Can You Hear Me? Common Ear Conditions

Hello everyone! Last summer I experienced something that was very scary to me. I started suffering dizzy spells when I would wake in the morning. So much so that I would have to sit by the side of the bed before getting up and wait till the room stopped spinning. It was very alarming! Shortly thereafter, I started noticing this constant hum in my head. It got so annoying that I finally went to see a specialist at Houston Medical Center. Eventually, the dizzy spells stopped but unfortunately the low grade hum never has. When I went to see the doctor he performed all sorts of tests and could find nothing wrong with me. He explained that the dizzy spells could have started as a result of low blood pressure or as a direct result of high stress or anxiety. There were no clear answers. We were in the process of selling our home at the time and I was under immense pressure to move all of our belongings out in a short timeframe. He diagnosed the noise in my head as tinnitus.

Tinnitus is a disorder that causes people to hear a ringing, roaring, buzzing or hissing inside the ears. The sound can vary in intensity and people with the disorder do not necessarily suffer from hearing loss. Unfortunately there is no cure for this condition. In researching this topic I found that hearing problems occur most often in people who are over 50. The most common type of age-related hearing loss is know as presbycusis. People with this condition have a very difficult time hearing what others are saying to them, especially high pitched voices of women and children. Presbycusis does tend to affect men more often than women and since it happens gradually many people may not be aware that they are even experiencing it until it becomes very obvious.

No medications or surgery can reverse a permanent hearing loss. The only solution for presbycusis is a hearing aid which can be very small and therefore not noticable. The only solution for tinnitus the doctor offered me was to purchase a white noise machine which would mask the hum in my ears with a more pleasant noise. To prevent any hearing issues you must be careful to avoid loud sounds. If you must be exposed to harmful levels of noise make sure to protect yourself with earplugs and never listen to loud music with earphones. I live with my tinnitus every day. Somedays it's worse than others, but a day never goes by without me wishing I didn't have it. Take care or your hearing because you can't reverse the damage you may cause if you don't! Hope you found this article informative, take care and remember to stay healthy everyone!