My names Todd and I'm a 48 year old male. About 3 years ago I started having
problems while sleeping at night or especially while laying down for an
afternoon nap. I'd wake to find a pulsing sound in my brain and ear ringing.
I'd also feel totally mentally wiped out. It sounds like a swoosh noise, as
if an artery in my brain was kinked and then un kinked. Like the pressure of
a kinked hose being un kinked and water gushing out all at once. I noticed
around that time I also noticed that I had a constant ringing in my ears
that was more noticeable than the usual. I was a professional musician for
25 years and I know all about ear ringing, but this was different. I had
been retired from playing in a band and it had been 2 years since my last
rock concert. At this point my illness is much worse and has seriously
debilitated me as I'll explain further on.

I should mention these other 4 things before I go on as possible
contributions. All these things happened that same year.

I had a motorcycle wreck and had banged my head at 55 mph.

I had started using a pain killer (roxycodone) for injuries I had incurred.

I had bought an old house that I later found to be infested terribly with
toxic mold.

I developed serious allergy problems. (Blocked nasal passages, sinuses /
head filled with mucus, difficulty breathing)

I found out I had Hepitius C.

I started to see doctors in the summer of 2003. Other symptoms were metal
fatigue, tired all the time, body ache and in particular aching and numbness
in my arms and legs when I had what I call night episodes. I was in perfect
health before, never even got headaches, and was muscular and sharp.

Right off my doctor found I had developed an allergy problem, but didn't
know what from. I used Alegra D and took Steroid shots for the allergies,
but still had problems and they got worse as time went by. I live in Tampa
Florida and we have a summer rain season. I would have seasonal problems
with allergies and they would aggravate my head ringing and sleep problems.
I kept going back to him, telling him this all can't be from allergies, but
he thought so. He also prescribed me pain killers for back injuries I had
and my general aching body. I must have gone 9 times to this doctor and did
a wellness test at another clinic. I then asked to be tested for Aids and
Hep C. The Hepatitis C came back positive, but my levels were extremely low
and my liver test came out looking in good shape.

It was now 2004 and rain season again. I discovered very bad mold in my new
house. Mold under the floors, in the roof attic and under the house in the
crawl space. The house was loaded with it! I found out that toxic mold will
debilitate you and give you neural problems and allergy problems. I got very
ill again and thought I had found out what was killing me. I had a mold
tested from my insurance company come out and do a test. He said the levels
were not enough to justify a big reconstruction. I had a big battle with
them and ended up taking the 12,000.00 they offered to fix some of the bad
mold and roof and sold the house. I think the house should have been burned
to the ground! I had an episode so bad one night that I went to the hospital
emergency room. They checked out my heart and sent me home. Ha!

So I moved into another house, but I kept getting worse and worse. I have
these problems mostly at night. I'd wake up and my head would be spinning,
ears ringing, and mentally wiped out. I'd go to the couch and sit up and
take what ever I thought might help me to come back to life. I now was using
over the counter Benadryl D, aspirin, Roxy, sinus spray. I found Xanax
helped me to sleep through the nights. But not always and not completely. I
still had headache, vertigo, dizziness, metal fatigue, even on good night.
And of coarse the ringing in my ears. Luckily I run a web business from
home, but I haven't been able to run it well since my head problems have
gotten so bad. I also have no insurance, so I pay for all my doctor visits.

I did another emergency room visit and tried to get them to help me again.
Again they said there's nothing wrong with you and sent me home. I also talk
to my pain doctors that I see every 2 months about my problems. It was they
who suggested I may have Tinnitus.

Year 2005. I did a free clinic and they put me in Tampa General Hospital for
2 over night sleep study tests. They were testing for Sleep Apnea. I didn't
have any problems while there. Doesn't that figure! But I know my problem
isn't Apnea. But they also said nothing strange happened on my tests. I then
had an MRI done on my head and they found nothing there. The clinic got a
new doctor who told me she thought maybe it was all in my head and that she
thought I seemed depressed! Yeah lady you'd be a little depressed if you'd
been to 10 doctors and no one can figure out what's wrong with you! I didn't
go there any more.

Year 2006. Worse than ever. I have constant low ringing and loud ringing
every morning or when the pulsing sound wakes me. I have headache most of
the time now too. I can lie down and some times the pulsing noise starts to
happen before I get to sleep. It some times feels like my heart beat gets
eratic too when the pulsing noise happens. I'll many times get up and take
Xanax, Benadyl, & aspirin and wait till it kicks in good before I try to go
to sleep again. Or I'll wake up from the noise from sleep. Many times it's
real hard to move to wake or get up. I'll have to force my self to get up on
an elbow. It is like the blood gets cut off from my brain or something. I
real disorientated and tired. When I'm having bad allergy problems compiled
with the Tinnitus it gets scary. I nearly stop breathing in my sleep and
wake up feeling I was on the brink of taking the Big Final Sleep! When I get
up and focused the noise goes away, just leaving me with ear ringing,
headache and metal cloudiness. I can hardly talk some times until I'm up for
15 to 20 minutes. By the afternoon I'm almost right. If you met me you'd
take one look at me and you'd have no idea that I'm all screwed up. I can go
the mental distance too. Also at times in mid afternoon or early evening the
ringing gets louder and I get a headache. I feel I need to lie down. When I
lie down and become still the slightest noise will shock me. It's like a
thunderbolt goes from my brain to my toes! A flash of light will do the same
to me or if I get nudged by something it will shock me. I mean it shatters
me! I'll have to get up if there's any commotion going around me. The cat
could just jump up on the bed and I get shocked so bad it's like my heart
misses a beat! I have a wife and kids and 2 dogs and a cat, so peace is some
times in short supply. My wife has been a trooper through this. But at times
she has a hard time understanding what I'm going through. After all I look
and talk fine. I have a hard time remembering things. I have to write things
down or I forget. I can't listen to complicated conversation at times. And
it's not getting any better either.  It is really starting to get to me. I
wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy. I think depression is another side
effect to Tinnitus. Any one who has this will know what I mean.

I'm sure I've left plenty out, but this ought to give you an idea of what's
going on. The cause??? Mold poisoning? Bash on the head? Heavy metal? You
tell me, I have no idea at this point, but I'm guessing it's not the music.

Maybe this will help some one else. Or maybe some body has a suggestion that
could help me.

Kind regards,

Todd   webmaster@webdyer.com