live with most of the time but, the inability to understand what people say is a real problem and removes, as RSD does already, another dimension from my social life.

Allen,
I had 2 test done on my ears; can't remember the names. They involved a pressure test and a test with different sounds at different volumes while measuring the nerve conduction time. Nothing was said about Menieres.
Sleeping on my right side could possibly be a solution but, I can't lie on my right side; too painful.

Pete,
I do have some strange things happening. My peripheral vision picks up sudden quick movement but, when I turn and look, nothing's there. Strange odours and, not so severe and not so often now, explosions in my head.
Those explosions are loud enough and strong enough to make my head jump off the pillow yet, there is no sound.
I also have short periods, when I sing, when I seem to black out. Can't read the words on the sheet music and can't remember even when I know the lyrics. Same with conversation; can't think of even the simplest words or remember the name of a person I have known for years.
Fortunately I am well past embarrassment and simply tell the truth with a laugh; "I can't remember your name."

Like so many other things that RSD has changed in my life, I will just have to live with this problem.

Thank you all for your input and have a day of peace and joy.

woodsman

The reason I mentioned the MRI was because my doctors ordered one to rule out such things as a as a brain tumor, I think it was important part of the diagnosis and yes here too we have big line ups for them. It was not an unnecessary test.

Sounds like you have some serious symptoms that should be investigated. I wouldn't chalk it all up to RSD.

MsL

Hi Msl.

You are right, my problem with understanding speech and the tinnitus may not be related to RSD. On the other hand, this has been going on for too long to be a brain tumor. I would think that, after about 18 years, a tumor would have grown large enough to replace all of my brain; maybe it has, eh? :D

Good thought though. Thanks Msl

Have a good one.
woodsman

http://dl2.glitter-graphics.net/pub/...vyez89bmqc.gif
:hug:
Dew

Hi Woodsman,

I wasn't saying that it is a brain tumour , just that that is one of the many things that they rule out. Obviously I don't know your history but it sounded like your Otolaringologist was dismissive of you and your complaints. Personally I'd go for a second opinion.

When I was sent home from the emergency room with no answers and no help the tinnitus was still getting worse and I got really scared. The doctors who examined me in emerg just weren't connecting the dots and I was only seen by a resident ENT doctor who basically shrugged his shoulders and treated me for a migraine, I knew it was not a migraine.

I turned right around and went and went directly to the ENT department. I did a sit-in until the head of the department would see me. He ultimately and they got me the right help.

I hope you do find out what is behind this and get the right treatment.

MsL

We'll be prayin for ya here too bro, the inner ear has a bunch of things that can go wrong and can be real complicated. They may never get to the root of the problems. :(

thanks MsL
 

[QUOTE=Mslday;549193]Hi Woodsman,

I wasn't saying that it is a brain tumour , just that that is one of the many things that they rule out. Obviously I don't know your history but it sounded like your Otolaringologist was dismissive of you and your complaints. Personally I'd go for a second opinion.

If I lived in the big city, I probably would go for that second opinion but, as it is, I would have to travel about 200 miles to get to a good ENT. I have lived with this for a long time and can continue to do so for the next 45 years, unless it gets much worse.
Thanks again.
woodsman

that's what I am thinking too
 

Yes, Allen, I have resigned myself to living with this problem.
I have spent too much time in the medical system in the early years and have no intention of getting into that rut again now for something I can live with.
If it is a problem with the brain, nothing can be done about it anyway. People will just have to put up with me. :)

Thanks,
woodsman

I can hear but I have ear pain/pressure which I think is from my eye pain and pressure. I too also had another mri of my brain and the ear. This was not only to look at tumors but fluids or other things which I am not sure what pressing. I am assuming you are not in the US but is there any way you could get one? I had been to all the other specialties like the ear doctor,11 eye specialist etc and the pain was so high I went back to my neuro who did the mri again. I had one a year ago for my legs of the brain though. Have you been tested for other conditions like auto immune in addition?Feel better