Musical Ear Syndrome

souggy · 10-23-2009, 04:12 AM

Alright, I discussed this with someone a few nights ago, however it is still persisting.

As of two or three years ago, only at night, I started hearing things like furnaces coming on, muffled voices that seems to come from above. Not a big deal, thought it was a normal thing, until I invited someone to come over to sleep-- then I found out that the sounds I was hearing weren't there. Oddly, these sounds disappear when I put on my hearing aids (Sumo XP.)

So, two years after the fact, I disclosed this to a hearing person (non-professional) and she thought I was lack of better words, "batshit," in her own creative colourful words. So I just learned to keep such comments to myself.

However in the last few months, it kinda progressed to somewhat sounded like a muffled row from next door. When I did my research, it could be because of Musical Ear Syndrome or severe recruitment. It is only now that I just realized that the so-called "rows" are just vocals akin to to some of the punk music I used to listen to before I ceased listening to music. I only started making out the brass and such in the background. Again, they disappear when I have my hearing aids in.

I know many deaf people here suffer from tinnitus, but how many experience this as well?

And I am going in to get a new audiogram in the next few weeks.

Bottesini · 10-23-2009, 10:36 AM

What you are describing sounds like what many people who have tinnitus say they hear.

souggy · 10-23-2009, 10:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bottesini

What you are describing sounds like what many people who have tinnitus say they hear.

I get tinnitus too, but this is different... Tinnitus is a ringing sound... not actual music or vocals.

Bottesini · 10-23-2009, 10:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by souggy

I get tinnitus too, but this is different... Tinnitus is a ringing sound... not actual music or vocals.

Well then, Rockin Robin gets this too. Plus a few others I can't remember . Maybe they will weigh in on this for you.

rockin'robin · 10-23-2009, 11:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bottesini

Well then, Rockin Robin gets this too. Plus a few others I can't remember . Maybe they will weigh in on this for you.

Yep, that's right, Bot...I have musical...and for 2 days the song from "The 70's Show" keeps repeating....awhile back it was "Lady of Spain". ....And I became totally deaf at age 14. HA are no benefit to me at all.

There are times when a "song" pops up in my head, and I go on the Internet to find the lyrics of it...such as the old, old song by The Beach Boys, "Alley Oops"....drove me crazy for a few days!

Trying to sleep, at times is really crazy! So, I do take short naps during the day to make up for the lack of it. I've suffered from this a very long time...and found out what it was here at AD !! And thks to all!

It's hard to concentrate, as it's gotten worse over the years. Having a sense of humor about it seems to work for me, tho'. Whenever my boys see me dancing around and washing dishes, they know I've got a "song" in my head! HAHA....but they don't want to "hear it". That "old time" music is of no interest to them.

CJB · 10-23-2009, 11:52 AM

I have intermittent tinnitus but mine is mostly of the ringing kind. I have heard others mentioning hearing music or ghost-like sounds though. Must be pretty creepy at first.

sallylou · 10-23-2009, 02:37 PM

I have phantom noises. I can hear high pitched noises that aren't real. Sometimes, I hear a voice that not real. At first, I thought that I was going crazy. Then, I learned that it's fairly common. Now, I just turn to my husband and ask "Did you hear that?"

Here's some info:

Turning Down the Phantom Noise Inside the Head - The New York Times

rockin'robin · 10-23-2009, 02:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sallylou

I have phantom noises. I can hear high pitched noises that aren't real. Sometimes, I hear a voice that not real. At first, I thought that I was going crazy. Then, I learned that it's fairly common. Now, I just turn to my husband and ask "Did you hear that?"

Here's some info:

Turning Down the Phantom Noise Inside the Head - The New York Times

And....what was his response?...Are we all "hearing" things?

JennyB · 10-23-2009, 08:25 PM

auditory hallucinations. They are VERY common in people who used to being hearing, or used to hear more. I get them too.

thesynthfreq · 10-24-2009, 01:00 AM

Hi. I have never heard of this syndrome before but it is interesting. I have very bad tinnitus in both ears but worse in my left. I also have this weird kind of "shifting tinnitus" as I call it. I only happens in my left ear and I can hear it through my hearing aids. It is a high pitched frequency that is constant and when ever there is a sound or whenever I talk, it changes to a higher pitch and then when sound is gone or I stop talking, the pitch goes down and settles into what it was before. It also sounds like the pitch of my tinnitus descends in note like sounds, one by one. It is really annoying because my hearing aids do not cancel out my tinnitus even though they are ultrapower hearing aids. I also hear my tinnitus as 7 pitches altogether and the only thing that relieves it, is to put my Naida hearing aids on T-coil and let the low pitch interference cancel out my tinnitus. Lower frequencies tend to cancel the higher ones and works well. I think that my "shifting tinnitus" in my left ear is due to a eustation tube problem.

nope · 10-24-2009, 01:58 AM

It sounds kind of like phantom limb! When people lose a limb, they sometimes feel like its still there and will even feel like their missing limb is hurting. Their brain doesn't recognize that the limb is no longer there, so it interprets sensory information and applies it to where the limb used to be (okay, you'll have to forgive me because I'm not a science person, but that's how I understand it to work). Maybe it's the same with the phantom music. Your brain is 'perceiving' sounds for you, even though you shouldn't be able to hear them.

CJB · 10-24-2009, 06:34 AM

I think jillio made the same analogy in another thread. Good analogy.

defgrl · 10-26-2009, 04:39 PM

I have tinnitus. I used to "hear things" at night that weren't really there. There were times when I thought I would be driven to distraction. Since I have been wearing two BTE's consistently, these problems have gotten much less bothersome. Sometimes I will put my aids on t-coil and let the "buzzing" drown out the other weird stuff. If things get really bad, I put headphones on OVER the hearing aids and listen to really loud white noise through my hearing aids. Sounds weird, but it works really well for me.

***VamPyroX*** · 10-26-2009, 06:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by souggy

I get tinnitus too, but this is different... Tinnitus is a ringing sound... not actual music or vocals.

Actually, it can be any sound. It's commonly reported as a ringing sound... but also documented as buzzing, humming, beeping, etc.

Tinnitus - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

rockin'robin · 10-26-2009, 07:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VamPyroX

Actually, it can be any sound. It's commonly reported as a ringing sound... but also documented as buzzing, humming, beeping, etc.

Tinnitus - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

How about the "roaring"...the high-pitch "eeeeeeeee" and the "zingggging" (like electric). One friend came to me (she lost her hearing at 17 months), crying over it....Asked me what it was, she was really desperate!. I did tell her it was coming from her ears. She did go to a lot of doctors, and one actually prescribed Prozac! She said it helped her (?).

***VamPyroX*** · 10-26-2009, 08:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rockin'robin

How about the "roaring"...the high-pitch "eeeeeeeee" and the "zingggging" (like electric). One friend came to me (she lost her hearing at 17 months), crying over it....Asked me what it was, she was really desperate!. I did tell her it was coming from her ears. She did go to a lot of doctors, and one actually prescribed Prozac! She said it helped her (?).

It could be anything.

sallylou · 10-26-2009, 08:24 PM

I've got the Who playing in my head right now. Anyone want to join me?

10-23-2009, 04:12 AM	#1 (permalink)
souggy Ace Attorney Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Victoria, BC Posts: 2,378	Musical Ear Syndrome Alright, I discussed this with someone a few nights ago, however it is still persisting. As of two or three years ago, only at night, I started hearing things like furnaces coming on, muffled voices that seems to come from above. Not a big deal, thought it was a normal thing, until I invited someone to come over to sleep-- then I found out that the sounds I was hearing weren't there. Oddly, these sounds disappear when I put on my hearing aids (Sumo XP.) So, two years after the fact, I disclosed this to a hearing person (non-professional) and she thought I was lack of better words, "batshit," in her own creative colourful words. So I just learned to keep such comments to myself. However in the last few months, it kinda progressed to somewhat sounded like a muffled row from next door. When I did my research, it could be because of Musical Ear Syndrome or severe recruitment. It is only now that I just realized that the so-called "rows" are just vocals akin to to some of the punk music I used to listen to before I ceased listening to music. I only started making out the brass and such in the background. Again, they disappear when I have my hearing aids in. I know many deaf people here suffer from tinnitus, but how many experience this as well? And I am going in to get a new audiogram in the next few weeks. __________________ Souggy's Blog Warning! Contains skewed comments & inane ramblings. May cause spontaneous human combustion

10-23-2009, 10:36 AM	#2 (permalink)
Bottesini Bodhar agus leath dall Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Middle of dog pack Posts: 16,083	What you are describing sounds like what many people who have tinnitus say they hear. __________________ It's a joke Nathan!

10-23-2009, 02:37 PM	#7 (permalink)
sallylou Registered User Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: My own private Idaho Posts: 2,090	I have phantom noises. I can hear high pitched noises that aren't real. Sometimes, I hear a voice that not real. At first, I thought that I was going crazy. Then, I learned that it's fairly common. Now, I just turn to my husband and ask "Did you hear that?" Here's some info: Turning Down the Phantom Noise Inside the Head - The New York Times __________________ Happy holidays!

10-23-2009, 08:25 PM	#9 (permalink)
JennyB Deaf Activist! Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Toronto, Ontario Posts: 784	auditory hallucinations. They are VERY common in people who used to being hearing, or used to hear more. I get them too. __________________ Queer, Deaf, radical disability theorist, feminist, activist, advocate, and linguist. Fear me! Jenny~B http://journysofadeafgirl.blogspot.com/

10-26-2009, 08:24 PM	#17 (permalink)
sallylou Registered User Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: My own private Idaho Posts: 2,090	I've got the Who playing in my head right now. Anyone want to join me? __________________ Happy holidays!

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10-23-2009, 11:52 AM	#6 (permalink)
CJB deafblind writer Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: U.S. Posts: 1,425	I have intermittent tinnitus but mine is mostly of the ringing kind. I have heard others mentioning hearing music or ghost-like sounds though. Must be pretty creepy at first.

10-24-2009, 01:00 AM	#10 (permalink)
thesynthfreq Registered User Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Austin Tx Posts: 32	Hi. I have never heard of this syndrome before but it is interesting. I have very bad tinnitus in both ears but worse in my left. I also have this weird kind of "shifting tinnitus" as I call it. I only happens in my left ear and I can hear it through my hearing aids. It is a high pitched frequency that is constant and when ever there is a sound or whenever I talk, it changes to a higher pitch and then when sound is gone or I stop talking, the pitch goes down and settles into what it was before. It also sounds like the pitch of my tinnitus descends in note like sounds, one by one. It is really annoying because my hearing aids do not cancel out my tinnitus even though they are ultrapower hearing aids. I also hear my tinnitus as 7 pitches altogether and the only thing that relieves it, is to put my Naida hearing aids on T-coil and let the low pitch interference cancel out my tinnitus. Lower frequencies tend to cancel the higher ones and works well. I think that my "shifting tinnitus" in my left ear is due to a eustation tube problem.

10-24-2009, 01:58 AM	#11 (permalink)
nope Registered User Join Date: Oct 2009 Posts: 243	It sounds kind of like phantom limb! When people lose a limb, they sometimes feel like its still there and will even feel like their missing limb is hurting. Their brain doesn't recognize that the limb is no longer there, so it interprets sensory information and applies it to where the limb used to be (okay, you'll have to forgive me because I'm not a science person, but that's how I understand it to work). Maybe it's the same with the phantom music. Your brain is 'perceiving' sounds for you, even though you shouldn't be able to hear them.

10-24-2009, 06:34 AM	#12 (permalink)
CJB deafblind writer Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: U.S. Posts: 1,425	I think jillio made the same analogy in another thread. Good analogy.

10-26-2009, 04:39 PM	#13 (permalink)
defgrl Registered User Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 82	I have tinnitus. I used to "hear things" at night that weren't really there. There were times when I thought I would be driven to distraction. Since I have been wearing two BTE's consistently, these problems have gotten much less bothersome. Sometimes I will put my aids on t-coil and let the "buzzing" drown out the other weird stuff. If things get really bad, I put headphones on OVER the hearing aids and listen to really loud white noise through my hearing aids. Sounds weird, but it works really well for me.

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