My journey with (potential) tinnitus

I might not have it after all!

Hello friends!

Since this is a Substack where I talk about music, I thought it a fitting place to talk about something related to listening/hearing: my journey with alleged tinnitus. The reason I call it alleged is there has been some new information brought to my attention as of last week that says I might not have it after all! But first, some history:

The mysterious ringing sound in the waiting room

A few years ago I was sitting in a doctor’s waiting room while my wife had a minor procedure done. In my left ear I started hearing a quiet but constant tinny whistling sound. I figured it was some piece of medical equipment nearby, and the noise would subside eventually. Several minutes later the sound was still there, so I started looking around the room trying to pinpoint it. It seemed to be coming from the men’s restroom so I went inside and had the sudden - and somewhat frightening realization - that the sound wasn’t getting louder or quieter, because it was coming from my head.

Asking the Internet and IRL doctors

I’ve found it can be simultaneously helpful and terrifying to use the Internet to research a health question. My symptoms range from “You’ve got tinnitus” to “You’ll die soon, kthxbye.” I tried everything I could to troubleshoot/lessen the intensity of the ringing: change in diet/exercise, elimination of caffeine, chiropractic adjustments, acupuncture, and getting more sleep. Nothing really helped.

I went to two different ENT doctors and they thought I had textbook tinnitus. One doc plainly told me “Just try not to think about it too much.” Nice. So I had all but accepted this annoying ear-ringing as something I’d just have to live with.

Could it be a jaw problem?

During one of my acupuncture appointments, the specialist listened to me talk through this story and symptoms, and then asked “Could it be a jaw problem? Maybe you’re grinding your teeth at night and that’s contributing to the ringing?” I thought on that for a few days and then called a TMJ specialist in the area to make an appointment. The receptionist said I’d need to either pay to get a set of x-rays done or bring my own, so I had those done at my dentist and emailed over.

My appointment with the TMJ doc was awesome. He must’ve spent 20-30 minutes wanting to hear every detail of how the ear ringing came to be, the things I tried to treat it, what the ENT doctors had told me, what made the ringing better/worse, etc. Then he did an examination of my jaw - having me move it side to side, clench and unclench, and open and close it at various speeds. It was during the opening and closing phase that he perked up. “Oh this is interesting!” He had me stick two fingers from each hand on either side of the jaw, and asked me to notice if I felt something funny just as my jaw went from 90% to 100% open. On the left side of the jaw was a little “slide” - where it felt the jaw just ever-so-slightly went off track. The doc had me open and close several more times. “I want you to really feel that for yourself, and not think it’s me just telling you to feel something!” I did, and it was indeed a bizarre little sensation. He went on to explain that this imperfection - combined with me clenching at night, plus me complaining that my left ear had the most ringing - could all be contributing to my issue.

An expensive solution

My funky jaw situation could only be addressed with a professional-grade mouthguard (which came at a professional-grade price of ~$1,500!). But I believe the doc when he told me he would not recommend it unless he actually thought it would help. And yes, my credit card shed a single tear as I made the down payment. But, since I feel I’ve thrown everything else but the kitchen sink at this issue, this is one last thing I can try to hopefully get some relief.

I’ll post a follow up when I receive the mouthguard and have a verdict!