Tinnitus

tinnitus

by heartily - 2024-11-08 03:17:55

Hi Jill,

I only posted about this last night! I had my PM done 4 weeks ago too and although it is working on the basic level, ie my heart is now beating regularly and sufficiently, I have had tinnitus with a heartbeat in my head since the procedure.

I'm not a doctor and new to this myself but I think it could be something to do with blood pressure being raised or the PM needs adjusting slightly. Presumably you have a PM clinic appointment in a week or so, bring it up then. Do you have a blood pressure machine? Might be worth checking your BP.

What's driving me potty is that I am super vigilant with all changes in my body since the PM and I feel that I'm becoming a hypochondriac and catastrophising.
I have to keep telling myself that the PM is an ENABLER not a disabler. The cardiologist says my heart is now MORE stable than it was before. Please keep telling yourself this!

Ear noises

by Gemita - 2024-11-08 05:24:14

Jill, are you on any new heart meds?  For example anti arrhythmic med Flecainide may cause Tinnitus.  Do you have high blood pressure?  This can also be a cause, but then there are many possible causes for tinnitus, including worsening heart failure, vascular disease, middle and inner ear diseases, diabetes, and autonomic nervous system diseases.  You need an assessment just to rule out a few acute causes that might need treating.  After any surgical procedure like a cardiac device implant, complications can occur.

I sometimes get high pitched sounds and whooshing noises especially when my heart rhythm disturbances peak and blood flow to all areas of my body, including to my head, is sub optimal.   I can often hear my heart beat in my ears and feel all sorts of strange sensations. I am not however a confirmed tinnitus sufferer and I suspect my symptoms come from vascular problems during irregularly slow or fast heart rhythms.

I would first go along to your regular doctor for some general health and ear checks before assuming this might be caused by a complication from your pacemaker implant surgery which was clearly needed.  Of course focussing on tinnitus will only make matters worse, but it is hard not too when these noises start.  

Treatments: treating any underlying condition may help. This could include removing earwax, treating a blood vessel condition, or changing your medication.  I hope your symptoms improve as your heart settles over the course of the next few weeks and gets used to being paced?

Background noise

by piglet22 - 2024-11-08 05:38:45

Funnily enough, Jillannes, as I was reading this, I started listening to what I can only describe as background noise.

I could hear a whooshing sound but it was more in time with swallowing than heartbeat. There is a very faint heartbeat sound as well.

I'm certainly not bothered about it and don't believe it is anything to do with raised blood pressure. Occasionally I forget my pills and blood pressure goes up, but I don't notice any noise difference.

The trouble with a lot of these things is that you can get latched onto them and you start to concentrate on them instead of putting them into the background 

By all means get it checked. Your pacemaker is normalising the way your heart is working.

One thing I think is useful is to keep a record of BP, HR and O2% I do temperature and blood glucose as well.

BP is downloaded with HR. Temperature and O2% go on index cards. Glucose goes into a spreadsheet and now and again BP and HR go in as well.

Take readings under the same conditions.

Some might think it's unnecessary, but data is king.

Let us know if you come up with something, but don't read too much into these odd happenings.

ear noise for the hard of hearing

by new to pace.... - 2024-11-08 09:50:16

A couple of years ago one of my doctors told me about the sounds i was hearing.  Were becuase my brain thought i should have sound in my ear.  I have not heard out of my left ear for many years now.  To me that sounded plausible.  Would suggest you have a hearing test to rule out that you do not hear.

new to pace

Ringing

by Lavender - 2024-11-08 10:35:18

Hi Jillannes!

My ear ringing sounds like crickets or sometimes a buzzing. I'm reposting what I just said to another person on this site:

I never had ringing ears until a very young aggressive physician assistant prescribed 300 mg zantac for me. 😤A few days into it, the ringing buzzed on so loud I thought it was an alarm clock. That's about five years ago and it is still ringing. 😕

I have grown accustomed to ignoring it and rarely notice it. It's just background noise. At first I saw doctors as well as ear specialists but even the ear specialist said HE has ringing and nothing can cure it. 

Close your eyes and listen. You will find that the whooshing and ring fades into the background as you hear other sounds around you. In time you can ignore the ringing as your brain files it on the back burner. God bless. 

Tinnitus

by JillAnneS - 2024-11-08 13:10:02

Thank you Lavender as always!  It's a great site as there don't appear to be any 'help' meetings near me.  

Many thanks to you all for your kind words.  I'm hoping I can either come to terms with the noises of tinnitus or it actually disappears.  I'm expecting a call from my doctor soon and if he comes up with helpful information,  I'll post here.  Again, thank you, there are such a helpful and understanding people on this site.  It's a shame we can't all actually get together for a cuppa some time!!

We are practically neighbours

by Gemita - 2024-11-08 15:59:02

Jill, I am not so far from Sevenoaks so perhaps one day we can get together for a cuppa and see if we can gather a few other members to join us.  I know of one other member who lives locally too.

There are some really nice folks on this site and our American friends are especially warm-hearted and treat us Brits like family members 

Tinnitus

by Rch - 2024-11-08 23:57:41

If it's whooshing with your pulse or heartbeat like a bruit ( like in Carotids ) it may not be the classic run-of-the-mill tinnitus but rather blood flow through the calcified arteries, I'm only guessing. Please mention it to your Device tech and some fine tuning of the settings might help to minimize it. I sometimes hear it in certain sleeping positions. But this sound is different from my classic neurosensory hearing loss from high pitch tinnitus! 

Tinnitus

by Good Dog - 2024-11-09 08:23:14

I have had tinnitus for about 20 years. My wife has had it longer than me. I joined a support group back when I allowed it to drive me crazy (back in the beginning). I have read tons of research and reviews from folks trying various so-called cures.

While there are cases in which it magically disappears, most of those occur very early-on (within a couple weeks). The characteristics of tinnitus vary (type and pitch of sound) from person to person. It seems to be that the predominant theory is it is caused by drugs and the sound originates in the brain and not the ears. There is no known cure that I am aware of.

I once worked with a middle aged guy that contracted it and he almost went crazy trying to deal with it. I received the best advice for dealing with it from my wife. She said to simply learn to ignore it by accepting it and instead of allowing it to make you crazy, or wasting money on cures that do not work, make it your friend. So I live with it and that is just O.K. with me. I know that if there is ever a real cure, it will be widely publicized and not found in the advertising section of a magazine or social media site. 

Really, the only time it ever becomes troublesome for me is when it corresponds to my pulse (heart beat). Fortunately, that is rare and it is only a very brief temporary phenomenon.

So my point in all of this is; if you want real relief from tinnitus, accept it and move-on from it. That is just my opinion.

Sincerely,

Dave

Agree With Dave

by benedeni - 2024-11-09 09:53:00

Jill,

I 100% agree with everything Dave said.  I am in the exact same boat and have been living with tinnitus for as long as I can remember... over 30 years for certain.  I admit to periods where I am aware of the constant ringing, buzzing, etc.  Otherwise it's just There and I accept it.  The strange thing is even when it gets quite loud I can still hear extremely well.  I can't see worth a flip without glasses and my smeller is all but non-existent, but I can hear along with the best of them!

If you find you are indeed "stuck" with it, don't despair.  You, too, will get used to it.  There are far far worse things, believe me!

My best to you.