The sound and the fury: Tinnitus drives some sufferers to distraction

For the last two years, Nancy Bierlmeier has been living with a constant companion she wishes would go away and leave her in peace.

Whether working, eating, conversing or trying to sleep, Bierlmeier is nearly driven to distraction by a loud, high-pitched hum in her ears that never goes away.

The condition, known as tinnitus, affects millions of people worldwide to varying degrees - from mildly annoying to out-and-out ear-splitting.

Heard in one or both ears, or sometimes throughout the entire head, the sounds caused by tinnitus are usually described as a humming, ringing or buzzing. Some people are bothered only intermittently; for others, it is unrelenting.

For Bierlmeier, the sensation is like standing under a hydro tower and listening to the heavy thrum of a high-tension wire.

Except for her, there's no walking away.

"It's like the power line's between your two ears, right through your head - it's a very high-pitched sound," says Bierlmeier, 50, who lives in Victoria with her 11-year-old son and works for the B.C. government.

"It's such an invasive condition. For me, I find that it competes with every second of my day. It's always trying to overtake my day, my thoughts. It's always there and I'm always aware it's there."

Maha Atrach, an audiologist with the Canadian Hearing Society in Toronto, describes tinnitus as a sound heard in the ears or head without any external stimulation.

The disorder can be caused by a number of physical conditions, including wax in the outer ear, a hole in the eardrum, or fusion or breakage of the three tiny bones in the ear that vibrate to transmit sound. (It can also be a side-effect of some medications.)

Most commonly, tinnitus occurs because of damage to the hair cells in the inner ear, often as a result of aging, says Atrach. Typically, the sound heard corresponds to the type of hearing loss.

Depletion of high-frequency hearing often produces a sharply pitched ringing sound, "like cicadas," she explains. When lower-register hearing perception goes, it can create a humming or roaring sound.

But for some people, no physical damage can be pinpointed to account for the condition.

"About 20 per cent of the population has tinnitus, so it's very common," says Atrach. "But only about five per cent are severely debilitated by it, where it really affects their working and social life, their family life."

While Atrach acknowledges that people with severe tinnitus are truly suffering, she says the condition is exacerbated when people focus on the sound and become increasingly anxious.

"A big part of it is the way that you perceive it and the way that you choose to deal with it," she says.

"So with people who are affected by tinnitus, when they hear it, they automatically associate it with a negative feeling. They start saying, 'Oh, my God. What is this sound? It's driving me crazy. Does this mean I'm going to go deaf? I can't live with it."'

"So every time they hear it, they pay attention to it in a negative way."

That was the case for Toronto retailer Gerald Small, who developed full-blown tinnitus about five years ago after going on a ride with his kids at Disney World in Florida.

Small, 48, had noticed a slight buzzing in his ears for many years, likely the result of too much noise exposure over decades of concert-going.