# Hearing things



## forgetmenot (Nov 12, 2009)

Sorry just want to know if under a lot of stress do others hear things.  
  I constantly hear phone ring but it is not ringing.
 My anxiety is high i know this as i getting alot of pain in my chest sharp grabbing pain. 
Throughout the day i keep hearing dam phone ring but its not. strange.
  Can anxiety cause this.  I am doing way too much self talking as well only way to stay calm sometimes and to keep my thoughts straight.
i hate it when phone rings I panic then when i pick it up no one there. just my mind playing tricks again.


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## NicNak (Nov 12, 2009)

*Re: hearing things*

I often hear voices or noises and also see shadows, but when I am stressed out, they seem to upset me more or make me more anxious.

Please make sure you let your doctors know of this symptom though.  They should be aware of any new changes or new symtoms you are experiencing.


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## forgetmenot (Nov 12, 2009)

*Re: hearing things*

yeh  ive let therapist know i hear the phone ring and its not but maybe just anxiety causing this.  It is driving me crazy i hate it. It sets my mind back  so i guess i just got to ignore this maybe it will stop. thanks.


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## Daniel (Nov 12, 2009)

*Re: hearing things*

I found this, which is interesting in that it's more common than one would think (at least as an infrequent occurrence):



> *Ringxiety*
> Perhaps the projected increase in musical hallucinations is already evident in the phenomenon of phantom ringing, called "ringxiety," that many cell phone users experience. Two-thirds of cell phone users who rely on mobile phones for mood regulation and maintaining relationships reported hearing their phone ring or feeling it vibrate when it had not actually rung. The more frequently a person uses their phone, the more often they reported hearing a phantom ring.
> 
> Musical Hallucinations: Can You Name That Tune? on ADVANCE for Audiologists





> Ringxiety is described as the sensation and the false belief that one can hear his or her mobile phone ringing or feel it vibrating, when in fact the telephone is not doing so.
> 
> ...This frequency range can generally be more difficult to locate spatially, thus allowing for potential confusion when heard from a distance.
> 
> Ringxiety - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia





> The ear gives unequal weights to certain frequencies, making it particularly sensitive to sounds in the range of 1,000 to 6,000 hertz, scientists say. Babies cry in this range, for example, and the familiar "brrring, brrring" ringtone hits this sweet spot, too. (Simple ringtones are more likely to produce phantom rings than popular music used as a ringtone.)
> 
> "Your brain is conditioned to respond to a phone ring just as it is to a baby crying," Mr. Nokes said.
> 
> http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/04/fashion/thursdaystyles/04phan.html


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## Andy (Nov 12, 2009)

*Re: hearing things*



Violet said:


> I am doing way too much self talking as well only way to stay calm sometimes and to keep my thoughts straight.


:teehee:I think it is normal to talk to yourself a little bit. I have full conversations with myself which is a bit much. It's ok when I am home but of course I always have something important to tell myself in the car or in the store. That's embarrassing. Not as bad in the car because I just pretend I am using a bluetooth if I am caught. I think that is what they are called. I am the only girl in Canada (tiny exaggeration) who does not,has not and will probably not, ever own a cell phone. No phantom ringing for me.


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## David Baxter PhD (Nov 12, 2009)

It might well be tinnitus, Violet. When you're anxious, your blood pressure may be elevated and that can result in that ringing in the ears sensation which is easily confused with a telephone ring.


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## forgetmenot (Nov 12, 2009)

*Re: hearing things*

Hey yeh i don't use my cell phone that much just for emergency calls.  I hear phone ringing in my home thats when i hear it. My home phone has normal ring tone and i swear it is ringing pick it up duh no one is there.  Maybe i am loosing my hearing thus causing this to happen.  I self talk at work a lot the girls just know to ignore me. I tell them if i am talking to them they will know it either wise just ignore me.  Thanks for the links they are very interesting i have never heard music playing just normal phone ringing but maybe my brain is connected to hearing them now just like it said with baby cry  thanks i will read links again take care.


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## Daniel (Nov 12, 2009)

Regarding tinnitus, you can get sample sounds of what it may hear like there:

DOWNLOADS | American Tinnitus Association

It is more like a high frequency sound that doesn't stop than a telephone ring.  A telephone ring has too many breaks to sound like tinnitus, from what I understand. But if it is non-stop, then maybe so.


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## forgetmenot (Nov 12, 2009)

Thanks Dr Baxter maybe that could be it tinnitus that is a possibility good that makes me feel better.  There had to be a sound reason for it. thanks for all the input

---------- Post added at 09:12 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:04 PM ----------

That was great thanks Daniel it sound like number l and number 6 phone ringing  okay tinnitus 
ringing ear when i am anxious thanks this is good.  I am calmer now knowing this

---------- Post added at 09:32 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:12 PM ----------

Shoot my ringing does have breaks in it like a phone ringing but for now i will just say it is tinnitus as this make the most sense right now. thanks Daniel.


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## Daniel (Nov 12, 2009)

There is more info here:

Tinnitus: Symptoms - MayoClinic.com

In any case, I would see a doctor.

Also, benzos are often prescribed as a treatment for tinnitus, even if the anxiety is not noticeable.

At least for tinnitus that doesn't go away for some time, having some music or white noise in the background is recommended (ideally even when sleeping). This is often done using an MP3 player with headphones.

This is what my mom listened to when her tinnitus started:
http://www.stanford.edu/~dattorro/Tin/tin.html

Such sound therapy is mentioned here in this thread on tinnitus:
http://forum.psychlinks.ca/medicine...51-brief-overview-of-tinnitus.html#post117503


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## Daniel (Nov 12, 2009)

One person does describe tinnitus as "telephone ringing nonstop."


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## forgetmenot (Nov 12, 2009)

Thank you Daniel i have kept everything you sent me  It is good having all this information as now i am not so worried about other things. thanks. I will read them over and tell my husband about them he will be happy to know i am not going crazy ah ah  take care thanks again for all post.


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## Fiver (Nov 13, 2009)

*Re: hearing things*



STP said:


> :teehee:I think it is normal to talk to yourself a little bit. I have full conversations with myself which is a bit much. It's ok when I am home but of course I always have something important to tell myself in the car or in the store.



Full conversations as in, you also answer yourself? Actually, I've sort of done this when I ask myself out loud, "I gotta stop this trainwreck.  Gotta understand why it happened. Why do I think it happened? Hmm. It was that thing that was going on over there....etc." If I say it out loud, it's easier for me to hear and believe it.

To the topic of the OP, there are two instances in which I'll hear music come from a price scanner that is in the middle of the aisle I stock at work. When I first returned to work, there were still some psychotic features to my depression. One of them was a belief that there was a distinct song coming from the scanner. I couldn't hear it clearly as in being able to make out the words, but I knew the song. And I knew I was hearing it. I wasn't imagining it, I was hearing it.

Of course, as I've leveled off and become more stable, I realize that even though I was hearing it, the Beach Boys "Kokomo" was NOT actually coming out of the price scanner, regardless of Kroger's inability to program a decent night of music from the overhead speakers. 

The other time I hear that stupid scanner make music is when I'm severely sleep deprived. Things that create white noise will cause me to have auditory hallucinations that are just like the one I described above, where I can tell exactly what song is playing but it's not distinct enough to hear details. By sleep deprived I'm talking beyond 30 hours or more without sleep, not just being tired because it's natural on the night shift.

But in this case I realize why it's happening, and I believe I'm imagining music instead of believing that there is actually music there.


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## forgetmenot (Nov 13, 2009)

*Re: hearing things*

"If i say it out loud itis easier for me to hear it and believe it." exactly Fiver me too. I think that's why i self talk because when i hear something it sticks with me. I can hear what my thoughts are and know yeh that makes sense and hearing my thoughts keeps me organized if that makes sense too. When someone reads my thoughts that i have written down it even becomes more real it is in hearing the words from a different voice magnifies what was thought. That is why i don't usually like people reading out loud what i write it becomes to real.


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## sparkely (Dec 29, 2009)

Hey haha that's soo funny - I GET THE SAME THING. 

You know why? because you keep thinking you're going to hear a phone ring. Every time I read a book to my son before his bed time and I have bad anxiety at that point, I trip out thinking the phone is ringing and my husband thinks I'm weird but its because you thought you heard it once then your brain won't stop thinking about it so you're brain makes you hear it so you panic!! It's a very annoying concept! But yeah I hate when that happens.. makes me laugh only because I had no idea other people had that. I always thought I was a wee bit crazy. haha


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## forgetmenot (Dec 29, 2009)

Yeh it does make you think that doesn't it " a bit crazy"  My husband laughs too and just tells me its not ringing   The mind does like to play tricks on us sometimes especially when were anxious.  Glad you can relate thanks for your post. take care


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## sparkely (Dec 29, 2009)

haha husbands.... got to love them. they never have any problems eh?? somtimes i have sleepless nights and here's my man snoring haha so i always have to kick him in the leg to be quiet hahaha.


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