The ringing just won’t go away. That high pitched buzz in your ear has been irritating you ever since yesterday morning and it still hasn’t gone away. You recognize the sound is tinnitus, but you’re beginning to question just how long lasting tinnitus normally is.
Tinnitus can be brought about by injury to the stereocilia inside of your ears (they’re the very small hairs that pick up air vibrations which your brain then turns into intelligible sound). That damage is usually the outcome of overly loud sound. That’s why you observe tinnitus most commonly after, as an example, attending a concert, eating at a loud restaurant, or being seated near a deafening jet engine while you’re traveling.
Under Typical Scenarios, How Long Will Tinnitus Last?
Tinnitus can’t be cured. But tinnitus usually doesn’t continue forever. There will be a wide variety of factors that will determine how long your tinnitus will stick around, like your overall health and the underlying cause of your tinnitus.
But if you find your ears buzzing after a noisy day of traveling, you can normally expect your tinnitus to disappear in a day or two. 16 to 48 hours typically is how long tinnitus will last. But occasionally, symptoms can last as long as two weeks. Additional exposure to loud noises could also cause tinnitus to flare up again, essentially resetting the clock.
It’s typically suggested that you see a specialist if your tinnitus persists and specifically if your tinnitus is impacting from your quality of life.
Why is Tinnitus Sometimes Irreversible?
Normally, tinnitus is short-lived. But sometimes it can be long-lasting. Especially when the cause of tinnitus is something outside the mundane When it comes to degree and origin. Here are several examples:
- Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI): The brain is where the majority of sound is processed. In some cases, a serious brain injury (such as a concussion) could lead to tinnitus because those processors begin to misfire.
- Hearing Impairment: Tinnitus and hearing loss typically go together. So, whatever the cause of your hearing loss is, you could also wind up developing (or noticing) permanent tinnitus along with it.
- Repeated exposure: After one rock show, your ears will ring for a couple of days but repeated subjection will result in far worse consequences. Frequent exposure to loud sounds can result in irreversible hearing damage, tinnitus included.
Permanent tinnitus is significantly less common than its more temporary counterpart. But there are still millions of Americans each year who are treated for lasting, or chronic, tinnitus symptoms.
How do You Get Your Tinnitus to go Away?
You will need to get relief as soon as possible regardless of whether your tinnitus is permanent or temporary. Although there isn’t any cure for tinnitus, there are a few things you can do to reduce symptoms (though they may last only so long):
- Try to remain calm: perhaps it sounds a little… abstract, but increased blood pressure can lead to tinnitus episodes so staying calm can help keep your tinnitus at bay.
- Wear earplugs (or earmuffs): If you cannot avoid loud situations, then protecting your hearing is the next best option. (And, really, you should be protecting your ears even if you don’t have tinnitus.)
- Find a way to mask the sound: You can in some cases drown out the sound and get a good nights sleep by utilizing some source of white noise like a fan or humidifier.
- Steer clear of loud noises. Your symptoms may be extended or may become more intense if you keep exposing yourself to loud noises such as rock concerts or a jet engine.
To be sure, if you have permanent tinnitus, none of these strategies will get rid of your tinnitus. But it can be equally important to control and reduce your symptoms.
How Long Before Your Tinnitus Goes Away?
In the majority of scenarios, though, your tinnitus will subside without you needing to do anything about it. Just wait the 16-48 hours and your hearing should return to normal. However, if your tinnitus persists, you’ll want to find a solution. Finding a workable treatment is the best way to finally get some relief. If you think you have hearing loss (which is frequently associated with tinnitus) you should get your hearing examined.