Ears Ringing from the range!

Status
Not open for further replies.
R

Roadwild17

Member
Joined
Jun 15, 2005
Messages
1,143
Location
Undisclosed
We went to the range Saturday (4 days ago) and everything was fine until we went to leave. We packed up everything and got into the truck, and took our ears off. Parking is right behind the firing line at this range. Then my friend noticed he left his coke out and went to get it. He opened the door and took about 6 steps then BOOM. They has a few people there shooting louder rifles (8mm, 7.62X54 MN, and a 300 wim mag). Anyway, the ear facing the door is still ringing. Im looking for an ear doctor to see how bad it is.
 
should go away, you might have damage but tinnitus (ringing) will usually fade unless you've done permanent damage
 
I took some friends to an out of state range when we went camping. I hadn't anticipated much shooting (save for shooting attacking wildlife, which I figure wasn't gonna happen, and it didn't), so I didn't bring my ears.

Well, we got to the range, and hearing protection was required, and the guy who worked at the range was nice enough to give us some earplugs. They were kind of worthless, because by the time we got to my M1A, I had taken mine out because they didn't do much and just plugged my ears when my friends were firing.

I fired a few shots with that thing shouldered, and I couldn't hear out of my right ear properly for about 2 days. Dayum.
 
How often do you expose yourself to such noises. A few times and you'll be fine. Regularly...you're done. Invest in Fans...they reduce the amount of ringing you hear when you're settling in for the night.
 
I've blown out my ears at a outdoor shooting range and SCUBA diving.

The best thing is to always double up on hearing protection: plugs and muffs.

Visit the doctor to see what's the problem. On a positive note, your ear drums will heal.
 
I've had tinnitus for a good many years. It sucks.

For people who don't understand what it is like...

Think about a quiet summer night with about 100 to 200 crickets in the yard going full bore. Then think about hearing that all your waking hours.

It all adds up, a little loss, a big noise or two, a little more loss.

There are voice tones I can't hear, at 2-3 feet away!

Always use plugs, always, even when hunting, even if it's the last thing you do before shooting.
 
One time? One shot?

you're fine. leave the doc alone.

I get a milder kind of tinnitus from riding motorcyles long distance. When I get off the bike, I have a casino full of slot machines ringing in my head. It's gone by morning. Never seen a doc for it.

That takes hours and hours of continuous road, wind, and exhaust noise. One bang from a rifle is nothing.

Didn't you ever partially lose your hearing for a day or two from fourth of july fireworks as a kid?
 
The ringing means that you're losing frequencies in your hearing. You'll get used to it and stop noticing it, so "it will go away", but the damage to your internal ear sensory cells is permanent, and the loss of ability to perceive those frequencies is also permanent.

We can hear many frequencies so your life won't be affected for losing one or two... but people repeatedly exposed to loud noises start accumulating "holes" in their auditory spectrum, and that can be really problematic as the years go by. Gunblast saturates ALL of our audible frequencies (and more), which is extra problematic for us.

This reminds me of my girlfriend's dog: he had to lose the ear canals because of a severe infection, and he got "bird ears", new, narrow canals drilled but not linked to the external ears. Now you can ring a bell next to his head that he won't move a hair, although he'll jump if you call his name or snap your fingers. It's all in the frequencies, and he lost the very high ones (I need to get a dog whistle and test it on him).
 
Ahh, the relaxing sounds of tinnitus.

I have "minor" tinnitus. Usually, it is little more than the slight, but annoying, electronic type tone you hear when you go to the ear doctor. It happens fairly often, but usually for no more than a day or two (and then goes away for a couple days). Sometimes though, I get the louder ear doctor type tones but they rarely last for more than a few hours. I am not 100% sure if it is from the loud music and concerts from my teen and young adult years, from our last range trip in basic training when I lost my ear plugs and was afraid to tell the drill sergeants (big mistake, 200 or so M16s going, some semi fire some full auto, for several mags gets loud), or from a combination of the two.

Invest in Fans...they reduce the amount of ringing you hear when you're settling in for the night.
Click to expand...

I've found the best thing to help me not notice it so much is music, luckily I like to have music playing almost all the time anyway.
 
Reminds me of the time my friend decided it would be cool to fire his Dad's 30-06 with a blank round inside his bedroom. That was probably the loudest thing I can remember hearing.

Another time 3 of us took turns firing a S&W 9mm (don't remember what model it was) years ago from under a covered porch. Three magazines later my ears rang for 2 days! It will go away eventually.
 
"You know that ringing in your ears? That 'eeeeeeeeee'? That's the sound of the ear cells dying, like their swan song. Once it's gone you'll never hear that frequency again. Enjoy it while it lasts."

Julian, from "Children of Men."

Seriously, it's not that big of a deal. I've gotten zapped and it's the prolonged, consistent injuries like loud traffic noise that will deafen you in the end. I do make a point of wearing double protection. Disposable plugs go in first, then muffs. The muffs come off as I leave, but the plugs don't come out until I'm well away from the gunfire.
 
Cosmoline +1

Plugs in the ears until I am driving away. I had Plugs and Muffs on and I didn't understand why people didn't like my Mosin Nagant M44...

I also wear hearing protection mowing the lawn, working in a shop (air handlers, air compressors, saws, welders, etc.), long time with a carpet cleaner...

One time you should be fine. I couldn't hear right for a couple days after an especially loud concert and it went away. But I am not a doctor and my internet advice is worth at least as much as you paid for it...maybe double!
 
Wear your hearing protection at the range, it is your friends fault for not adhering to this.
1 minute 2 minutes no diff, Blame the range I don’t think so.

Hard way to learn personal responsibility
 
You know when you get hit hard right on the bone? It swells up, right? And it doesn't go away instantly, right? The bruise lasts a couple of days. Well, your ears were injured, they need a couple days to heal. Avoid loud noises. Go on auditory rest for a couple days.
 
Think about a quiet summer night with about 100 to 200 crickets in the yard going full bore. Then think about hearing that all your waking hours.


I hear ya -Its especially a pain in the Butt when you try to go to sleep in a quiet room -I run a fan to cover the sound -Bless Me it not all the time Just ocassionally---ANY loud device will damage your ears --I worked at an airport fueling jets Thats louder than any shooting range
Wear your plugs and muffs ==PLEASE!
 
Go to GNC and pick up a bottle of N-acetyl cysteine ("NAC"). It has been shown in some studies to reduce the severity of hearing damage even when administered after exposure (keeps the sound sensing cells in the cochlea from dying from oxidative stress after the damage occurs, allowing them to survive and heal themselves).
 
On an interesting sidenote:
I used to work in a factory where our hearing was tested annually. An informal survey seemed to indicate that a number of people who had more hearing loss in their left ear, compared to their right ear, were the people who liked to drive with their windows down.
Back on topic though, your hearing is a lot like your teeth. Take care of them, or you suffer premature loss.
 
i have the perpetual crickets too....it is okay in the summer...
i think i actually might be hearing some crickets or peepers

but in the dead of the winter, you know it really isnt anything
except "in your head"

i use the plugs mowing the lawn and snowblowing too

and the loud music isnt as common as it used to be
and when it is, it is more controlle and subdued (darn!)

but, most of my hearing loss is from good 'ole rock and roll
in my youth.....i try to remind kids of the danger of loud music
and the more present danger to them is the darn earbuds that the
run at dangerous levels
 
The squishy plugs work very well for me, when I get them put all the way in. I've found that if I work my jaw while inserting them I actually have to be careful not to let them go in too far.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

G
  • Locked
Ear Damage (hearing loss and ringing)
2 3 4
Replies
99
Views
8K
Mak Maven
M
N
  • Locked
Ear protection is vital!!
Replies
16
Views
1K
jstein650
J
J
  • Locked
Had a very scary range day this weekend
Replies
17
Views
2K
jman74
J
A
  • Locked
First Experience Shooting
Replies
7
Views
823
Azrael256
A
E
  • Locked
First outing with my .50, ouch! Not what you think.
2
Replies
29
Views
2K
CornCod
C
Back
Top