[nuphones]

I'm going to go see a doctor now within the week. I'm hoping that this will resolve itself on its own within two or three weeks time. But, an ear check, possible cleaning for ear wax could not hurt in any way. And next time, I will be much more careful about what I subject my ears too.

 

[sclamb]

Get yourself a Radio Shack SPL meter. I use mine every time I listen through the headphones and I make sure that I am listening at around 70-75dB peak and around 65-70 continuous and no more, especially if I am listening for an extended period (a few hours). It takes about 5 seconds to take a reading.

Unfortunately I got tinnitus after a bad ear infection but I am determined to protect what hearing I have left.

 

[nuphones]

Here's the latest. I visited a doctor, but not a specialist. I have a referral for a specialist, but the doctor thinks it will resolve itself on its own over the next few days.

What the doctor thinks, and I think there may be some validity to this, is that wearing earplugs ALL the time, may not actually be beneficial. What the ear and brain does is it adapts. So, if your hearing is normal, but you deprive yourself of practically all sound, your brain will adapt so that your hearing becomes super sensitive.

And this is what was happening with my ears. Every time I removed the earplugs, I found myself super sensitive to ANY noise, even noises most people would consider to be very quiet, such as the ruffling of paper. The more sensitive my hearing became, the more I believed I needed earplugs.

The more I wore them, the more sensitive my hearing, etc. So eventually, your ears (or your brain processing what's picked up by the ears) become super sensitive. So my brain was basically amplifying everything.

Right now, I'm sans earplugs and letting my brain re-adapt to a normal range of noises.

I found that as I was having a normal conversation with the doctor, I barely noticed the buzzing. But, now that I'm focusing on it (by writing about it), I can hear it. I really do believe that this will just become a non-issue over time.

I am going sans earplugs for good, unless I find myself in a 100+ db environment for any longer than 5 minutes.

Edit: it feels and sounds like my head is stuff up. I think it's because the normal flow of air is blocked up when you wear earplugs 24/7. My recommendation: wear earplugs only when necessary, otherwise your brain will adapt and amplify everything.

 

[myinitialsaredac]

Interesting theory, I remember my ear was plugged to where i couldnt hear out of it for about a week, when they opened the ear up and drained it, even the air moving around my ear was loud, assuming that the plug was forming over a period of years it would explain a gradual increase in sensitivity to create a level volume through the plug.

Dave

 

[ph0rk]

Most people don't realize how quiet 60-70 dB really is, especially C-weighted.

If you can't hear your fingers drumming on a table or lightly snapping fingers, you may be listening too loud.

 

[DrBenway]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ph0rk /img/forum/go_quote.gif Most people don't realize how quiet 60-70 dB really is, especially C-weighted. If you can't hear your fingers drumming on a table or lightly snapping fingers, you may be listening too loud.

I've always used the finger-snap test as a reality check when listening, but I always wondered whether that was really indicative of anything.

 

[ph0rk]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DrBenway /img/forum/go_quote.gif I've always used the finger-snap test as a reality check when listening, but I always wondered whether that was really indicative of anything.

Well, it will let you know if you've strayed into the 85-90 dB range, at least. It is a bit less useful with IEMs, but works at the lowest listening levels. I've also used the "pen click test" - click in and out a retractable pen. You can definitely be listening loud enough that you can't hear either your fingers or a pen, and depending on the headphones that is quite loud.

Most people can still speak to me or get my attention while listening, so I suppose it is working.

 

[sclamb]

Or better still, invest $60 in a proper SPL meter and get it right and accurate. $60 is not much to preserve your hearing. Just do a 'C' weighted reading.

As another poster said, it is amazing how low volume 70-75dB actually is. No problem of course in straying into the 80-90dB range for short periods (half an hour say), but for extended listening sessions, 70-75dB gives a good margin over the recommended safe continuous level.

This is one reason why I am investing in a set of Grado GS1000s (with Black Dragon cable of course!). They have the bass hump and treble spike that will make them ideal for low level listening, where certainly the bass delivery usually suffers.

 

[scompton]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ph0rk /img/forum/go_quote.gif Most people can still speak to me or get my attention while listening, so I suppose it is working.

x2. In fact, at work, if it's not a conversation, just a quick answer with no follow up, I don't always take of the headphones.

I agree with the idea that your ears get used to low levels. After consciously, lowering my listening level a couple of years ago, other people's normal levels are painfully high to me.

At a meet last month, I had 4 people comment on how low I listened. I had to turn the volume down every time I put on some headphones and every time I saw someone put on headphones after me, they turned it up. It made me feel pretty good about my normal levels.

The one problem with low levels is that if there's any background noise at all, you can't listen to quiet music. I commute daily on the DC Metro and even with IEMs, I can't listen to quiet music.

 

[nuphones]

I'm on day 6 now. While the situation hasn't gotten much worse, it hasn't gotten much better. This is the longest bout I've had to deal with the buzzing. What's frustrating is that I can't pin it down to any one event. Whenever I had this issue in the past, I could clearly point to one specific thing that led up to it: some loud tool, or loud music. This time, it's only repeated listening to music at moderate volume, at nowhere near maximum volume. I did listen to live music, but protected my hearing.

That's what's frustrating. Not knowing the cause, and having it go on for as long as it has. Even though the first doc said I should go unprotected, I don't feel that's such a good idea. I'm wearing earplugs until I can see an audiologist.

 

[nuphones]

Yes, the theory is referred to as "hyperacusis." Here is a link in support of the doctor's claim:

Avoidance of silence

Many people seek silence as a way to escape from the pressures of everyday life. However complete silence is not found in nature, and should be considered 'unnatural'. Consider living in a nest or animal burrow! In the relative silence of houses with doubled-glazed windows, often hermetically sealed from the outside world, the absence of sound stimulation leads to an increase in auditory gain (amplification) in the subconscious auditory pathways. The brain is always looking the best way it can for auditory signals. This process is enhanced by silence which is considered to be one of the signs of possible predator activity . The auditory filters 'open' in an attempt to monitor the external sound environment. External sounds may then increase dramatically in their perceived intensity and intrusiveness. Some people take to wearing ear plugs, perhaps at night, to avoid sounds becoming intrusive, and this simply worsens the sensitivity. When hyperacusis develops there is a great temptation to plug the ear to exclude unwelcome sounds. This is actually making things worse, as it encourages further increase in the amplification of sounds on their way to the auditory (hearing) cortex. When these sounds are heard in the absence of plugs, their perceived loudness is greatly increased.



Quote:

Originally Posted by myinitialsaredac /img/forum/go_quote.gif Interesting theory, I remember my ear was plugged to where i couldnt hear out of it for about a week, when they opened the ear up and drained it, even the air moving around my ear was loud, assuming that the plug was forming over a period of years it would explain a gradual increase in sensitivity to create a level volume through the plug. Dave

 

[dgm]

Speaking of loud environments, I often find that movie theatre sound is exceedingly loud. I'd like to be able to know how many dB are being passed around in there... my ears always ring after going to see a movie.

 

[DrBenway]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dgm /img/forum/go_quote.gif Speaking of loud environments, I often find that movie theatre sound is exceedingly loud. I'd like to be able to know how many dB are being passed around in there... my ears always ring after going to see a movie.

Related to that, I wonder what the availability of inexpensive, powerful home theater systems has done to the average dB level at which people watch and listen to TV in their own homes? I'm guessing that a 5.1 system being pushed by a couple hundred watts is naturally going to be used at higher SPLs than would a conventional TV with a mono speaker or an anemic stereo pair built in.

Between that and the ubiquitousness of ear-buds, I think I am going to invest in hearing aid manufacturers. Should start to pay off in about five to ten years.

 

[scompton]

nuphones, do you live in an area where ragweed pollen is bad, like here in DC. It causes tinnitus in me.

 

[jtsarby]

Back in December of 07 I got permanent Tinnitus. For two months my life was horrible. I did extensive research and went to specialists to try and figure out what was going on. The only thing I discovered was more frustration because all I heard was that there is no cure for it. It caused depression, anxiety, and insomnia for two months. Today I am fine. Yes I still have tinnitus and it is as loud as ever but it does not bother me. Here is the good news. Even if it does not go away, you will eventually get use to it and it not bother you anymore. I believe it is called habituating. Sleeping with white noise (static) at night helps me sleep. Some may tell you that certain foods will cause it to get worse. I went two months scared to eat because of that. I now eat what I want. I don't believe the eating thing affects it. The only thing that usually makes it worse is if my ears are clogged with wax or I have a bad sinus infection. I also realized that silence is something one cannot attain with or without tinnitus. Even when there is no "external" noise coming in there is still sound we hear. Most of it we don't perceive it because we are use to it. Think of breathing. If you stop and try to listen you can hear yourself breathe. Why then are we not annoyed by the sound of our breath? We are use to it and hear it all the time. We have habituated to it over time. The same will happen with Tinnitus.

So enjoy your music but be smart. What this did teach me is that I have not been smart protecting my ears. Good luck!!!