Tinnitus & possible hearing loss?

I'm posting this on behalf of someone else who is highly likely autistic. They have had severe high pitched tinnitus for a few weeks which started 3 days after wax being removed by practice nurse (ear 'syringing') GP has arranged referral to ENT doctor but wait is nearly 5 months. I read that tinnitus is often linked to some hearing loss in certain frequencies (the brain tries to "fill in" the missing sounds) and if so, hearing aids can help. Free hearing tests are available at Specsavers, but hearing aids from them cost £495-£2500 plus, whereas they would be provided free from the NHS, but after a potential 5 month wait suffering from a debilitating constant sensory assault with the usual associated anxiety this causes for those of us on the AS spectrum (although it can of course also be a strain for people who are not autistic) Two types of anti-anxiety medications have been prescribed so far, but neither seem to help.

I just  wanted to ask if anyone has suffered with tinnitus, and if so whether hearing aids helped?

Parents
  • I had tinnitus after child birth. It was explained to me that I basically lost hearing and the noise was basically hearing blood circulation in my head, which normally is covered by more salient noises in the environment. They gave me steroids and things went back to normal. The point was to get steroids as soon as possible, in my case within 24 hours. The doctor said they don't know how steroids worked in this case, just that they do, they don't know why I became deaf and why steroids helped. I was unlucky, then lucky. Maybe your friend should try his luck with steroids, but fast.

  • I have to constantly put some  music to ignore it.I had read the same,that is a sign of hearing loss,so i went to specsavers and had my eyes and ears tested.My ears tested alright for my age.This tinnitus got worse after childbirth as well.It gets worse now that i'm stressed. Sometimes when I walk on street i have it and it just stops the other noises(i mean it covers even a pickhammer ,that sharp it is).Do you get that a lot when you are overloaded too?It seems to get this  worse bit of  if the level of the noise around me is too much..

  • For me it was a finite episode. I am sure I had hearing loss because I couldn't hear my baby cry, or rather I was hearing very strange sound, can't even describe. After steroids the hearing returned and the tinnitus was gone. I don't have it anymore. But now I am more sensitive to many sounds, especially the background vibrations. I definitely get more overloaded by sounds when stressed, then everything agasses me. I don't know whether it is a change or that I pay more attention.

Reply
  • For me it was a finite episode. I am sure I had hearing loss because I couldn't hear my baby cry, or rather I was hearing very strange sound, can't even describe. After steroids the hearing returned and the tinnitus was gone. I don't have it anymore. But now I am more sensitive to many sounds, especially the background vibrations. I definitely get more overloaded by sounds when stressed, then everything agasses me. I don't know whether it is a change or that I pay more attention.

Children
  • They will be looking for signs of infection and abnormalities. 
    I have had tinitis all my life.  I have occasional pulsitate which is a disturbing experience. It's often a sign of an underlying problem, but sometimes nothing to serious to worry about. To find what is causing it requires MRI scans and a very experieced consultant here who will dedicate their timr, and even then it's often not possible to say why you are getting it. 
    I would not worry about it for now as it may well be something not to serious.