Living With Hyperacusis – Noise Sensitivity

The Challenges Of Living With Hyperacusis - Noise Sensitivity Pain In Ears by Eileen Burns

The Challenges Of Living With Hyperacusis ( Noise Sensitivity)

The Challenges Of Living With Hyperacusis. What is Hyperacusis?  And why is hyperacusis such a misunderstood and extremely challenging condition?

So What Is Hyperacusis?

Hyperacusis is an abnormal sensitivity to sound. For those suffering from severe hyperacusis, especially very painful hypersensitivity, it can be an extremely debilitating hearing condition that doesn’t just cause discomfort but for someone like myself at times horrendous pain. Now sadly some people confuse Hyperacusis with Misophonia which is a dislike to particular sounds. There is also a perception that the person is experiencing just sensitivity and uncomfortableness but for some of us the pain can be literally so painful it can feel like someone is stabbing you in the ear.

My Own Story Living With Hyperacusis

I was always slightly more aware of sounds than my siblings I would wake up with noises that other people would sleep through. But noise sensitivity only started to become a life-changing condition over 8 years ago after I ended up in ICU with sepsis. Caused by a dental complication that led me to have nerve damage, lockjaw, and osteomyelitis. Now I had previous weakness in this area, previous nerve damage, and trauma from an injury, and a rare medical condition that left me quite vulnerable to temporomandibular issues.

My Own Story Living With Hyperacusis  I was always slightly more aware of sounds than my siblings I would wake up with noises that other people would sleep through. But noise sensitivity only started to become a life-changing condition over 8 years ago after I ended up in ICU with sepsis. Caused by a dental complication that led me to have nerve damage, lockjaw, and osteomyelitis. Now I had previous weakness in this area, previous nerve damage, and trauma from an injury, and a rare medical condition that left me quite vulnerable to temporomandibular issues. But anyway after recovering from sepsis, which left me with a lot of weakness, and nerve damage down the right side of my face, neck, and body. I developed a lot of problems with certain levels, and types of sounds to my right ear, that would literally cause me to lose my balance. I also had developed a complex movement disorder and what is regarded as non-epileptic seizures which all seem to be seriously triggered by vibration and noise.

But anyway after recovering from sepsis, which left me with a lot of weakness, and nerve damage down the right side of my face, neck, and body. I developed a lot of problems with certain levels, and types of sounds to my right ear, that would literally cause me to lose my balance. I also had developed a complex movement disorder and what is regarded as non-epileptic seizures which all seem to be seriously triggered by vibration and noise.

Now the level of noise sensitivity and pain in my right ear became so unbearably painful that I couldn’t handle so many everyday sounds. My ear and jaw would become very warm and at times the muscles in my jaw would twitch. The horrendous pain was one thing the effect on my conscious and my functioning was something else. It would be like this weird surge of electrical energy in my bring that would like short circuit.  I would end up in pain for days. But despite this level of disability, no Doctor would send me to get my ear checked or tested.

Now initially there was more focus on the cause of other issues, I had the complex movement disorder, non-epileptic seizures, and other neurological issues I had, fine motor skill issues I had. But no one could give me any answers. From the beginning, I believed the pain inside my ear alongside the amount of muscle weakness and the nerve damage I had was creating a vicious circle. But I was simply told there was nothing we can do for you, you just have to live with your conditions. Issues which made me housebound because I would have no control over my body. My body would go into constant violent jerking and spasms so I wouldn’t be able to walk outside etc. And the pain in my ear would be so painful as Tom Maholchic in the video Hyperacusis with Pain describes the sound “explodes in my head” and as another person says in this video is “like an ice pick in my ear”

My Diagnosis Of Hyperacusis

Now to get a proper diagnosis of hyperacusis one of the tests you need to get is a ULL uncomfortable loudness level test. But in many areas sadly this is not readily available from the NHS and well even more challenging is that many doctors don’t even realise that Hyperacusis is an actual real condition, my G.P. didn’t. So despite noise sensitivity for years, increasing levels of pain, and seizures, and doing everything I possibly could to help myself I still hadn’t been seen by an audiologist.

It was only when I discovered I could get a private hearing testing at home which would include a ULL test that things changed. The audiologist was very surprised at what the ULL test showed in relation even to the decibels that correlate with normal speech. For this reason, the audiologist sent a letter to my GP recommending further testing. But even when I finally saw an ENT specialist and the audiologist couldn’t complete the test because of the harm it was having on me. The Dr had no interest in trying to help me,  he was extremely dismissive.

I was then sent to a Tinnitus Clinic, given information sheets and recommendations to treat tinnitus, with only a tiny paragraph that mentioned a bit about hyperacusis. At least in this clinic the practitioner actually asked me a lot of questions especially around my underlying medical conditions, the injury I had, and she was also very interested in the research that I had done. She was honest that the clinic didn’t really treat hyperacusis, she commented they knew nothing about Lyme Disease which is known to cause hyperacusis and other neurological issues and my particular issues were very rare. So I had to find my own solutions in how to live with hyperacusis, how to reduce and treat my sound sensitivity/

The Difficulties Of Living With Hyperacusis

The biggest problem I believe living with hyperacusis for many is that firstly many Doctors and medical professionals don’t actually realise that is a real condition one that can be extremely disabling. A seriously under-researched condition, and as MD Timothy Hain suggests one most in audiology appears to have very outdated views.

Many sufferers living with Hyperacusis are neglected and discriminated against because of myths around sound sensitivity. Some people might find some noises annoying, uncomfortable while others suffer tremendous pain like me. Those few hyperacusis with pain rarely get any help, support, or treatment. Although there is a lot more types of treatment available in the United States.

The facts are sound sensitivity is not something that is well researched or something that many neurologists or audiologists actually study. And then even worse some confuse hyperacusis with misophonia ( fear of loud sounds). Now I also have Parry Romberg’s Disease and I have also have had more than a few diagnoses of different conditions some that are including in my list of different causes of hyperacusis.  I have a lot of underlying complex challenges other than injury actually known to be linked with Hyperacusis so it was very surprising that I had to wait so many years to get a diagnosis.

Different Causes Of Hyperacusis

According to Timothy Hain MD, it is considered Hyperacusis may be associated with damage to the inner ear but there is a lot of debate around that. We do know there are many different conditions and causes linked to hyperacusis these include

  • Autism Spectrum Disorders, Aspergers
  • Chronic Noise Exposure, such as a noisy working environment
  • Central Nervous System Disorders, Brain stem issues
  • Deficiencies – Magnesium
  • Disrupted attenuation reflex as seen in Bells Palsy, M.S,  Menieres Disease
  • Medication – Certain medications for example the antibiotic Ciprofloxacin, psychoactive drugs  LSD, methaqualone, phencyclidine (angel-dust)  have been associated with hyperacusis.
  • Head Injury Of Trauma
  • Late- Stage Lyme Disease
  • Nerve Damage, Facial Nerve Palsy
  • Surgery To The Ear
  • Williams Syndrome, a genetic disorder where hyperacusisis a symptom.
  • Toxicity, Oxotoxicity one reason why you should avoid the overuse of ear drops, get the right medical treatment for ear infections, and ear wax removal.

The reality is according to Haines it is time the audiology community starts realising that hyperacusis sufferers are not the cause of their disease. For a long time, Hyperacusis was viewed by some as psychologically when it is simply an area of medical science that we don’t know enough about.

Different Treatments For Hyperacusis

Although presently there is no technical standard treatment for Hyperacusis especially for those of us with severe pain. There are many who have sound sensitivity that benefit from de-sensitization programs or relaxation therapy. I personally tried de-sensitization the first few years it made things worse. In fact for me the more I removed myself from the pain, the less pain and other complications I aid. I actually have been a stress management trainer, meditation teacher, and coach for many years, and I actually teach relaxation therapy.

The Doctor who appeared to have no interest in helping, initially told me to stop using earphones or earbuds. But this was completely impractical as exposing myself to even everyday sounds caused me to lose my balance, fall, lose control of my body, have seizures, and be in horrendous pain for days. I couldn’t even walk out the door myself. I could only expose myself to certain sounds for small periods in a healthy way when the inflammation and pain in my jaw, nerves, and ear were reduced.

Now although I am still predominately housebound, I am getting better slowly. I can now listen to the TV if it’s down very low. I can handle normal speech if it’s not at a high pitch, without jerking about or feeling is if I am being stabbed in my ear.

Luckily for me, I have found a combination of things that have helped me reduce the constant high levels of pain. I still can’t go out on my own and certain sounds and pitches cause me to have all sorts of issues but I am getting there. These are a few of the things that I found helpful

  1. Dub Earbuds which reduce the decibel of sound in your ear/ears – Invaluable at the initial stages helped me be able to talk on the phone and work online.
  2. Herbal Treatment For Bacterial Co-Infections  Associated With Lyme Disease
  3. Better Denture – I have a lot of TMJ and rare teeth issues, the better the denture the better support for your mouth
  4. Mouth Guard – A well-fitting mouthguard really helped to reduce pain in the jaw and nerves
  5. Craniosacral Therapy – I found craniosacral helpful at releasing a lot of cranial pressure, nerve issues
  6. Magnesium, Vitamin B6 ( Pyridoxine) – Some suggest magnesium and B6 deficiency can be a cause of hyperacusis
  7. Muscle Therapy, Physiotherapy exercises to support the neck and head muscles.
  8. Meditation – Thank goodness I learned meditation many years ago, a life safer to cope with extremely challenging situations and of course reduces anxiety and stress.
  9. Relaxation Therapy – Helps to relax the muscles, nerves as much as I can  luckily this has been one of my areas of expertise for many years and has helped me cope
  10. Visit a Chiropractor to help solve any alignment and trauma injury to the body, this can make a huge difference to many people.

Common Recommendations For Hyperacusis

  • Use Of White Noise Machine
  • Medical Treatment For Any Ear Infection
  • Proper Ear Wax Removal- – Don’t ever use cotton buds.
  • Meditation – I am lucky to have been a meditation teacher for many years and thankfully this helped me keep sane.
  • Relaxation Therapy – I have taught Relaxation Therapy for many years and for most people with stress-induced hypersensitivity relaxation techniques can be very helpful.
  • Stress Management – Stress will increase symptoms of hyperacusis so it is important to manage your stress.
  • Trauma Therapy – There is a wide range of trauma therapies available that can be helpful to some types of noise sensitivity or sound intolerances.

Also, it should be a must that if you have any sort of ear pain that you do get it checked, that you get treated for an ear infection and that you always get ear wax removed by a professional.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Is Your Health Your Responsibility?

Your Health Your Responsibility - Is Your Health Your Doctors Or Governments Responsibility

Is Your Health Your Responsibility?

Is your health your responsibility, or is your health your Dr’s responsibility?

Are we as a society giving over too much responsibility and control around our health to allopathic medicine and governments? Should governments or medical professionals be able to force medical interventions or take away a persons right to choose?

Is Your Health Your Government’s Responsibility?

One of the things we are seeing around the world today is situations where governments are forcing their people to have medical interventions, more specifically vaccinations without the right to choose.

Is this a step too far in taking away our human rights and body autonomy?

Could this be a step towards a more serious agenda where governments start to take more control over what they think is right for your health and wellbeing?

As someone who has been on more than one occasion being a victim of damage from mainstream medical intervention. And as a therapist who sadly has worked with a variety of people harmed by modern medicine.

I find it extremely disturbing how much control over your health is being pushed, advised by governments officials and advisors, some who are not really the most qualified to do so.

So many top Scientists, Virologists and Immunologists around the world are being censored or being silenced from sharing their alarming concerns or opinions. Concerns on not just how this so called Pandemic has been dealt with but questions around the statistics, the testing, the choice of therapeutic interventions and the psychological media that has accompanied this.

I could go more deeply into my concerns around not just the lack of expertise by some of these people behind the decisions. But perhaps the most serious concerns should be the money trails, the conflict of interests by many who have shares or received financial gifts in some form or another by the companies that are being used to roll out their preferred management of this pandemic.

Such as the choice of testing, the experimental vaccines that they cannot possibly guarantee is safe or that will be effective in the long-term. Especially when certain types of disease was excluded from the first phases of trials and the fact we don’t or can’t possibly know the long-term effects in a few months, few years and a few decades.

The reality is most decisions at the moment are not being made right now by the most qualified people in their field but by people in power or who will make financial or other types of large gain from these decisions.

Sadly by too many people in power who have horrendous reputations for putting their own agendas first.  A situation where millions around the world are having their human rights, their rights of personal autonomy being taking away from them. Too many being forced, manipulated, even shamed and bullied into have an experimental vaccine who are at an extremely very very low risk of dying from Covid 19 from a situation according to one paper in the Lancet is more asyndemic than a pandemic.

 

Ready To Live A More Holistic Life

Should We Trust Recommended Or Forced Jabs?

Should we ever allow our governments to force any sort of medical treatment or medical invasive intervention without someone’s agree consent and permission?

And should we be informed honestly about the possible risks. So many of the family and friends that I have spoken to had no idea that we were still in trial phases.

Even medical professionals I know are shocked at how many of their co-workers are ill informed.To me our health is mostly our responsibility, our health choices is our responsibility, we all should have choice. I mean you choose if you eat healthy or you don’t? You choose if you exercise or if you don’t? You can choose to have an operation or not.

The reality is we keep getting told about the facts, we keep getting implications that getting the vaccine is more safe, But it is? How can we possibly know so early on. Sadly I personally know of one person who has had a very serious reaction to one of vaccines one and a friends aunt who felt very ill after the vaccine and then died.

In this case they could not prove it was the vaccine like many cases even though the person had no health issues before. Now I know we are faced with difficulties choice there is a virus that is life threatening to some, especially to those with certain types of pre-existing conditions.

But I also wonder why people are not being given other options, why our governments ae not looking at other medical interventions. Or even providing everyone with supplements that are known to support the immune system.Why has our government never mentioned throughout this

Pandemic the basic fundamental importance of good nutrition, healthy eating? Do our governments really want to promote health and wellbeing or do they just want to promote big pharma interventions, especially at a time when profits in big pharma were starting to decline. Especially when so many government officials who make these decisions actually have shares or links to these companies.

 

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So Should We Totally Trust Big Pharma?

Now the reality is yes many scientists, will have worked very hard, made many sacrifices in their own life to create these vaccines. But the reality is these vaccines have been fast tracked, most are still in experimental stage till 2023. But many people don’t realise that, they don’t actually realise they in many ways they are part of the experiment. Most people have no idea of the amount of scientists in this field who have had deep concerns about these vaccines and that some of these jabs are created with a new type of new science that has never been used before.

Unfortunately we know governments and modern medicine have made horrendous mistakes throughout the years. I became shocked on my own journey on how little many Doctors and Nurses knew about the medication they prescribed and the vaccines they promoted, Most never do their own research, most only check out the information they are told by their supervisors or basic information provided because they trust the NHS and trust that these companies have the patients interests at heart. But what is more important in the world today health or money? Also is saving money on certain types of treatments put before what is actual more safe or best for someone’s health?

The wiser more experienced Doctor who has sadly seen the other side of the coin tends to do their own medical research. They tend to ask questions and challenge what they are told.  But even that today has become harder in approx October 2019 google started to lower the SEO rankings of many medical research papers and holistic research papers that didn’t suit certain agenda. Meaning it would be much harder for people to find certain articles and medical papers that didn’t align with what the medical and pharmaceutical industry wanted you to read. So basically it became even harder for the patient, the clinician and even experts to find information that wasn’t pharmaceutically or politically bias.

Well lets say they took that bias to a whole new level in 2020 and 2021 through such unbelievable censorship that we have come to question if we are indeed living in a communist country. We just need to see the amount of censorship on Social Media and TV, to see the amount of influence our governments and organisations linked to pharma have on the media and the narrative they want to serve.

But should we be surprised? Perhaps more alarmed we all know that big pharma has a certain reputation for being more about profit than genuine public health interest. And its attempted cover ups of so much harm and damage throughout the years, the source of the Opioid Crisis, and so many cover ups in vaccine damage especially in 3rd world countries. And even more horrendous involvement in human experimentation during World War 2. The “statistically significant correlation between Thimerosal exposure via vaccines and several neurodevelopmental disorders ” and the deaths Of Indian Girls who got the HPV Vaccine that was again attempted to be covered up.

Is Your Health Your Responsibility or your Dr's responsibilityWhy Your Health Is Your Responsibility And Your Choice

I believe your health has to start as your responsibility and it is so important to become informed about your health and wellbeing so you can make educated choices. After a long list of horrendous medical experiences on my own journey. I came to realise how little many medical professionals know about the possible harm and damage of many of things they prescribe or use in modern medicine, And in the modern world we give our power over to many times to people we assume know best.

So how much does your medical practitioners honestly know about the dangers, allergies and serious side effects of so many medical interventions and vaccines today? Many don’t ever see the correlation, the short- term and long-term damage. But sadly some of my work involved supporting families dealing with children disabled by vaccine damage.

Most people have no awareness today how much vaccine damage there is and actually more concerning how much is not reported or published. I know through personal experience that most Doctors rarely report serious allergies or harm by medication or medical interventions using the yellow card.

The Biggest Causes Of Disease Today

We know the biggest causes of disease today are lifestyle choices and toxins. So what you eat, what you do or don’t do, what you drink, smoke or how you manage your life and stress will impact your health and wellbeing. Alongside things like poverty, bad housing, certain occupations, education, culture and environment can all impact our health. But many chronic health challenges today that makes us more vulnerable to certain diseases that are caused by own health choices and our exposure to modern day toxins.

In-fact in our modern world many people are under nourished simply because of poor and unhealthy eating. They have a poor immune system, inflammation, digestive issues because of what they consume and don’t consume. Many diseases today can be eliminated by a more healthy clean diet and lifestyle, so yes the medical system are often trying to treat the symptoms rather than prevent the most life-threatening diseases.

These words and thoughts are only my thoughts and wonders around my experiences and many of the people I have worked with. Experiences of my own, my clients, colleagues and friends in the holistic industry, the Dr.s, Nurses, Pharmacists and Scientists who have left mainstream modern medicine who believe in Do No Harm First.

Modern medicine, modern science is an incredible thing, modern medicine says millions of life’s every day.  There are many government officials, doctors and nurses who genuinely care are faced with many difficult dilemmas and challenges every single day. But I believe when we give our body, our health autonomy to anyone else, especially our government, or medical field we are basically handing over our personal freedom, our personal human rights. A very very frightening step towards giving them so much more control to do as they will.

 

 

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3 Top Pure Essential Oils For Meditation

3 Top Pure Essential Oils For Meditation. Meditation Oils to help you meditate deeply

Best Pure Essential Oils For Meditation.

My Top Recommended Pure Essential Oils For Meditation. The best essential oils to help you get into deep stages of meditation, calm, and peace. grounding and Sacred Essential Oils To Help You Achieve Deep Meditative States.

Benefits Of Essential Oils For Meditation

As both a Meditator for 30 years and a qualified aromatherapist I understand how highly effective high-quality pure essential oils can be in helping meditators achieve deep meditative states. For anyone who struggles to relax, switch off, is new to meditation, or for those who think they cannot meditate, these right incense or essential oils during meditation can help set the scene, create the right atmosphere, and help you get more centered and grounded.

Most people underestimate the power of certain essential oils on the mind, body, emotions, and spirit and how much scents can change our mood and mental state.

These 3 Pure Essentials Oils are grounding and Sacred Oils used by Meditators worldwide.

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3 Of The Best High-Quality Pure Essential Oils For Meditation

These 3 Pure Essentials Oils For Meditation are grounding and Sacred Oils used by Meditators worldwide.

Frankincense For Meditation

Frankincense (Boswellia sacra) is a resin oil that has been extracted from the gum of the Frankincense Tree typically grown in Africa.

Frankincense has been used for centuries for religious, spiritual, and therapeutic practice.  It is known by some as the “King Of Oils” for its wide versatility, its physical and spiritual value, we know Frankincense was given to the baby Jesus. Frankincense is used as an incense, perfume, skincare, and embalming due to its preservative properties as far back as the Ancient Egyptians and today.

In many Asian countries, the Frankincense Resin is regarded as edible and is used to treat a variety of bronchial conditions. In China, the Frankincense Resin is used for a variety of mouth, gum, and teeth issues. Indian frankincense (B. serrata), is widely used in Ayurvedic Medicine to help treat wounds, arthritis, balance female hormones, and for purification purposes.

Frankincense inhaled and or applied as a massage blend with a carrier oil to the body is deeply calming, deeply grounding, and very relaxing. I find Frankincense one of the best essential oils for meditation it is so deeply grounding, so deeply calming, and centering.

Frankincense Scent: Frankincense has a warm woody resin scent.

Buying Frankincense: When buying Frankincense Essential Oil make sure you choose from a high-quality product such as NYR Organics or doTerra. For those in the UK, I would highly recommend NYR Organics  for quality and price.

 

Myrrh Oil For Meditation

Myrrh (Commiphora myrrha) is a resin oil that has been extracted from the gum of the flowering trees of the genus Commiphora in Somalia, Arabia, and Ethiopia.

Myrrh has also been used for centuries, widely used by the Ancient Mediterranean and Middle Eastern countries, and was another gift to the baby Jesus. Myrrh used to be regarded as a very valuable commodity but no longer has the high financial value it used to have.

Like Frankincense, Myrrh has also been widely used for embalming, perfume, incense, and as an antiseptic throughout the ages.

Myrrh was widely used in many purification and religious rituals. And another one of those commonly used essential oils for meditation and sacred rituals.

Myrrh is mixed with Frankincense for many of the Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Oriental, and Eastern Orthodox Churches. Mentioned as a rare perfume in the bible by the Hebrews.

In Chinese Medicine, Myrrh is regarded as “blood moving” and in Ayurvedic has rejuvenating and restoring properties.

Myrrh is said to help support spiritual opening, when used in inhalation or an aromatherapy blend it is said to work directly with the hypothalamus, pituitary, and amygdalin glands to reduce stress and anxiety.

Myrrh Scent: Very Earthy, Liquorice Type Notes. It blends well with frankincense, marjoram, and rose.

Buying Myrrh: When purchasing Myrrh Essential Oil make sure you choose from a company that only purchases high-quality grade Myrrh Resin such as NYR Organics or doTerra.

Sandalwood Oil For Meditation

Sandalwood (Santalum album) is extracted from the Sandalwood Trees and Roots, in the genus Santalum through distillation. The Sandalwood tree is regarded as one of the most worthy trees in the world.

Sandalwood is another one of my favourite essential oils for meditation, to help me get more grounded, and add it to my bath, and skincare products. I love the strong woody masculine aroma of Sandalwood. Sandalwood is the base note for many aftershaves and perfumes. It acts as a common fixative in perfumes for more volatile scents such as citrus, exotic, and floral scents to help increase the longevity of the scent.

The Australian Aborigines have used their local sandalwood trees for food;  nuts, fruit, and seed kernels. Indian Sandalwood is regarded as extremely sacred and is known in Sanskrit as chandana in Hindu Ayurveda. East Indian Sandalwood is greatly used in Ayurvedic Medicine and Traditional Chinese Medicine. Sandalwood is a popular meditative scent in certain Buddhist practices, and why Sandalwood Incense is a popular gift to Budda.

Sandalwood is widely used in traditional and modern medicine for a variety of skin issues, being anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, and anti-proliferative. It is commonly used for colds, chest issues, dry skin, mental issues, UTIs.

Sandalwood Scent: A deeply grounding, rich woody aroma that blends well with Frankincense and Rose.

Buying Sandalwood: When buying Sandalwood for therapeutic properties ensure you are buying your Sandalwood Pure Essential Oil from a high-quality distributor such as NYR Organics.

Want to learn more about Aromatherapy and Essential Oils?

Want more natural solutions for your family’s health and well-being?

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