When i laid down to go to sleep last night i could hear a swooshing, rushing like noise in my ears and then i would notice heart palps. i felt my pulse and it was normal and then it wouldd speed up and then normal again. the rushing noise only lasts for a few seconds but its scaring me. its still happening now that i want to take a nap. it happens right when i start to drop off to sleep. every time! what the heck is happening? im going thru a very stressful time right now so could it be from my anxiety being so high? last night i had a panic attack because of this. is this dangerous? ive never had this before. i had some skipped beats recently for a couple of days but that gone.its making me nauseous because im so scared.

I've had that sometimes when I bend over. I read that it can be caused by congestion or ear infection. Mine happens less when I take an anti-inflammatory, so I'm thinking that for me it's caused by inflamed ear canals. Could it be something similar for you? I mentioned it to my doctor once and she barely took notice.

Hi! Just wanted to let you know that I have had problems with my ears since this whole perimenopause thing started with me. I hear the whooshing noise alot, as well as a low ringing, usually when all is quiet and I am trying to sleep. My ears feel "stuffy" often, like they are clogged with cotton. My symptoms started about 9 months ago with the ear problems and dizziness, then a panic attack. I have had all the tests done at an ENT doctor only to be told nothing is wrong, and sent for dizziness therapy! I was also prescribed allergy med, which for some reason, helped, but I didn't want to take Zyrtec for allergies when I had none! So, now I am on a natural decongestant from my altenative doctor, which helps. Hope this helps! Also, I think the B vitamins help with the panicky feelings.

it doesnt make sense tho that my heart starts to palpitate right after and it only does it right at the moment i start to drop off to sleep. i dont hear the wooshing (and its like a pulsating ) noise any other time. its just weird and scary. i talked to my naturalpath today and she said it was just anxiety causing it. my husband said maybe i have sleep apnea. thats scary too. im a little over-weight but not by much and he says i snore , but quietly. i really dont think its my ears, cuz of the heart palps.

When I was a kid a doctor talked about 'older' people hearing the blood coursing through their veins and attributed it to a general thinning of tissue.

I am a musician and I have tinnitus. It manifested itself in my right ear as a "swooshing" noise in time with my heartbeat. It took me awhile to get used to it but I've learned. However, having said that......with peri on me now, I notice it more than ever. And today agian, I'm walking thru the store and all of a sudden I felt pressure in both ears (like someone clamping their hands over my ears) I got faint and felt dizzy. It quickly passed but it's just another lovely symptom we have to deal with I guess. I'm one of those people who can't take low frequency sounds...they make me really dizzy and lightheaded. Flourescent lights are a bit no no for me as well. Malls are out of the question unless I'm in a REALLY *bionic* state of body when I go.

What you are experiencing could be an adrenaline rush or anxiety.....? I'm not sure but I do think it's a blood pressure fluctuation sort of thing..hence the blood rush to the ears.
Strange stuff we go thru, huh?

Hang in there!
Guitarplayer Sue

I wanted to add that I give myself B12 injections per my doctors instructions. They really helps with the mental distress and make the symptoms and all *this* more tolerable. The fact I'm here typing this right now is testament to how great B12 helps me function.

Hi there, I have had this form of pulsating tinnitus in both ears for around the past 2 years now. The whooshing sounds beat in time with my heartbeat, and I have it all the time - day and night. I feel it is due to a more forceful heartbeat. I also have a feeling of plugged ears and head too. I do get bad headaches too and then the pulsating sounds are really bad. Around my period these sounds are very loud also. My hearing is also very hypersensitive to loud noises, and even rubbing my head makes these sounds louder!! My pulsating tinnitus sounds very hissy or tinny and sometimes sounds like someone is rattling silverware back and forth in the kitchen drawer. I just try to stay calm and tell myself that this is another bizarre perimeno symptom. Glad to know that I am not alone with all of this!!! It would be great to hear about other ladies' experiences with these frustrating symptoms...Celica2

Guitarplayer

Is your vitamin shot by prescription or can anyone get it? What strength? Do you inject into muscle, flesh or a vein?

I am more lackluster daily.

Wow. You ladies have totally described what has been bugging me. It does set off waves of anxiety quite effectively! I saw a major ENT rock star about it on Tuesday, and he said my ears looked great and my hearing was excellent and didn't want to do anything else at this time. A symptom like this can really make you feel like a nut, and it's so comforting to have others experiencing the same thing.

Thanks!

Lauren

I had this as well. It can be a symptom of TMJ, which was the case for me.

I have had the pulsing, whooshing tinnitus off and on for about 5 years now. In my particular instance, it is greatly aggravated by anemia which I guess makes the heart work harder to circulate the blood. I can always tell how anemic I am by how loud the pulses get. They are horribly loud after a heavy period. No need to fear your body; it knows what it is doing so have some trust.

I would like to chime in to and only because when I first came to PS and saw so many women with this issue I was so grateful and really started to figure out I wasnt going to die from this, just another annoying Peri symptom.
To put it in a nutshell it scarred me to death to have this in the beggining. When all kinds of test were done on my heart and aterys cause thats what docs do I asked the doc about this one. He said, oh the swhooisng noise and the heartbeat in it to? He said , I am not worried about it, I have it to.
From that day forward I relaxed about it, I still get the thumping swooshing at nite but as soon as I hit the pillow I am out like a light.
I do believe the Magnesium/Calcium/zinc Supplements made a huge difference, also the Vit B12 complex vit, and just trying to not worry about it and try to ignore it.
That is my two cents,
Tinks

Hi I get exactly the same thing, mine is a very loud whooshing sound, I notice it mostly when I am very tired and anxious, even though I am post meno now, it started when I was in peri. Try not to worry, I also get the plugged ear feeling and ringing. Mine is not constant and comes and goes, I can go three weeks without any noises and then it's back again for a while, and so on. I did mention it to my GP a few years ago and she said it was just general ageing made worse by anxiety. Take care.
love Jenniffer

I've had the whooshing ear off and on for about 10 years. I first noticed it when I was pg with my son. I called my ob/gyn and he told me to get my BP checked (it was fine). At my next appt., I asked him about it and he said it was due to more blood circulating in my body (from the pregnancy). However, I've had it since then, so I figure it's hormonal. It IS annoying and I used to spend hours looking it up on the internet. Once time I saw a movie about a women who had some kind of horrible medical condition and one of her symptoms was the "pulsating" ear. I immediately went into panic mode for about two hours. I finally figured I didn't have any of her other symptoms, I've lived with it this long, etc...and calmed down. (I hate it when I obsess about health.)

I have noticed it happens more often when I'm stressed.

I have had pulsatile tinnitus for six years, along with just the plain-old ringing. If the sound goes with your heartbeat, it is generally vascular in nature. It can be caused by various things and can sometimes be treated. I belong to a forum for people with tinnitus. There are many women there who experience an increase in ringing (or are at least more aware of it) prior-to and during their periods. If you are hypersensitive to sounds, this is called hyperacusis. Sometimes it accompanies tinnitus.

Tinnitus is very common and it affects people differently, but it's the anxiety about it that makes it worse for many people.

Does anyone know if it goes away?some of you know i hve had broncitis recently,and since then i have had that swoosy feeling in the left ear.I feel deaf in one ear.I know my mother in-law had it from going thru WWII.My elderly neighbor was told it was because the nerves in her ears were kaput.She needs a hearing aid.what an annoying symtom.

Yes, for some people it lessens or goes away. Mine is generally worse when I have stuffy ears or a cold.

Tinnitus is most often caused by exposure to loud noises: Common culprits include: loud music (especially when earbuds are used to listen to it), concerts, loud films and loud machinery.

Some people develop it, though, from impacted earwax, illness, fever, and other things. If it caused by one of these things there is a very good chance it will disappear once everything is resolved. It should be noted, however, that some medications list tinnitus as a side-effect.

Pulsatile, as I said, is often, but not always, related to vascular things. My mother has it and she has high blood-pressure. In fact, my doctor thinks that is why I have mine -- a spike several years ago during a period of stress.

Yep, got it in my ears too. Diagnosis: Eustachian Tube Dysfunction.
Like, how can a Eustachian Tube just decide to Dysfunction????
The ringing, the crackling, the whooshing, the tinnitus, the plugged up feeling.
And it comes and goes. Sometimes on the right, sometimes on the left,
sometimes both. Yikes.
Like Tinkybug said, "just another annoying Peri symptom".

janeann