Hello from a newbie

[K-Diddy]

Hello all!

Newly diagnosed here. Thank you for the wealth of knowledge already here! I am so glad I found this resource! I thought I would share my story.

So for a couple months I thought I had a stuffed up left year. This is not a big leap since I seem to get a sinus infection once or twice a year. When I realized I could not hear as well on the phone in my left ear as my right, I went off to the ENT who is pretty sure I have AN. I had a hearing test and was told I have significant hearing loss, especially in the lower ranges. I was offered the chance to get the MRI done right away of let it sit for three months and observe. That was about a month ago.

I have had mild tinnitus in both ears all my life which I just dealt with because I knew nothing different. Now, the ringing in my let ear gets so bad at times, that I decided I am not waiting any longer. I will be having MRI with contrast before the end of this month and we will see how things are. I swear that I have some facial stuff going on too, which I have read is not out of the realm of possibility - left eyelid spasms; also sometimes my left eye, left cheek and left nostril feel as if someone is running hairs across them. So aggravating, but I am dealing. I tell myself at least it's not likely to be cancer!

The ringing is so annoying, but it does seem to calm down if I give the ear something to do. A running fan makes the ringing relax. So does some good Donna Summer. :-)

Anyway, thanks for letting me join your group, and I will be watching and reading more. I will update you when I know something.

Kingsley

[Patti]

oh that tingling is so annoying! i still get it sometimes!. i guess the nerve is damaged.  good luck and keep us posted!

[notaclone13]

Welcome Kingsley,
Hoping your MRI will not indicate an AN and that your symptoms are merely from sinus issues. I recently read that chronic sinus issues can also cause hearing loss, ear fullness, dizziness and other symptoms similar to ANs. Have you experienced any dizziness or balance issues? I know what you mean about Donna Summers. Love all her stuff and was overjoyed to find a Donna Summer station on Pandora. It’s my favorite workout music. There are several free tinnitus masking apps you can download on your iPhone. Check out Beltone Calm, Widex Zen Tinittus and White Noise. Beltone is my favorite and it includes a DIY hearing test. It measures serviceable hearing and is not as precise as a professional hearing test, but can give you a general idea regarding hearing changes. When I am having a bad tinnitus day I just plug in my ear phones and let the apps mask the problem. The apps let you manipulate the balance on your earphones so that you only hear the masking noise in the bad ear and nothing in the other ear. Good luck with the MRI and please do let us know the outcome either way.

[K-Diddy]

Hi Patti and notaclone! Thanks for the kind welcome and for your advice. I am going to go look for those apps now! After a few days of no ringing, tonight it is really loud.

My original thought was this is all sinus nonsense. It sure would be nice if the MRI comes back negative for AN. I have had to have surgery once for sinus issues and deviated septum.

Thanks again! :-)

[notaclone13]

Hi K-Ditty,  there is a tinnitus website I found helpful called tinnitustalk.  An expert in tinnitus, Dr. Nagler, (himself a tinnitus sufferer) posted that some spices make his tinnitus worse: https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/spicy-food-et-al.4446/.  Caffeine and alcohol seem to affect mine, which makes sense because tinnitus comes from the brain, not the ear and both these things affect nerve function. I also suspect that turmeric, which I take because it is anti-inflammatory, makes my tinnitus louder.  At any rate, there is a lot of info about tinnitus on the tinnitus talk forum. You may find something that helps quiet your down there.