Understanding High Pitched Ringing in Dreams
Hearing a ringing, buzzing, hissing or other noise when trying to fall asleep or while dreaming can be alarming. This phantom sound is actually quite common and usually tied to a hearing condition called tinnitus.
Defining High Pitched Ringing
High pitched ringing refers to hearing a shrill, screeching, static-like or buzzing noise. It may affect one or both ears. The exact sound varies based on underlying cause, but it subjectively seems loud and unpleasant when trying to sleep.
These phantom noises come from inside the body rather from external sources. They can happen randomly or sound steady and continuous. Episodes may last briefly or persist over longer periods of time.
Tinnitus Causing Ringing in Dreams
Tinnitus describes hearing noises that have no external source. Rather than actual soundwaves striking the eardrum, tinnitus is auditory phantom perception.
Research identifies tinnitus as the root cause of hearing high pitched ringing and other noises at sleep onset or during dreaming. Over 50 million Americans have chronic tinnitus either periodically or constantly.
Why Tinnitus Gets Worse at Night
Lying down in a quiet bedroom allows the auditory system to detect head and neck noises more easily. Blood flow sounds, muscle tension, inner ear hair cell disturbances and other internal noise sources contribute.
Stress and exhaustion late in the day may alsoheighten focus on tinnitus sounds. Nighttime spikes in annoyance levels are very common for those managing chronic tinnitus.
Tinnitus Symptoms
Tinnitus has several main symptoms affecting hearing function and quality of life:
- Ringing, buzzing, roaring, humming or hissing
- High or low pitched tone
- Continuous or intermittent
- Unilateral or bilateral ears
- Phantom noises only you can hear
- Sound intensity fluctuates
- Sleep disturbances
Ringing in dreams specifically relates to tinnitus disrupting rest. Other daily impacts may include concentration difficulties plus increased stress and fatigue.
Subjective Tinnitus
Most tinnitus cases are subjective, meaning only the affected person hears or experiences sounds. Objective tinnitus with audible noise detectable by others is much rarer, suggesting an underlying vascular, muscular or inner bone condition.
Since high pitched ringing during dreams is noticeably bothersome yet not literally hearable to partners or sleep study techs, it almost always indicates subjective tinnitus.
Pulsatile Tinnitus
Another less common subtype is pulsatile tinnitus. This synchronizes with your heartbeat and feels like a throbbing or whooshing sound.
Instances of hearing high pitched ringing specific to either systole or diastole phases of heart contractions may be pulsatile tinnitus.
What Causes High Pitched Ringing and Tinnitus?
Doctors arent always able to pinpoint whats generating phantom noises behind chronic tinnitus and sleep-disrupting high pitched ringing. But suspected causes include:
Hearing Loss
Noise exposure, aging and conductive hearing issues like earwax blockages or otitis media infection can prompt sensorineural hearing loss. This damages tiny hair cells within the inner ear that detect sounds and send signals to the auditory nerve and brain.
Since inputs get reduced, areas of the auditory pathway and brain may get overactivated in an attempt to detect missing sound signals. This hyperactivity registers as tinnitus.
Medications
Various prescription and over-the-counter medications list tinnitus or high pitched ringing as a potential side effect. These include:
- Aspirin
- Antibiotics
- Diuretics
- Chemotherapy
- Antidepressants
Underlying Conditions
Numerous medical conditions correlate with higher tinnitus prevalence as well, such as:
- Hypertension
- Hypothyroidism
- Head trauma
- TMJ disorders
For high pitched pulsatile ringing cases, causative conditions involve blood flow or vascular disturbances around the cranial or neck region.
Getting Evaluated for Tinnitus
Schedule an appointment with an audiologist or otolaryngologist ear, nose and throat specialist if you regularly experience phantom noises like high pitched ringing when going to sleep or dreaming.
Hearing Tests
A hearing exam using a pure tone audiometry machine can measure your auditory sensitivity and determine if any degree of damage contributes to tinnitus symptoms.
Imaging Tests
If pulsatile high pitched ringing localizes to one ear or feels strongly throbbing, your physician may order imaging like an MRI scan. This visualizes blood vessels near the cranial and cervical spine region.
Medication Review
Bring a list of all supplements and pharmaceuticals you currently take to appointments. Your provider will evaluate which, if any, may worsen tinnitus as a side effect.
Questionnaires
Answering tinnitus questionnaires helps quantify variables like phantom noise type, loudness, pitch, quality of life impairment and sleep disruption.
How to Stop Ringing in Ears When Sleeping
If high pitched ringing mainly bothers you when trying to sleep, certain adjustments can help minimize its perceptibility and impact:
Sound Enrichment
Introducing soothing ambient background noise masks tinnitus sounds, giving your brain alternate auditory input. White noise machines, small fans, radio static or rainstorm sound apps may help drown out phantom noise perception.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
CBT counseling teaches tinnitus management techniques reducing annoyance and emotional distress tied to hearing high pitched ringing sounds. Redirecting attention, imagery exercises, coping and relaxation skills can improve sleep quality.
Medications
Talk to your doctor about whether melatonin supplements, prescription sleep aids or an antidepressant might temporarily dampen tinnitus symptoms at night. But always weigh medication benefits and risks first.
Treatments to Eliminate Tinnitus and Ringing
Unfortunately, most available therapies only mask or reduce tinnitus perceptibility rather than permanently eliminating the underlying sound source. However, certain treatments provide enduring relief for many.
Hearing Aids
If hearing loss contributes to phantom noise symptoms, amplifying outside sounds with hearing aids gives your auditory system enriched, steady input. This minimizes contrast making tinnitus less noticeable.
Sound-Based Therapy
Custom sound therapies use external tones tuned to mask your specific tinnitus pitch. Listening a few hours daily may retrain neural pathways, diminishing ringing over six to twelve months.
Tinnitus Retraining Therapy
TRT guidance teaches conscious and subconscious habituation, redirecting attention away from tinnitus perception. This integrates education, sound therapy and counseling.
Vagus Nerve Stimulation
Small implanted devices can stimulate the vagus nerve via electrical impulses. Early research indicates this might stop pulsatile tinnitus for some patients.
Natural Remedies for Tinnitus
Complementary wellness therapies also help soothe tinnitus linked to lifestyle, circulation, inflammation or stress:
Acupuncture
Acupuncture may alter nerve signals, stimulate tissue repair and increase blood flow. Needle placement targets anatomical areas tied to auditory and cranial nerve dysfunction.
Nutrition & Supplements
Eating an anti-inflammatory diet high in magnesium, B vitamins, zinc and antioxidants might ease disorders exacerbating tinnitus.
Exercise & Yoga
Gentle physical activity like walking, stretching or yin yoga improves circulation and oxygenation while reducing anxiety and muscle tension.
Stress Relief Techniques
Meditation, mindfulness, guided imagery, deep breathing and relaxing hobbies lower stress hormones. This prevents exacerbating associated conditions making tinnitus worse.
Emerging Treatments to Cure Tinnitus
Cutting-edge research continues investigating ways to treat tinnitus at its neurological source inside the brain. Early trials show promise for:
- Transcranial magnetic stimulation
- Transcranial direct current stimulation
- Vagus nerve electrodes
- Deep brain stimulation
FAQs
Why do I hear high pitched ringing when I'm trying to sleep?
Hearing phantom noises like ringing, buzzing or roaring when lying down trying to sleep is a common tinnitus symptom. Tinnitus sounds often worsen at night in quiet environments.
Can you permanently get rid of tinnitus?
Currently no cure exists to completely eliminate tinnitus forever. But sound enrichment therapies, stress reduction, and emerging nerve stimulative treatments can provide long-term relief by retraining neural pathways.
Is pulsatile tinnitus serious?
Pulsatile tinnitus synchronized with your heartbeat could indicate an underlying vascular or muscular condition, so do get evaluated. But it's typically more annoying than dangerous.
How long until tinnitus treatments start working?
Allow at least six months when trying sound-based, TRT cognitive therapy or complementary medicine modalities before judging effectiveness for reducing tinnitus and high pitched ringing.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult with a healthcare professional before starting any new treatment regimen.
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