 |
|
Tinnitus Relief For Music Lovers
Whether you just love music or you are a professional musician, music can be your ears’ worst enemy. Over 50 million people on the US have tinnitus, or ringing ears. And the number one cause of tinnitus is exposure to loud sounds. Unfortunately, if not somewhat unfairly, music is one of the main ways most of us expose ourselves to overly loud noise.
It is easy to listen to music too loud. Often we are trying to listen to music over other noise. I’m always amazed when I get in my car, how loud I left the radio from my last drive. Almost all music heard live can be too loud whether it is classical, jazz, or rock. Maybe, music is also your livelihood.
If you are a professional musician looking for tinnitus relief, you are in good company. Rock legend Pete Townsend of The Who revealed to Rolling Stone magazine that his tinnitus returned after performing at the 2010 Super Bowl halftime show. He says he may have to give up the business if he can’t find how to stop tinnitus from returning when he performs. Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich discussed on CNN his tinnitus and concerns for this generation growing up with iPods. Some other notable performers that have tinnitus include Neil Young, Barbra Streisand, Sting, and Eric Clapton.
If you listen carefully to lyrics, you will notice references to ringing ears in many songs, including songs by U2, Wilco, Mark Knopfler, Nine Inch Nails, Bob Dylan, and Beck. Who could forget the famous Peter Frampton line, “I wonder how you're feeling....there's ringing in my ears.”
So what can music lovers and musicians do to prevent getting tinnitus or stop tinnitus from getting worse?
This may seem embarrassingly obvious, but when you have control of the sound level, such as the radio in your car or your iPod, keep the volume as a safe level. What is considered a safe level? That would be quiet enough that if someone wanted to talk to you, they wouldn’t have to raise their voice. That’s pretty quiet.
If you can’t control the sound level, such as at a concert, use hearing protection. You can buy special musicians’ earplugs. If you are a drummer, you can get quiet drumsticks, which sounds like an oxymoron! Eric Clapton made them famous during his unplugged era. As a matter of fact, I’ve heard that tinnitus is why musicians went unplugged in the first place.
And if you already have tinnitus, besides reducing sound levels you are exposed to, there are many tinnitus remedies that can reduce or even eliminate tinnitus symptoms, even though there is no actual tinnitus cure.
