hunting with tinnitus?

[smilinicon]

You have to learn to ignore it as no good can come from dwelling on it. We just have it.

The second I find myself thinking about it (like this post) I think about something else and it works.

[trip]

Had it for a while now from playing live music in a band for over 28 years.  I do have custom in ear monitors/plugs now, but the damage was done long ago when I was a kid. I have to use a white noise machine/sound soother at night to sleep.  Sometimes I hear it while hunting, but when the woods come alive, it's easy to forget.

[Hud]

yep, it is a true, and it does not go away for long. I went thru diagnoses and treatment at OHSU Tinnitus Clinic. They will have the best information on their website.

They do make hearing aids with sound generators that mask the sound. But, they are a bit expensive and the testing takes some time to duplicate the sound in the ear. What I learned is that loud sounds, lawn mowers, guns, machinery, etc are the primary cause but there are others. It kills the hair folicles in the inner ear and result in a loss of high pitch hearing. The loss of hearing is replaced by the brain and that is where the tinnitus (noise) comes from. Even if you have it, use hearing protection to prevent it from getting worse. Use hearing protection when you should. I carry soft plugs for that purpose.

Walker game ears are much cheaper but not perfect. Hearing muffs, with separate controls work in noisy situations. Also good in a blind or when hunting. They are made by Remington and others and found at most sporting goods and online.

Get as much sleep as possible, 8 hrs/nite, and watch the asprin, coffee and medications that make it worse.

[bear track]

I've had it for 30 years and the worst is when I'm tired, or it's super quiet. Can't remember what listening to absolutly nothing was like. Wish I could hear moose better and the wife less!

[JockC]

I've had it really bad for years.  I bought some higher end hearing aids at Costco with flex money, had a couple of different settings programmed for hunting, and have really noticed the benefits.  I don't wear them every day, but I should.

For what it's worth, I have a friend, a hard-headed engineer, who agreed to go to yoga classes with his wife.  He swears it cured his tinnitus (as long as he keeps at it).  This guy is not bubbleheaded; he hunts with a recurve, in fact.

[alex m]

I've got it bad from Nam (birds and arty).  In the woods I use Game ears from Cabelas.  I was tested for Miracle ears by a dealer and they work sweet but they are very spendy and the batteries are spendy too.  They have a blocking tone that neutralizes a lot of the ringing.  They are something like $3000+.  The Game Ears I use are $150 to $200.  They don't have blocking tones, but they do have adjustable frequency that helps me some.  i like them in the woods, but can't stand them in civilization because they pick up every little sound and that drives me nuts as much as the ringing.  it's important to know you have to use a pair of them to get any sense of direction where the sound is comming from.  The pits is the VA won't do a thing.  Alex

[Doc Nock]

Alex,

Funny you mentioned the VA. The one here in PA put a pair of digital hearing aids in my Dad's ears just 4 years ago at 84 yrs of age. They claimed they were $3000 EACH.

Of course, he didn't bother with them much...but they had a computer they used to "set" each one to conversation in the room, the TV across the room...kinda amazing.

You sound like Walker himself when he tried to talk me into a 2nd one of his AFC Game Ears.

I posted earlier that my head feels like a hoot owl trying to figure out "where" what I heard with just ONE Game Ear is located.

I'm not sure I'm ready to spring for a 2nd one!

[centaur]

Alex,
PM headed your way.

[George Vernon]

firsted,
thanks for bringing the topic up.  I struggled with it for years before going after some medical help.  The Dr. did a complete ear exam including a check of my actual hearing.  We tried a number of medications, no help.  The hearing exam pointed out the usual lost of high frequency hearing.  So I went ahead and got some in the canal hearing aides.  Best money I ever spent.  The use of hearing aides improved my ability to hear subtle background noise that I did not realize I could not hear on my own.  Remember, hearing aides don't make your ears work better, they just make the sound ranges where you have lost sensitivity louder.  So you do 'hear' more.  The increase in background noise makes it easier for my brain to mask the tinnitus.  Tried some behind the ear models, but found they were too sensitive to moisture (sweat and rain).  Digital hearing aides can be programmed match a wide range of hearing loss, and the in the ear models are shielded fairly well from moisture.

[vermonster13]

I must be the odd man out. I get tested every year now and I have shown no hearing loss.

[firsted]

Thanks for the feedback guys.  Like some others, I don't suffer from alot of hearing loss mostly just the tinnitus.  Didn't know it was as wide-spread as it appears to be but appreciate all the suggestions.  In the past, I used to set myself up in areas where I would be able to hear game approaching and adjust my position accordingly.  I guess now I'll modify my approach to minimize my need to hear hooves.  Luckily, New Mexico game animals lend themselves more readily to spot, stalk & ambush.  Just gotta know the lay of the land more thoroughly to maximize vision.
Thanks again,

Eddie Paulsgrove