Psychiatrist Desired: I'm Hearing Screaming

Zonugal

Hey All!

So yesterday within my college logic class we had one of two big exams. While taking the exam I came upon a question that stumped me (I'm not that good at the ol' logic) and while looking at if for maybe 2-3 minutes I began to hear a collective amount of people yelling/screaming at me (which happen to sound like relatives/family members). I immediately shook this off but it reminded me of what use to happen pretty often from the 6th to 8th grade.

Back then if I was silent and focusing on something static for a couple of minutes I would begin to hear yelling/screaming like the one's from yesterday except that to quell those sounds I typically banged my head against a wooden door or wall.

So, what's up with this? I'm pretty sure I'm a narcissist and have an Achilles's Complex but am I going to be throwing another 'awesome' trait onto the resume of my mind?

I'd Fuck Chuck Lidell Up

i used to get this quite often and Tom Waits had this as well.

now i just hear random noises on repeat +20 decibels so if you figure out what is causing this please let me know

Figgy

You know what, when I'm focused on something and it's really quiet around me, sometimes I hear what sounds like cheering... it's hard to explain.

It's very faint and I've always figured it's the sound of blood going through my head or my central nervous system.. but your story seems far far more strange.

I'd Fuck Chuck Lidell Up

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tinnitus
BAM!

neither of us is crazy!

hi5s all around

Viscountalpha

Try cleaning your ears out. If it doesn't go away, Go seek a doctors advice on finding some sort of treatment it is indeed tinnitus. Its a family curse of sorts. High earwax buildup. It sucks but thats life.

If your actually hearing spirits, then go find some sort of holy place and see if it subsides (not really joking here)

Figgy

There you have it. Your ear wax is screaming at you to get it outta there.

Bionic Monkey

I'd try some basic ear cleaning, if it is indeed tinnitus, and if it continues, by all means, go see a doctor, as it could be a symptom of a more serious problem.

Sarcastro

Auditory hallucinations are probably something you would want to discuss with a doctor. Causes range from simple seizures to acute psychotic episodes. Hooray!

Of course, things like tinnitus don't fall into the hallucination catagory, as they are simply hearing problems, caused by issues with hearing itself- still, doctor, because hearing loss is pretty sucky.

Dixon

Yeah I used to get this when I was little as I had wax build up a lot from swimming all the time. It was always the worst at night when I was sleeping, one ear would be down on the pillow and the other would be up and for some reason the ear against the pillow would hear screams in the distance. Whenever they got cleaned though they would be fine for a while

Lord Yod

Have you ever done a lot of shooting? Been in the army or something? I ask because my dad did a lot of hunting as a kid, and served in the Navy in Vietnam on a ship with a 5-inch gun about 25ft away from him for a few years. Now his hearing is shot, but for the last 7 or 8 years he has been hearing a relatively constant high-pitched noise. We finally got him to go to a doctor for some tests, and he said it is indeed tinnitus.

Now he's got a hearing aid, and seems to be having less of a problem with it. So I would certainly recommend getting your hearing tested to see if that's the problem. If it is purely a mental issue, then a psychiatrist could at least give you an idea of what you're looking at.

vonPoonBurGer

Is the sound you're perceiving continuous, or intermittent? If it's pretty persistent once you start hearing it, then it could maybe be tinnitus. However, if it's a brief episode it could be a waking version of exploding head syndrome. I used to get these sometimes while falling asleep. I'd be in a semi-conscious state, just on the cusp of sleep when I'd "hear" a loud noise and feel a mental jolt. Sometimes it was a bang, but other times it was something that sounded like my own voiced yelling Hey! Apparently this can also happen while awake, so if the noise you're hearing is a loud burst, this could be the cause. If that's the case, it's probably one of those weird but harmless things the brain sometimes does. Now, if the noises start interfering with your quality of life in any significant way, that's when you should consider seeing a mental health professional.

Zonugal

Lord Yod wrote: »

Have you ever done a lot of shooting? Been in the army or something?

Nope, never.

Also, the sounds aren't a huge burst at once but a continuous build-up till it's overwhelming to which I have to snap myself out of it.

Figgy

vonPoonBurGer wrote: »

]Now, if the noises start interfering with your quality of life in any significant way, that's when you should consider seeing a mental health professional.

He should seek a health professional now. Waiting until an unexplained problem has escalated to the point of life quality reduction is not a good idea. Self diagnosis via wikipedia does not count as "explaining" it either.

Go see a doc.