I suffer from tinnitus. This is not uncommon for musicians, since we are exposed to loud noises (well, music) so frequently, and in our younger days who thought of wearing earplugs!? I also had a bad bout (who knew migraines could cause hearing issues?) that brought this on which I won’t bore anyone with yet again (I blogged about it a number of years ago and it’s not necessary to go on about it).
This morning, though, the ear is screaming louder than it’s ever been. My left ear is so loud that I couldn’t go back to sleep once I woke up at 5:30. I finally pulled out the iPhone and found an app for white noise. It helped, though the ear also pulses (like blood when you hear it pounding, rushing … if you know what I mean) so the white noise pulses which is annoying. I’ve since looked at a few options for the sound and the higher the frequency the happier my ear is. If it nearly matches the pitches I hear it nearly cancels it out. So I’m sitting at the big computer now, which is connected to the stereo, and I’m playing this sound that nearly makes me sane.
Oh c’mon … stop your laughing! What I meant was “as sane as I am capable of being.” You knew that, right?
Please, younger musicians (older too, of course!) wear your earplugs! You can’t get rid of hearing loss and tinnitus doesn’t magically disappear completely. Your ears will thank you for it. Or at least they’ll remain silent on the matter. I will never “hear” silence again, and that makes me very sad.