Another Crappy Blog... by Jason Winters

Friday, February 01, 2008

Explosive Tinnitus: at least I'm not alone!

For the past month, just as I'm falling asleep I hear a really loud bang. The first couple times it happened, I got up and looked out the window, convinced that someone was shooting a shotgun outside my house. I started to suspect that I was just hearing things because it didn't ever seem to wake up anyone else. It happens to me a few times a week now. As a matter of fact, it happened to me just a few minutes ago. I was just dozing off when, BANG, I hear what sounds like a balloon popping right beside my head (or more precisely, inside my head). Well there was no going back to sleep for me after that. I decided to do a little research and wouldn't you know it, there is actually a name for this condition. It's called "Explosive Tinnitus". No one knows what causes it although it appears to be harmless. The case studies I read describe exactly what I am experiencing. Loud banging, like a gun shooting, just as the patient was falling or had already fallen asleep. It's happened to me a few times while I was already asleep. It really scaried the crap out of me!

Leave me a comment if you experience this too. There aren't many documented cases in the scientific literature but some suspect that explosize tinnitus is drastically underrecognized.

posted by Jason at 2/01/2008 12:13:00 AM

18 Comments:

  • I don't have the explosive kind but I do have the better known tinnitus with ringing in my ears. It seems after I got the ringing I developed vertigo. No known cure other then surgery to remove calcium particals from the inner ear. When I'd wake up I used to get up and go, now I sit on the edge of the bed for 30 seconds or so to get my self ready to stand.
    Just a thought(your not a kid anymore)welcome to the old guy croud.

    By Anonymous DAD, at 6:36 PM  

  • I've had this condition for some time now, and have been told that it is benign. I am partially deaf and have tinnitus, and I get these explosions soon after I lie down, and they also wake me up during sleep sometimes, and appear to trigger vivid dreams

    By Blogger Zambo, at 4:32 AM  

  • I have had it. Almost like a loud breaking of a bone in my head. It scares the junk out of me and as I am waking up I feel tingling back into my limbs. As if all the blood is rushing back into them. I am going to the doctor for this in a couple of days.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 8:21 PM  

  • Well, Ive had the same exact situation for prolly like a week now && decided to do research my self. Im so tired && stressed with home life that I wasnt even surprised that this happened. Soon as i try to fall baq asleep I dreamt for like a minute then tha loud BANG noise would happen again. Its frustrating. An article said that it happens during anxiety && stress which makes sense because Im extremely stressed out with home life && all. Im going to tell my dad as soon as he gets home now that I have an idea of what it is [[Im only 15]]. But yea.

    By Anonymous Blackaneze BaibeeGyrl, at 4:04 PM  

  • I've been getting this at times for years. Do you also see a white flash like lightening lit up the room while your eyes are closed?
    Great to know there's a name for it!

    By Anonymous sinead, at 4:37 AM  

  • Ok thats weird I stop by to look at the fish and find out that other people get this bang and flash of light right as their going to sleep. Been going on with me for a couple of years a few times a month. Haven't gone to see a doc about it, cause I figured that they wouldn't have a clue. Haven't had a lot of luck with doctors of the years.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 9:47 AM  

  • I experienced this (explosive tinnitis) the first time tonight--driving home from a 3-hour choral rehearsal with 280 other singers, at time singing fortissimo..I'd never heard of it before--I thought someone had maybe shot at my car!

    But it was definitely on one side, I guess "in" one ear and a bit of faint high-pitched normal ear ringing ensued. Comforting to read these posts.

    By Blogger SeleneSirene, at 12:25 AM  

  • i have experienced this a couple of times. really good to know someone knows what im talking about. everyone just looks @ me like im crazy. my ears also ring A LOT. if stress is a factor, that makes sense. i am also suffering w/severe anxiety. but when it has happened i thought i was having a stroke or something... really scary.

    By Anonymous emily, at 12:35 AM  

  • geez louis! I've had two explosive noises in my left ear for two successive nights. I have tinnitus for years (since 2001). I always hear hissing sounds(endlessly). During the first hours of sleep, a loud crash(like throwing pots and pans) will occur or play in my ear(head). Guys, what you relate here are just the same as my symptoms. Come to think of it, Im not alone. But is there any help for us? I read that stress is the main culprit, but who wouldnt be in this world nowadays? HELP

    By Anonymous sweetinnitus, at 3:40 PM  

  • I've had this for months now. It always happens when I'm sleeping. The first time it happened I thought I died. I was waiting to see what would happen next. I saw a neurologist and he said he had never heard of anything causing this symptom. I think he thought I watched too much House.

    So what can be done to alleviate this?

    By Anonymous Bob, at 1:14 PM  

  • I am also suffering from explosive tinnitus but with best treatments i am curing it.

    By Anonymous banish tinnitus, at 4:31 AM  

  • I have have had the other kind of tinnitus for about 5 years now (started after one night in noisy night club) where I get constant hissing or ringing sound that only actually goes away when my brain is too occupied with other things to pay attention to it.

    I don't get the exploding bang type of noise, but it does sound like 2 seconds after a flashbang grenade has gone off. When waking up it is quite notecable for a while and if very stressed it definitely gets louder.

    For some people tinnitus can just disappear overnight after a random amount of time (sometimes months, sometimes years), docs never seem to be able to do anything much about tinnitus in my experience.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 7:28 AM  

  • I have this! I am so happy that I am not alone. It's really scary in the middle of the night! I was starting to think that i was beginning to have a mental illness/terminal illness or something...or is this astral travel????

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 10:11 PM  

  • Me here too, I've been suffering this few years ago and I'm glad it was cure. This is not an illness but a condition that can cure. I know certain remedies involve in this. Just try some tinnitus remedies or treatment in order to get rid of that ringing sound in your ears. Goodluck!

    By Blogger redhotchilly12, at 2:40 AM  

  • I thought I had this too... I heard a serious of extremely loud bangs in the middle of the night. I thought for sure it was gunshots. I even took a quick look around the house and out through a few windows to check it out. Anyways I shrugged it off and went back to sleep. Upon waking up in the morning, I notice my living room window had large cracks and a few small holes in it. After some further investigation, I was able to locate a few gunshot holes in the drywall of my house. I called the police, and they found 5 bullet shells right in front of my house. Thankfully nobody in my family was hurt, there are 5 of us, but we aren't usually in the living room at 3 am thank the powers that be. So yeah, this is a true story, so be thankful all you have is a medical condition and bullets aren't actually being shot at your home.

    By Blogger Jason, at 11:49 PM  

  • I wake up to loud knocking on the front door, TV on downstairs(not any decipherable words), bees buzzing(like a hive of angry bees), toilet flushing, crashes,glass breaking...all of whcih are only heard by me apparently. I wake up with my heart pounding and EVERY time go through the house looking for the culprit. It is nuts. I had an MRI of my brain...nothing wrong there. I dont see lights and the sounds are very clear to me. What could this be?

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 1:59 AM  

  • My tinnitus almost sounds wave like or water moving around. And sometimes I get the ringing as well. Quite annoying to say the least. Haven't had the explosive type. That would be scary to have that happen when going to sleep. Equally scary is the flashing lights when the eyes are closed, I do have that to go along with the ear thing, like some of the other posters do.
    I have had a lot of stress in my life and I see that other posters as well say they do too. Must be something to it.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 1:14 PM  

  • nope you are not alone.. I have had that a few times in my life, its not something I would call a bothersome problem, but every now and then it happens. anyway - just thought you'd like to know a fellow "jason winters" has experienced the same thing! ha

    By Blogger Jason A Winters, at 6:44 AM  

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