I've had gradual high-pitch hearing loss for like 15 years or so.

Five years ago I went to an eye-ear-nose-and-throat clinic for an exam.
The doctor did the perfunctory glance in my ears, asked a few questions, then handed me over to an impassive technician who administered the hearing tests.
The results: She told the doctor that I needed hearing aids for both ears.
That was it.
No further physical exams for possible causes.
No alternatives discussed.
The doctor explained briefly about tinnitus, then apologized that there was nothing else he could do.
Needless to say - I won't be going back THERE!

Oh, I can still hear - just not very high-pitched sounds.
But the tinnitus is gradually growing louder.
To me, it sounds like crickets chirping all the time - loud!
I tune it out most of the time, so it's not really an annoyance -
I just don't like the idea that it may be signifying further hearing loss.

Well - this morning, I started looking for info on tinnitus on the internet, and I learned more from either of two sites in ten minutes than I did the whole day I wasted (a lot of waiting time!) at the clinic!
And next time I go to a doctor about my hearing, I'll be a lot better prepared!

So if any of you are experiencing tinnitus - any unusual sounds in your ears - you may find these sites informative too:

http://www.tinnitusrelief.com/

http://www.ohsu.edu/ohrc/tinnitusclinic/factSheet.html#things%20to%20avoid

Thanks for the info, T/I/E. I'm 62 now and have been listening to my screaming ears for twenty years. Some of my children have it also. The sharp cricket noise is the worst. It almost hurts, it is so sharp and loud. I am amazed that we can tolerate the noise for so long. The only relief I get is when I'm not paying attention to it which is about half of the time. I haven't read your info yet. I put it in my favorites and will read it soon. I was told that nothing can be done about it.

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