" Wants to know if Ci BTE will help with tinnitus"

D

Dani9185

New Member
Joined
Feb 14, 2007
Messages
1
Reaction score
0
I was born with a severe hearing loss. Im 21 yrs old now and this passed 2 yrs i havent learned asl. Which was the best thing i could have ever done. I suffer for the pass couple of years from Tinnitus ( Ringing in the ears) I was thinking of the Cochlear implant Bte? if it would help with my tinnitus. I have hearing aids my parents bought me but i dont wear them because its more mumble then ever and its to much for my ears to much noise. So basically they just wasted there money since insurance didnt cover them 7 months ago! idk what to do i need sum1s help!!!!!! I cant stand the pain it never goes away. Im 85 Db now. and i use interpreters for the time this semester in college.
 
Dani9185 said:
I was born with a severe hearing loss. Im 21 yrs old now and this passed 2 yrs i havent learned asl. Which was the best thing i could have ever done. I suffer for the pass couple of years from Tinnitus ( Ringing in the ears) I was thinking of the Cochlear implant Bte? if it would help with my tinnitus. I have hearing aids my parents bought me but i dont wear them because its more mumble then ever and its to much for my ears to much noise. So basically they just wasted there money since insurance didnt cover them 7 months ago! idk what to do i need sum1s help!!!!!! I cant stand the pain it never goes away. Im 85 Db now. and i use interpreters for the time this semester in college.
Click to expand...

Hello. We're in the same boat for the most part. I'm 28. Deaf since birth due to Rubella. I grew up using hearing aids on both ears. But 6 yrs ago, one of the aids broke & since I had just brought a new aid in one ear, I couldn't afford to get another new one at the time, since I was expecting my child in a few months at the time so I decided to wait. When we had the $ for the other hearing aid, we brought it. But to my surprise, I couldn't wear it. I had so much problems, so I stopped. Now it's been a few yrs & I still try to get my brain to get used to hearing sounds out of that ear to no avail. I also suffer from Tinnitus, and I freaking hate it!!!! I went to the ENT last month to discuss all this, but all the ENT would say is "I don't know.. how about I send you to get you evaluated to see if you're a candidate for Cochlear Implants" I know the ENT moved things way too fast, but that's ok because I will talk with the team this Friday when I go in for my CI evaluation & tell them everything & see what to do from there. I myself, wonder too if getting CI will somehow help so that I don't suffer from Tinnitus as bad as I do now. :/
But that's not the reason why I'm considering CI. It's cause of how badly I want to hear out of both ears again.

I recommend you talk to your Dr., ENT, Audie, etc.. about your Tinnitus.
Good luck! And, keep me updated!
As I will update Friday afternoon after my CI evaluation appt. Look for the thread I started called 'Hi.. I'm new." or something similar to that. :D
 
Dani,

My CI helped my terrible tinnitus and reduced it by about 50-60% I reckon. It also sounds like you may have recruitment as well, since you mention that your hearing aids are too noisy and distorted for you to wear.

You do have a relatively "small" hearing loss at 85db though and there may be a question mark as to whether or not you would qualify for a CI. Your lack of benefit from hearing aids or otherwise may swing things one way or the other though. If you go to a CI center and ask to be tested then they will be able to assess whether or not you a CI is likely to benefit you more than hearing aids.

Good luck. I feel for you because tinnitus ain't pretty!
 
because its more mumble then ever and its to much for my ears to much noise.
Click to expand...
R2D2, yes she has a "small" loss, but here in US, you can qualify for CI by using speech scores. I'm pretty sure that I've read that the CI can really really help tinituas and recruitment. Haven't they been really pushing CI for whatdoyou call it...............that condition that has tinintas as its hallmark?
I totally would opt for it. Is recruitment pretty much experianced no matter what type/kind of hearing aid is used? If so..............GO for the CI!
 
deafdyke said:
R2D2, yes she has a "small" loss, but here in US, you can qualify for CI by using speech scores. I'm pretty sure that I've read that the CI can really really help tinituas and recruitment. Haven't they been really pushing CI for whatdoyou call it...............that condition that has tinintas as its hallmark?
I totally would opt for it. Is recruitment pretty much experianced no matter what type/kind of hearing aid is used? If so..............GO for the CI!
Click to expand...

Yes - I had recruitment and at severe levels it's so uncomfortable that I couldn't bear to turn the hearing aid on. The CI for me has completely bypassed that problem.

So for people with her hearing loss but who cannot wear the hearing aid comfortably in a normal noise environment I would be in favour of allowing them to have a CI.

Tinnitus is often helped by being in a normal noise environment and it's possible that for Dani, not being able to wear her hearing aids is actually making the tinnitus worse since it thrives in quiet.
 
Her loss is 85 db; my ears are 88 and 92, and I qualified ("clear potential for benefit"), so although it's not guaranteed, it's a definite possibility.

I've read that a CI can either worsen or lessen tinnitus - does anyone know how it does this? Obviously, having auditory input helps mask the tinnitus, but is it known if there's a more direct effect of stimulating the nerve, or bypassing certain structures in the ear?
 
My loss begins at 85 db in my left ear and I think loss starts at 90 db in my right ear. However most of my loss is around 115 db across most frequencies.

I've tinnitus as well as recruitment. My tinnitus isn't too bad and lasts only a few minutes. My recruitment is pretty bad though and even the sound of me washing the dishes can make my ear ring. It's also making it very difficult for me to wear my HA.

I'm told that my CI may not make the tinnitus go away but I shouldn't be having problems with recruitment any more after the operation. If recruitment is a problem for you, you shouldn't have any more problems with it after the operation.
 
ismi said:
I've read that a CI can either worsen or lessen tinnitus - does anyone know how it does this? Obviously, having auditory input helps mask the tinnitus, but is it known if there's a more direct effect of stimulating the nerve, or bypassing certain structures in the ear?
Click to expand...

People don't really understand tinnitus. However it has been clinically observed that having a CI does reduce tinnitus in perhaps about 60% of cases. I think it's simply because most people developed tinnitus prior to the CI as a result of a hearing loss and then because they were unable to benefit from aids the tinnitus was louder than normal. So when the CI is implanted and they get sounds back then it is held in check.

There is a theory that tinnitus may be the brain's way of keeping the hearing nerve in good shape in the absence of auditory stimulation but that has never been proven as far as I am aware.
 
R2D2 said:
There is a theory that tinnitus may be the brain's way of keeping the hearing nerve in good shape in the absence of auditory stimulation but that has never been proven as far as I am aware.
Click to expand...

If this is true, it could explain why my auditory nerve still worked after having not been long for so long. I have had tinnitus since I was a little girl.
 
R2D2 said:
People don't really understand tinnitus. However it has been clinically observed that having a CI does reduce tinnitus in perhaps about 60% of cases. I think it's simply because most people developed tinnitus prior to the CI as a result of a hearing loss and then because they were unable to benefit from aids the tinnitus was louder than normal. So when the CI is implanted and they get sounds back then it is held in check.

There is a theory that tinnitus may be the brain's way of keeping the hearing nerve in good shape in the absence of auditory stimulation but that has never been proven as far as I am aware.
Click to expand...

I am one of those people who doesn't understand. Can you explain tinnitus to me? Do children get it? I am trying to find a reason why Victoria hates the car. She REALLY hates the car. She can cry for entire car rides. Other times it's not so bad. I feel there has to be a reason for this. Could it be this?? I know I probably sound stupid, but this is all new to me!

Thanks
 
I'm hard of hearing and have tinnitus, but it comes and goes. I've had it since I was a kid so, yes, children can get tinnitus.

I'm sorry but does Victoria use a hearing aid or have CI? I wear a hearing aid and the only times I lower the volume of my hearing aid really low is when I'm driving, near running water, in a crowded place, or whenever it's too loud around me.

Hearing aids in general tend to pick up the loudest sounds available, and it gets really annoying and sometimes hurt my hear after a while. One time in high school I was in the gym for homecoming and it was so loud that I almost fainted, literally. I felt much better after I took off my hearing aid. Strange.

Edit: For more info on tinnitus, visit Tinnitus - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 
Alex said:
I'm hard of hearing and have tinnitus, but it comes and goes. I've had it since I was a kid so, yes, children can get tinnitus.

I'm sorry but does Victoria use a hearing aid or have CI? I wear a hearing aid and the only times I lower the volume of hearing aid really low is when I'm driving, near running water, in a crowded place, or whenever it's too loud around me.

Hearing aids in general tend to pick up the loudest sounds available, and it gets really annoying and sometimes hurt my hear after a while. One time in high school I was in the gym for homecoming and it was so loud that I almost fainted, literally. I felt much better after I took off my hearing aid. Strange.
Click to expand...
She wears hearing aids. Well actually she just had surgery for the CI in her right ear last week, but it's not activated yet. I thought that maybe the hearing aids bothered her in the car, so we stopped putting them on in the car (plus she used to put them in her mouth whenever she could). Having them off didn't help. I can't figure out what could be bothering her. Even today, she cried for about 20 minutes straight and she did not have the hearing aids on. I wonder if she has motion sickness.
 
My recruitment is pretty bad though
Click to expand...
Anyone know what percentage of dhh folks have severe recruitment? I didn't know you had recruitment actually.............I definitly think that recruitment and severe tinititas cases should be eligable for implantation with no hassle. That could include the "hoh level" folks who have recruitment or poor speech understanding with has.
 
Victorias mom said:
I am one of those people who doesn't understand. Can you explain tinnitus to me? Do children get it? I am trying to find a reason why Victoria hates the car. She REALLY hates the car. She can cry for entire car rides. Other times it's not so bad. I feel there has to be a reason for this. Could it be this?? I know I probably sound stupid, but this is all new to me!

Thanks
Click to expand...

Tinnitus are basically sounds that we hear that is created in the brain rather than the outside environment. It seems to accompany hearing loss, although not all the time. We never hear voices, just sounds like the roar of a jet, ringing, beeping, drumming and so on. When i had my suddenly hearing loss my tinnitus was so elaborate at times (like jazz or rock music) that I think my brain was using memory.

Stress affects the intensity of tinnitus - I always find mine is worse if I am tired.

I don't think there is any co-relation with the sound of the car for Victoria though. It could be that Victoria finds it a bit loud. If you have the Cochlear Freedom I would suggest turning it onto the autosensitivity program, which for me cuts out the loudness of the car in the background but still allows me to hear voices. I love that mode.
 
deafdyke said:
Anyone know what percentage of dhh folks have severe recruitment? I didn't know you had recruitment actually.............I definitly think that recruitment and severe tinititas cases should be eligable for implantation with no hassle. That could include the "hoh level" folks who have recruitment or poor speech understanding with has.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure about the percentages of those with recruitment - apparently it always accompanies a further decrease in hearing so it would affect progressive losses mainly. I didn't have it until I experienced a sudden increase in my hearing loss in 2005. I then had to put my beloved hearing aid away because I would get dizzy, have a headache and very angry tinnitus.

I completely agree with you that those with recruitment and severe tinnitus should be allowed to have CIs - it has vastly improved my quality of life for those reasons.
 
I had that issue on my right ear.. after I had my CI done - I have noticed it has gone down drastically for me. So, it has been a blessing for me. But then again the results varies amongst different people!
 
Opps... I found that my link doesn't work for me either and yes it's from the same page that I linked to.
 
Back
Top