Ear Pain

[Latzi]

Hello there,

I'm a sound engineer. In the recent months I feel pain right behind my ears. It's quite weird because it doesn't cause any hearing loss or vertigo or vomiting or any symptoms what I usually read about. The only thing what I feel is after listening music there's this pain behind my ears. It lasts for a few days and it goes away. Certain frequencies (middle and a bit higher) and loudness are seem to be main causes as I experienced. Sometimes the pain is slight and it gets worse after a day or two.
I was at the hospital several times (dentist, operative dentistry, otolaryngology) to find out what should be the problem but they found nothing. No bad teeth or dysfunction in the jaw, no hearing loss, no damages, no infections, nothing at all, everything is normal. Should I visit a neurologist or maybe someone else?
It really affects my job thus my future.

Thank you for reading!

Kind regards,

Latzi

[Sqad]

.First of all, allow me to congratulate you on your concise, full and relevant post, it did indeed help immensely.

I presume that you have had blood tests, X-Rays and audiological evaluation and have been assessed by a medically qualified person.

II would also like to know about your occupation as a sound engineer, how noisy and for how long that you have been working in that environment.

You have what is known as Hyperacusis and takes many forms, one of which is pain in the ears following noise exposure.

Damage to the inner ear from ageing or exposure to loud noise is the most common cause. It is not possible to repair the inner ear, but the condition can be managed.

People who suffer from reduced tolerance to sound hyperacusis) often find ordinary noises seem to be too loud, while loud noises can cause discomfort and pain. Damage to the inner ear from ageing or exposure to loud noise is the most common cause.
There is usually no cure once noise sensitivity has started, because the common causes are noise damage and ageing damage to the inner ear. It is wise to avoid exposure to noise in the first place. There are disorders of the inner ear, which are treatable, so prompt assessment of the ears may be critical to manage the tolerance.
The most common known causes of sensitivity are exposure to loud noise and ageing.
• There are no objective tests for diagnosing decreased sound tolerance.
• There is usually no cure once noise sensitivity has started. It is wise to avoid exposure to noise in the first place.
• Treatment focuses on insight, reassurance and protection of the ears.

Sorry that this is a bit rambling, but it is not and easy topic to describe, but you can Google the subject or some AB member will give you some websites.

I see no point in consulting a Neurologist.

[Latzi]

Hi, I've totally forgotten about this side as I posted so many places. So it's a late response but at least I manage it now somehow. Many thanks for your advice and I really appreciate it!! Yes, it is for sure that I've hyperacusis and since then it even got worse although just a bit but just a year passed so it's quite hard to manage it. I've decided to quit of urban lifestyle. It's a must as it's unbearable after a while even with earplugs. Of course couldn't find solution sometimes it's better sometimes it's worse and on the top it's even more sensitive and last for longer. Hope there'll be an answer to this, so many developments are out there on any field and if I could reach that I'll be able to listen music that would be great. Yeah, it won't happen tomorrow but I'm optimistic that within years or a decade or so there is a cure for this.
To answer your question I played, mixed and produced music both acoustic and electronic stuffs as well so it was exposed quite a lot to noise with additional night-life noises and music listening. I sold all my equipment and could only listen some music every once in a while with a great care. But it hardened me and will have to open and focus on other interests which also can be exciting even if it's not the same but the spectrum is wide enough to immerse in something. Thanks again and all the best!! Latzi