Go to a doctor instead of reddit.

Gotta contact a doctor man

First off, definitely book an appointment with your local ENT (Ear, Nose, Throat) doctor. Sometimes they're overbooked and so you have to wait months.

If you are feeling anxious about it, you can try calling the local hospitals, urgent care clinics, walk-in clinics, etc. and ask them about the emergency ENT hours. The ENTs for hospitals are usually on call, and they're for more immediate things, but you might be able to catch one already there.

If your hearing is not like suddenly gone (this is called sudden hearing loss), they're probably just gonna deprioritize you and so you have to wait for several hours.

If you encounter sudden hearing loss, or random tinnitus/et cetera, maybe go to the ER for the (hearing) steroids: https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones/comments/11m5yc5/hypersensitivity_and_tinnitus_after_96db_sound/jbgt88m/

Here's a bit more info on IEMs, hearing health, earwax cleaning, parametric EQ to compensate, et cetera: https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones/comments/11nwy92/uneven_headphones/jbplupa/

Info about measuring decibels, hearing health, et cetera here: https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones/comments/11a4cpm/are_few_second_peaks_into_8285_db_still_safe_when/j9riw7q/

Some info about tinnitus/hyperacusis/etc. here: https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones/comments/123847b/fatigue_tinnitus_from_planar_magnetic_hifiman/jdtv492/ and https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones/comments/121xwtm/whats_with_my_ears_only_music_feels_unbearable/jdol26x/ and https://www.reddit.com/r/HeadphoneAdvice/comments/11ycxnn/advice_with_preventing_tinnitus/jd7615t/

ASMR can help act as background noise to mask the tinnitus/et cetera: https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones/comments/126dei8/soundstage_hearing_problems_and_how_the_brain_can/je933bq/

Yes, there is no cure to tinnitus/etc. at the moment, but visit /r/tinnitusresearch for more hope as there's a lot of progress being made with the research and treatments. Some say we'll get the products/treatments before or around 2030.

People don't realize how debilitating tinnitus can be and so it's just ignored in the mainstream.

After a while you do get used to tinnitus so just try to endure for now. Habituating to tinnitus can take days, weeks, months, years, so just try to research about what the causes are, how to potentially (don't fall for snake oil cures/etc.) reduce it, etc.

And then after you spend a day or week researching about tinnitus, try to not think about it ever again. A lot of us only really get reminded that we have tinnitus when other people talk about it or when things are really silent, say for example when you have IEMs with that vacuum seal and you are idle or not playing sounds, the tinnitus can be super loud.

But yup, just chill for now and try not to get stressed over it. As some people can go into really bad places once they realize that the treatments/etc. for tinnitus, hidden hearing loss, etc. is like several years if not decades away.

Here's what you can maybe do directly with tinnitus intensity (I am not a medical professional so take this with precaution): https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones/comments/ul7gyx/listening_needs_with_sensitive_hearing/i7vodcu/

Basically take Vitamin D3 + Vitamin K2 and also magnesium glycinate. Make sure the magnesium is the pure glycinate version or if you can afford it, the L-threonate version (supposedly there's some other benefits to L-threonate, but keep in mind that supplements are filled with snake oil, just like the audio hobby). As otherwise the oxide, citrate, etc. versions of magnesium will give you diarrhea or like liquify your poop, so just eat nutrient bars or food with fiber to solidify/harden your poop.

Again, most /r/Supplements are basically snake oil, but visit that subreddit for the brands to use for more effective magnesium (as sometimes brand skirt the efficacy even if they're properly certified by the governments/etc.).

If you have access to Costco, you can get like a quarter of a year or even half a year's worth of supplements for like $30 or so.

Like Costco has Kirkland Vitamin D3 1000IU for $5, and it's 2 bottles of 360 pieces of Vitamin D3, lol.

Then if you want to risk anhedonia, etc. there's also NAC. But again, research the side effects of NAC as some people have really averse reactions to it. Plus it also doesn't really help with tinnitus for some people.

What Vitamin D3 (+ Vitamin K2) and magnesium glycinate will usually do is help with the brain fog, anxiety, etc. and this can help lead the focus away from your realization that you have tinnitus. So basically you'll have a clearer mind but then with that energy you can then focus on less annoying things like tinnitus.

Oh and I almost forgot L-theanine. So you know tea or those beverages that make you calm, a lot of them have L-theanine in them and that's basically the calming ingredient. L-theanine is a proven legit thing, though don't take too much as some people get headaches/etc. or something like that.

NAC also helps with brain fog, etc. but again, it can sometimes be expensive or actually it's unavailable for some people these days due to regulations (can't believe they actually prohibited NAC because of COVID-19 usage and classified it as a drug, smh, but that's a different story). And yes, the side effects can be quite pronounced, so do some research about it as some people see no benefit when using it to deal with tinnitus. Though just note that it's like magnesium/Vitamin D3/etc. as NAC can sometimes help with the brain fog, focus, etc. for some people.

FYI, I am not a medical doctor or in the medical industry. I do have a lot of family (and friends) that work in hospitals/clinics/etc. but that bears nothing as a lot of them are anti-vax and so on, like it's so irrational since they're doctors, nurses, etc. But it is what it is. I'm basically the only one wearing ((K)N95) masks still every time I go outside, and some of those folks that interact with at-risk people (the elderly, overweight, immunocompromised, etc.) just don't take proper precautions anymore.

The point in saying that is because some people are reporting tinnitus from the Moderna/Pfizer/etc. vaccines. And same thing when you get actual COVID-19 from other people. So always wear a mask at all times.

Even if the risk of tinnitus/etc. is increased with the vaccines, please believe in science and progress and get regular vaccinations. It is a trade off, but look at all those people suffering from Long COVID and other neurological/cardiological/etc. problems.

Once again, definitely see an actual certified ENT doctor. They'll probably say the same thing that there's no cure for tinnitus/etc. but at least it'll help give you reassurances that a medical professional IRL gave the diagnosis/etc. to you.

Welcome to the club. For what it's worth, you get used to it.

Just bear in mind that once you have permanent tinnitus it'll only ever get worse, so look after your ears as best you can. It's not the end of the world, I've lived with ringing in my ears for over a decade and to be honest it's only an occasional mild annoyance. If you can avoid it altogether, good. If not, well, we all make mistakes, and there's no point dwelling on the past, just try to avoid making the same mistake and making things worse.

Edit: there are non hearing damage related causes for tinnitus as well, if you're concerned, see a doctor. If you've been exposed to very loud noise for extended periods of time it's most likely hearing damage though.

Start panicking. You’re going to live like this for the rest of your life. There is no cure.

Tinnitus is pretty slow. I have it badly but only the more I actually focus and listen to the ringing specifically. U can get ringing in your ears for listening to something for too loudly that will go away over time, tinnitus is life long really, so I’m hoping for your sake that it goes away for you.

Learn to live with it. I did.

i wanna fucken cry

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