Something weird is going on

To put it bluntly, I’ve been dealing with a rather bizarre issue for quite some time now. It's particularly frustrating because music is a massive part of my life, especially since I perform regularly as a member of a band.

The pattern is consistent: after any exposure to loud noise—whether it's a rehearsal, a gig, or just attending a concert—I experience significant pain in my temples, the areas around my ears, and even down my neck and along my jugular area.
These spots are tender to the touch, but even without physical contact, I feel this intense tightness, irritation, and even sharp, stabbing pains in those regions. It is an incredibly uncomfortable sensation. This discomfort lingers for days following the exposure and practically never seems to subside. This has been happening for over a year now, whereas I never suffered from anything like this before. None of my bandmates or anyone else in my circle have reported similar issues. Does anyone know what might be causing this, and more importantly, which specialist I should consult to get some actual help?

I haven't a clue, really, but if I were in your shoes, I’d probably start by making an appointment with a primary care physician. Have you tried doing a little bit of digging on Google about the issue yet?

gentletiger46 said:I haven't the slightest clue, but if I were you, I'd start by seeing a primary care physician. Have you even bothered to do some basic research on this issue online?

Of course I have. I have spent the better part of a year searching fruitlessly for any information regarding this phenomenon. It seems I am quite possibly a unique case.

You should definitely take a stroll down to the local park first...

To provide some much-needed clarity, I have attached this image. To be precise, the areas highlighted in red are tender to the touch, irritated, and accompanied by sharp, stabbing pains. The exact same thing is happening on the other side. All of these symptoms manifest following exposure to noise, whether for a short or extended duration. I must reiterate: no one else is experiencing anything remotely similar to this.

Does anyone have even a vague idea of what might be going on here? Would it make any sense to reach out to a neurologist? I often experience intense pain radiating from those areas.

Well, obviously you should probably give your doctor a call. Or maybe look into some alternative options?

I honestly think your body is just trying to tell you something—it's likely the noise levels bothering you, so it’s throwing up a warning sign.

Look, I'm not exactly claiming to have all the answers here...

I honestly cannot wrap my head around why this is happening to me now when it was never an issue before, especially since I've been working in the music industry for years. Besides, millions of people attend loud concerts every single day, and I have never once heard anyone complaining about these specific symptoms. To be fair, I did suffer a blow to the head a while back—a total accident—but the doctors at the hospital cleared me, stating there was no lasting damage. It has been about a year since that incident and only now have these symptoms started surfacing.

Steven Nguyen43 said:I honestly can't wrap my head around why this is hitting me now. I’ve been working in the music industry for years without an issue. Besides, millions of people go to loud concerts all the time, and I’ve never heard anyone complaining about these specific symptoms. To be fair, I did take a hit to the head a while back—just a freak accident—but the doctors cleared me and said there was absolutely no damage. It’s been about a year since that happened and right up until these symptoms started appearing.

Hmm. It seems pretty clear that the noise itself isn't the cause, but rather that the noise is just making everything worse.
It really might be a lingering consequence from that head injury.
You should probably head over to an ENT specialist so they can actually run some tests and see what's going on. Maybe start by getting a brain scan just to be safe. I'm no expert, but my best advice is to get second or even third opinions from different doctors instead of just relying on one person.

Oh, and you should try posting your specific symptoms on this forum; you might at least pick up some helpful info from others who have dealt with something similar.

http://www.mayoclinic.org/departments-centers/otolaryngology

I’ve got daily rehearsals and loud concerts all weekend, but honestly—my head only kills me from the booze... and those damn nicotine sticks.

Maybe go get a CT scan or an MRI done...

The issue is that I already underwent a CT scan right after the impact, and at that time, they didn't find any abnormalities whatsoever. To be perfectly honest, this problem didn't even surface until about a year later.

Steven Nguyen43 said:The issue is that I already had a CT scan right after the impact, and they didn't find any abnormalities at all. To be perfectly honest, this whole thing didn't actually start surfacing until about a year later.

You really need to get an MRI. A full year is a long time to wait.