Larkley

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Okay, here it goes. Im new here and need some advice.

Suffice it to say I'm a hypochondriac. I will go to any lengths to try to heal myself. Pft..not going so well.

Okay, I am a music fan...adore music, love music, need music, would marry music...and never thought it would lead me to be deaf.

Let me also say I also take vitamins religiously, particulary the A,E,C combo and others here and there. Well, I had a quarter life crisis recently and stopped taking these vitamins for about a week. I hit a real low point in my depression..where is my life going? Whats the point? I never want to wake up again! In an attempt to pull myself out of my self pity I took myself to a concert. I was running late, my bank card had expired, I was low on cash, and I realized as I made my mad dash to the venue I had forgotten ear plugs

I have been to 15 concerts in my lifetime...most of them from the lawn so they werent very loud. But id say to be fair 4 or 5 of them were pretty loud and ive never really stood next to the speakers...maybe once 4 years ago. Plus, as more background, I always drive with my windows down and the radio up which im realizing is a bad no no for my 22 year old ears.

I also have a pretty bad case of tmj, and since i got my braces off last month, ive been grinding my teeth. Sore jaw!

So the morning after the show, i notices my jaw was in excruciating pain!!! I could hear all the internal movements and it hurt like a mother!! Then, my ears started to feel full and everything was really loud!! I was running around "turn that down!!! stop yelling!!!" ...I spent the entire next day in ear plugs or muffs and slept the whole day. Ive pretty much been wearing ear muffs since...this was last Sunday..so about a week ago. I went to the Dr. the following thursday...he said it was likely allergies and my eustachian tube was swollen and not allowing the fluid to drain...diagnosis: fluid behind the ear drums. He presribed claritin and nasonex...which i took on thursday, friday, saturday, and sunday, and have since stopped. he said the fluid would be gone by the weekend but its still here.

Sorry for the novel, but i believe a full story is important.

So my ears feel full, and sometimes itch from the fluid...which the dr. said he believes to be the reason everything seems so loud. I cant see an ENT without a referral, cant get in to see the primary for another month, and am thinking about going to the ER tomorrow. Now, im having a whistling like that of a tea pot in my ear...obviously the muffs dont block it out. Is it the dreaded tinnitus...a side effect of the allergies (though i havent noticed im having allergies. I usually do have horrible ones and recently got done battling a year long sinus infection) .....Im just confused and terrified.

ANY input is MUCH appreciated.

Im a little reluctant to go to an audiologist as with my degree of hypochondria and paranoia and anxiety it might send me off the edge.

I might add i was feeling a little better, baby had a tantrum and slammed the door so hard the house shook...didnt help the ears

Also, i realize tinnitus is a result of cumulative damage to the ears...lets say, by some miracle i dont have tinnitus, and i take great care of my ears from now on...will i still experience tinnitus later more than likely? Is the way my hearing is now a result of all past damage? Or can i expect this past damage to get worse over time?