How long have you had it for?
Three years
What brought it on?
I had a really bad ear infection (both ears) even hurt to swallow liquid. I was given tablets and ear drops and noticed after the infection cleared I could hear a ringing sound.
I went to see an ENT and had a CT scan to check for tumours etc., thankfully nothing at all showed up. My hearing is within normal levels (although slightly down).
Does it bother you anymore?
Nope, I have to focus on it to notice. I would say on a scale of 1-10 in terms of how loud it is, normally sitting at about a 2.
And what sound do you hear.
eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Interestingly. When I first had it I was forever goggling things about it. I found a video on YouTube (cant link to it now will do when I get home from work) and it was of someone who created a video of the sound there tinnitus makes. Very similar to mine but much more sharp. I noticed that after I heard it, my tinnitus disappeared. I thought I was cured. But then it came back. Listened to the video again, and again, tinnitus disappeared but only for about a minute. Whenever I play that video (as you can imagine I keep it to get small burst of relief). My tinnitus completely disappears, and then I can actually hear it slowly turn back on. From what I have read, one theory is tinnitus is often the result of the brain trying to make up for a loss of hearing. Quite literally turning the volume up to compensate. When I hear this louder pitch/tone of tinnitus like noise, I assume my brain is turning back down (briefly). Very odd.
I have also noticed, if I move my lower jaw back and forth, I can manipulate the volume/tone/frequency of my tinnitus. I have been to an orthodontist who pointed out I have an overbite (I already knew this) and I grind my teeth at night. Was given a splint for my mouth to wear when asleep and used it for a month now. My tinnitus is MUCH better (not gone but significantly better). I am going to see a surgeon regarding jaw surgery as my jaw is increasingly causing me pain and discomfort, and from a purely vain perspective, I don’t like my profile (lower jaw is slightly dished in). While this will not guarantee getting rid of it, I am increasingly convinced my misalinged jaw is to blame rather than the infection.
For anyone who can manipulate there tinnitus by moving there lower jaw, I highly suggest having a splint/mouth guard made at your dentist (it's like £20-30).