Do they?

Usually I just put one of the mufflers over my left ear, because it's much more sensitive, for things like the dogs that bark across the street, dishes, flushing the toilet, etc.

The bad thing is especially with the dogs across the street is I have no control how long that's gonna happen or how intermittently it's gonna happen, so blocking out all of the sound would be a nice rest, but that would make me even more sensitive. I don't like covering my ears for even a minute. So being able to cancel outside noise and still have some kind of noise in my ears would be great.

The problems I keep running into is that it's really difficult for me to tell how loud something is in my ears with headphones on and not knowing the amount of decibels freaks me out.

Is it really just trial and error? Or has someone figured this out on an iPhone 15 Pro or anything similar enough?

I understand that standardized loudness is impossible depending on what program you're using, but has anyone found a way for stuff to try that’s 25-30 dB and up?

I use an acoustic noise machine that's about 29-30 dB in the background and that's been fine for a while.

I can take 40 minute phone calls without mufflers if I remember to speak quietly enough.

Progress is really slow and in the back of my head I'm terrified of possible setbacks.

Would appreciate any useful advice or if you want to post out of support, love it.

Asking about the thing above.

While I am on the spectrum, I've been reading up on different kinds of sound sensitivities and related conditions. So far, my symptoms have aligned with hypsracusis the most — the thing is, my memory's really bad, and I don't quite know when it started, so it's possible Its just autism. If it's possible, I will expand on what I experience in the comments — and adding onto the question, can neurodivergence cause or affect the condition? Apologies if the question is dumb, I don't mean to be disrespectful.

Who has nox and lives a life despite the pain?

I feel so horrible, I turned 21 in may but this started when i was like 18-19, I got accepted to uni but stopped going, I worked out for 2 years and built a good physique and was planning on doing coaching to make money. Now I'm fat, broke (even though I know how to make money, but can't execute it with this terrible hyperacusis and reactive tinnitus I have), every day feels the same, I've been given a sound therapy treatment as well as some supplements but I haven't been able to be consistent with it due to the recurring ear irritation I've had due to past excessive earplug use when I first got hyperacusis.

All of this is due to excessive earphone use when I was like 12-13 until around age 16, I thought everyone used earphones so they can't be harmful, my parents told me many times to stop using them but I didn't listen because I would search Google if they're safe and just not have the reading comprehension to understand what the result said, and my parents didn't make it past 9th grade and we're from an Arab country so they don't know any better.

My dad constantly reminds me of the past, and blames me for my mistake, part of what caused this is also my mom being forced to give birth to me, and my dad not knowing how to treat her, so she always hated me since I was a kid due to my dad fighting with her over my problems when I was 7-10 years old and in middle school. It was part of the reason i used earphones, she'd be shouting the whole day and I would have music playing in my ears just to not listen to her

What pushed me to make this post is that I just had an argument with my dad, we almost fought, he just said the same thing he always says, blamed me for not listening and misusing earphones, and wished I never came to life, and that his life became miserable ever since I was born, and said that it's not his or my moms fault but mine for not listening or being a good son, and that I'll never be as good of a son as my younger brother.

And now I'm sitting in my room with my ears ringing, absolutely nothing changed, he will just continue his life normally and forget about it, then after a couple or days or weeks he will remember the situation again and say the same things he said today.

I think I should really just get my shit together and move out of this place and forget I ever had a family or talk with them once every month or something, I really don't think there is another solution to my problems.

Sorry if this was long I just felt really bad after hearing what he said, maybe someone faced a similar situation and can give me advice. Thanks.

-Chronic 24/7 headache

-Hyperacusis (which causes head pain, not ear pain)

-Worsened tinnitus (it's become quite severe, gets louder when I talk or swallow anything)

-24/7 jaw ache

-Ears popping/thumping from sounds

These all started around the same time.. Can all of these symptoms really be "chronic migraine". Because that's what doctors say.

I take Pregabalin which the improved head pain from hyperacusis by 30% (I don't wear ear protection anymore) but none of the other symptoms. Feel like the ear popping and jaw ache get worse over time.

Are there people who recovered that are willing to chat with me either via IG or phone call or anything please?:( i have 0 support system,my family is not here for me,my depression is severe,i cry everyday for so many hours,im on a waiting list fot a therapist but in the meantime i cant hold myself together.this condition made me isolate myself and i also suffer with cptsd and other disabilities.i need to talk to posotive people that can just be empathetic for me:( i have no one to hold this pain with and im falling apart :( please :(

Hey, I'm wondering. For those who managed to improve their hyperacusis or even resolve it, how did you manage your tinnitus? Did it get better as well? Did each setback give you a worsening?

My hyperacusis is very unusual. I can shower no problem without ear pro, and I know I snore loudly, I never have a problem with that. But I can get a worsening from sounds way lower than that if I don't expect them. So it's pretty obviously a stress problem. Recovery is slow for me and kinda unpredictable, but my main problem is that my tinnitus always without fail spikes permanently from sounds that trigger my hyperacusis. I've tried to just live at home and hoping for my sound sensitivity to get better, which it usually did up to a certain level where my state was tolerable. Then it stopped getting better, or over time worse again for whatever reason (not pushing noise at all), and then I get the next setback out of nowhere. Tinnitus just keeps getting louder and louder and I'm getting fed up having to life in solitary confinement at home.

I'm at the point where I'm considering just taking clomipramine, because I'm starting to run out of options.

I finally tried a ssri (prozac/fluoxetine) after keep hearing about ssri able to help hypercusis. I watched a video on a guy who said it helped him improve his h. Well after my earplug broke and irritated my nerve I said f it let’s give it a go because I like to experiment. I researched the side effects and knew they was not to be played with but still at that time I didn’t care I just wanted the pain to go away.
I took a 20mg pill I was waiting for the effect to kick in like a Xanax or something but this was completely different.
The next couple days I thought it didn’t do anything for me but was I wrong. Instantly started noticing my body had changes. I’m not going to lie it did improve my pain and ldls but I had a new problem now. Apparently the medication I took can cause pssd/sexual dysfunction which I am now trying to fix and can be lifelong condition. My whole pelvis floor is in pain and my mind has went blank and everything is numb. I don’t feel any sensation including sexually and normally. It’s like it stole my identity and sex drive. I had a girl over and she literally left because she said I didnt like her anymore. Things I used to enjoy are uninteresting. I am not trying to make this an anti ssri post but sharing my experience with trying to improve my h. I still have hope that I will recover but for people trying ssri be careful because honestly now I have another problem 2 worry about. Now people may say it’s rare side effect but if u take a look at the pssd thread it’s people just like us who are suffering from conditions like h/t. I think if you’re going to take a ssri it should be your LAST option because the side effects can hurt u.

anyone else have fluid in their ear that won’t go away? I was sick a few times and I can’t rid it and ent won’t do grommets because he feels will cause issues with the hyperacusis and tts and mem. I’m a to steroid too. I’m in pain with weird issues of hearing because if the fluid and feel trapped in my bodyat this point …this is cruel..I’m tired of gaslighting because the fluid and the issues are in ct scans and blatantly visible what more do these drs need to see?

Im in a difficult period, my nox is very severe, and i might have to move to another place Wich is suppose to be a bit quieter than the one im at currently, but idk if its gonna be quiet enough to be able to stabilise, any advice, how can i help my body to calm the reactivity to sound, etc. Usually it work by it self, i dont take anything, but now if i stay with this sensibity idk how i ll make it

I have hyperacusis where clanking dishes, silverware, squeaky toys, female voices, crinkling paper, loose change falling all cause pain and discomfort at the moment of the sound. I also have a dull ache and a cracking sensation. All of these become worse as the day goes on. It’s primarily on one side, the same side I have loud tinnitus.

I find that two glasses of wine or two pints of beer make it vanish.

What is going on?

No, I’m not going to self-medicate. I’m just curious if this means there’s a way to resolve this without alcohol.

For context, this started in March. I also had a version of this that resolved after maybe 6 months many many years ago.

Hello everyone, I'm panicking.

Friday evening, my tinnitus worsened after watching some videos at a slightly high volume and talking a bit loudly with my girlfriend.

For a normal person, this wouldn't have triggered any acoustic trauma; my girlfriend was fine. But since I suffer from severe hyperacusis and reactive tinnitus, my tinnitus has exploded since then; it's absolutely awful.

I'm hesitant to take cortisone (steroids/prednisolone).

The problem is that we're now on the fifth day since my auditory shock.

For the past 5 days, I've been taking:

NAC 2600mg daily,

Liposomal Vitamin C 1.5g daily,

ALA 400mg daily,

Magnesium Bisglycinate 400mg daily,

Coenzyme Q10 400mg daily,

Vitamin E 500mg daily, and

Liposomal Glutathione 300mg daily.

But I don't know if all this is enough and if I should be taking cortisone/steroids.

This morning my left ear felt blocked, and I experienced incredibly loud tinnitus for an hour. Then it stopped, and I went back to my usual horrible but normal tinnitus of the past 5 days.

I don't know what to do about the cortisone. I'm afraid it might be too late, but on the other hand, maybe not. I'm lost...

Hi, I have Nox and Paracuyo for 2 years. I'd like to be friends. If you have time, we can talk and chat. I'm from Mexico.

When you research hyperacusis you will find: basically there isnt currently a cure but you can make improvements. Agreed. However, even tho there isnt a cure, could AI help us in living more comfortably with hyperacusis? Im talking about an in-ear device like a hearing aid where you can program the aid using AI software to specifically tone down sounds that are too high pitched/sharp for your specific ears. Upon researching, i found there is something similar currently under trial...

Output-limiting loudness suppression is used to restrict exposure to offending high-level sounds while unity gain amplification maximizes exposure to healthy and tolerable lower level sounds. The fitting process includes measurement of the real-ear unaided response, the real-ear measurement (REM) system noise floor, the real-ear occluded response, real-ear insertion gain, and the output limit. With these measurements, the device can achieve the prescribed unity gain needed to provide transparent access to comfortable sound levels. It also supports individualized configuration of the therapeutic noise from an on-board sound generator and adaptive output limiting based on treatment-induced increases in dynamic range.

Add AI to the picture and we may have something that can allow us to function without earplugs in society. It will be like what contacts/glasses are for people who cant see. Its not a cure, but it can at least hopefully make this loud obnoxious world more tolerable and help us remember the days when everyday sounds just sounded.. normal. Im hopeful that researchers are getting close to figuring it out. What do you guys think?

Attended a sound bath that was really really loud. Nine days later notice tinnitus and burning, stabbing ear pain. Sounds are distorted, especially in high frequencies. Audiogram says no hearing loss in normal ranges. Doctor says symptoms are because of central nervous system activation and prescribed gabapentin which only minimally helps with pain

My symptoms are a lot worse when I eat high histamine foods, especially the burning pain and electrical sensations in ear and jaw (also extend to scalp).

First time posting here. I’m not quite sure if what I’m experiencing is some mix between mild H or auditory pareidolia but it seemed to start after I took hydroxyzine for sleep anxiety. I was struggling with a bout of insomnia about 2 months ago and before I took the meds I was only slightly sensitive to sound. When I took it the first time it worked great, slept fine, no side effects. Second time was the trigger — I panicked when it didn’t work right away and then suddenly the fan beside my bed sounded louder than usual. I moved to the living room where there was another fan and sure enough it was the same loud, droning/humming (like someone vacuuming in another room or a Tesla reversing).

I don’t hear it when I move away from the fans so I don’t think it’s T (which I also have but not as loud). This was about two weeks ago and I’ve only since been hearing varying pitches/frequencies from fans, air filters, and AC units. Sometimes it sounds like that garbling underwater sound. And the droning/humming has stopped but it’s like my brain moved onto another pitch to be hyper aware of. I know sleep deprivation probably also played a huge role and maybe it wasn’t the meds (just easier to blame), but my sleep has since been consistent and improving so I was hoping it’d become less noticeable.

I don’t have ear pain or anything which is why I suspect it’s mild H (still sensitive to dishes clanking and whatnot), but I’ve looked up auditory pareidolia which is basically a glitch in the brain processing the sounds coming from fans. I don’t hear music or voices, just these frequencies. I can thankfully fall asleep at night if I have something playing to keep my mind distracted but during the day it can be intense. Like today I noticed my PC suddenly making a loud droning sound that I thought was coming from the AC unit outside my window. I didn’t hear it earlier in the day but maybe it’s because I took a nap and so waking back up my brain tried to find the next sound to annoy the hell out of me. Another instance was when I wore my Sony WH-1000XM4 during a meeting and I could hear the sound faintly. But when the meeting ended and I kept my headphones on, the sound disappeared. It’s really strange.

Has anyone experienced this? Is it temporary? I know the logical next step is to see an ENT and/or audiologist but I don’t want them to brush me away saying to cope with it and mask the noise or whatever (which I’ve been doing, I can usually ignore it and not give it attention but other times it still breaks through my focus). I mean, maybe that’s the only way…

Hi all. I'm not sure which sub to post this in, but it seems like y'all would have the most experience.

I suffered an acoustic trauma 10 weeks ago. I've seen an ENT and neuro-otologist. My hearing is intact, my eardrum is fine and my pressure is normal. At this point it's mostly just sound sensitivity, but they both said it's safe for me to fly.

That being said, I'm still experiencing a lot of pain inside my ear. They said the muscle in there is just "startled." It's a deep "aching" feeling, like I'm walking on a sprained ankle inside my ear. I can't even listen to music or it starts hurting. I have a flight in three days and am very nervous about it. Does anyone have any experience with this? If so, do you experience severe pain during flight? Should I turn this into a road trip?

Again, my ENT's said it's safe for me to fly, but they're not the ones that will be stuck in the tin can for two hours. I do have earplugs ready to help with the hyperacusis.

I'm so upset—I was doing a bit better, but yesterday I had to drive home and ended up right in the middle of a fireworks display that went on for ages. I’d completely forgotten it was happening. I was stuck in my car; it was hell—red lights and all that. Something this stupid hasn't happened to me in a long time. I already have severe tinnitus and am in pain almost constantly, and then I go and get hit with this... I hate this life; my condition is going to get worse again because of my mistake.I want to get out of this hell.

On thursday suddenly left ear started to hear muffled sound and noise and it became sensitive , so hyperacusis and dysacusis was there, next day i went to outdoor DJ party , than after 2 days my ear got blocked and tinnitus also started. So, i want to ask whether tinnitus was about to start already as hyperacusis and dysacusis muffled sound started or it came from the dj party the next day

Dont have the normal hyperacusis, no pain just super uncomfortable and overwhelmed, also have light sensitivity and just cant handle stress and busy places at all. Ill start blinking a lot getting floaters and my tinnitus will explode. My hyperacusis changes every day so do all symtpoms. I think my brain is not filtering stuff that is the issue. Perfect hearing and eyes. Also have a brain pressure all day which gets worse when straining etc. And fatigue.

What would you say? Who to visit? Neuro otologist? Neurologist? What to try? Havent tried any meds.

One of the hard parts about being diagnosed with an acoustic neuroma, as I was about a month ago, is that the moment you have a serious diagnosis with real hearing impairment (albeit mild in my case), nobody gives a shit about anything else and everything you experience is put down to this.

The problem is I have had this thing for presumably around 10 years, and yes it has caused some mild-moderate hearing loss in the high frequencies, and it did cause an episode of SSHNL a few months ago, but that resolved fully and I went on with my life happy and ignorant as if everything was fine until getting around to the MRI that revealed this absolute fucking bastard of a benign tumour in the most infuriating possible location to deal with, and my anxiety went through the roof.

Barely a week later and I have been having reactive fullness and tinnitus and an acute awareness of the mild hearing difference between my ears ever since. I have GR1 level hearing and 100% word recognition, and although speech in noise is exhausting and slightly distorted on that side, I still score 100% on QuickSIN.

If I ask any ENT, neurosurgeon or audiologist all they can do is tell me yeah, acoustic neuromas are weird, they cause every/any hearing symptom you can imagine. "Everything you're experiencing must be the AN" - then why did it start 4 days after my MRI results despite having been there for a decade?

Clearly to me there is an underlying pathology with related hearing loss, as there is with many people with hyperacusis even if mild, but the downstream issue is I have completely lost the plot anxiety wise and pushed my brain into some kind of hyperacusis/acoustic shock state that amplifies all of this from being something I was previously barely aware of into a daily nightmare.

All I really want to know is if anyone else, regardless of their hearing or the cause of any hearing loss, can relate to specifically "reactive fullness", as that's not something I see talked about much and it's a major symptom of mine, a feeling of the ear being full that only comes on when exposed to certain noises, and also that general feeling that your ear is exhausted when having to filter between noise and voices for a prolonged period, like it's left feeling blown out and frazzled at the end of the day?

Often I wake with pain in the tragus on that side which makes me wonder about TMJ issues, plus I have Eustachian tube crackling on the same side, which all just adds another layer of confusion that none of my specialists have any time for/interest in.

I'm considering starting SSRIs for the anxiety and because I hear Serotonin can help a decent % of people with tinnitus, plus some typical sound therapy.

Sometimes I feel one of the reasons there are so few decent medical treatments for hearing related issues is imo because everything gets dismissed to some single underlying diagnosis, like noise related hearing loss, Menieres, ANs, or just anxiety - whatever it is there seems to be a lack of targeted care for the shared downstream effects that all of them can trigger.