Hyperacussis - low rumbling bass tones... anyone else?

[tan235]

So I moved into a new house 4 weeks ago - it's a gorgeous house on a hill overlooking the whole area to the point, amazing views, however when I first moved in I could hear a very low rumbling sound, I started paying attention to it as i thought it was my ears and it increased, I took myself to an audiologist as i suffer tinnitus and that was louder as well - I have hearing loss in one ear (high pitched) but that didn't explain the low bass frequency. Anyway so 4 weeks in I hear hte low bass rumbling 24/7 sometimes it's really loud and vibrates in my head, other people say they can hear it but they really have to listen to it where as I'm almost in tears due to the level of the noise. If it's raining or windy I don't notice and the most I notice it is at night. So here I am, a day in tears, calling as many specialists as I can and no-one has a time for 2 months, I asked the Dr for an MRI and she said it's not a tumour- she did a neurology exam and said my reflexes were heightened but that was due to anxiety. I spent the night elsewhere last night due to the bass sound - has ANYONE experienced this? The Dr said it could be hyperacussis? Never heard of it - googled it sounds similiar but I think it could be a brain tumour that's affected by certain frequencies --- makes sense right????
Anyone else - can this seriously be anxiety????

When I leave the house I don't really notice the sounds....

THANK YOU

---------- Post added at 07:07 ---------- Previous post was at 03:16 ----------

Thoughts guys?
Anyone .... x

[Jotia]

I had something similar happen last year. I could hear a low rumbling noise in my room. I also get bad tinnitus in one ear. I asked my mum if she could hear it and at first she couldn’t which I found odd because it was annoying me to the point I was physically angry about the noise. When she listened a bit closer she could hear it though. I think I’m just more sensitive to sounds because of my anxiety because im always bothered by certain noises my family don’t even seem to hear. Anxiety seems to have heightened my senses and given me some sensory problems maybe you are experiencing simular?

[Passing_for_human]

Yes this can be anxiety. Heightened sensitivity to noise or perceived noise is a major ongoing problem for me. The leap to brain tumour is a massive one that only someone with HA would ever make.

Have there been any other instances in your life where you've lived somewhere and there have been sounds that bothered you that didn't annoy anyone else? Do you find you're more irritated by household sounds or things like music from next door than other people around you? I ask because that's what I'm like. To me the silence in a quiet place will always have a noise of its own I can't seem to block out.

I recommend white noise audio or a soundtrack like "rain storms for sleeping" which I use to help calm and relax me and drown out perceived noise like the rumbling you hear (have a look on YouTube as there are masses and find one you like). The fact that others say they can hear the noise - but really have to focus or otherwise they can't hear it/it would never bother them - suggests to me that there's maybe some sort of environmental noise but it's your sensitivity to noise that's the problem. You need to work on reducing your general anxiety levels plus using coping strategies like comforting audio in the meantime.

Others CAN hear this noise though - so it's not "just you"/definitely not the result of a brain tumour as then only you would hear it. But your sensitivity to it is out of whack compared to someone else.

[Elen]

Please read the below message from Admin. You are posting about a lot of different things frequently. Perhaps start a thread where you can keep all of your worries in one place.


Can posters, especially those who are posting a lot about a variety of fears please confine their posts to one thread.

This helps others to build up a clear picture of what is happening and makes it easier to offer suitable advice.

You may not see the pattern but usually it is there, especially if you are posting frequently about different things.

Your co-operation with this would be greatly appreciated.

Elen

[tan235]

Yes I get sound sensitivity - now when I think about it - if something drops on the floor like a spoon, it sends shock waves through my ears rather than the normal spoon dropping, i hate bass sounds and can't stand to listen to music - been like this since I was a child, but why is the bass so damn loud for me and only a whisper for everyone else?!

[Passing_for_human]

Yes I get sound sensitivity - now when I think about it - if something drops on the floor like a spoon, it sends shock waves through my ears rather than the normal spoon dropping, i hate bass sounds and can't stand to listen to music - been like this since I was a child, but why is the bass so damn loud for me and only a whisper for everyone else?!

Sound affects me the same way and I have an aversion to what I perceive as bass that is too loud in music - it causes me physical discomfort. The shock waves thing is something I get too, in response to certain noises. On the plus side I was once the only person to wake up when a block of flats I lived in was being broken in to (the only person in the entire block!) but I don't think that makes up for the downside of not being able to switch myself off to noise. My partner is oblivious to noise in general and a really sound sleeper, so the contrast with me hearing everything acutely and waking at the slightest sound feels stark. I think he thinks I do it on purpose, but I'd give anything to be able to switch my ears (or brain?) off. I've noticed my daughter has a strong sensitivity to noise too, so I'm wondering if I've passed whatever it is on. Sorry, this isn't helpful is it - lol - no answers, other than to say that yes - the anxious brain I think is connected to this unfortunately.

[Captain irrational]

I've had it before. Sounded like a car engine idling outside and when I first noticed it, I actually spent almost an hour walking around inside and outside the house trying to find the source of the noise before realising it was come from my own ear. It went away after a few days, or at least, I just stopped noticing it.


When you are in a state of anxiety and hyper-alertness, any sounds eminating from your body, especially the ears, will be significantly amplified. Same with any other kind of tinnitus, the best thing to do is try to ignore it, distract yourself with something else when you find yourself dwelling upon it, eventually you will learn to forget about it and your brain will naturally filter out these strange sounds.

[tan235]

Hey Captain, I thought it was me to start with which is why I went to an audiologist!
The audiologist says that it could be the way my ears are shaped, but i have noticed for a while that noise affects me in a funny way ... I jsut wanted to make sure it wasn't from a tumour or something!