3 ms·

I played Timpani for two years in high school. I never felt the need to wear ear protection. Although I did develop Tinnitus twenty years later, but I think it'

I played Timpani for two years in high school. I never felt the need to wear ear protection. Although I did develop Tinnitus twenty years later, but I think it's more related to having to block out noise in open offices than me playing those drums a long time ago. I tried getting back into drums a bit with just practicing paradiddles on practice pads with standard drum sticks not too long ago, post-Tinnitus, and I needed to wear ear protection for that, I could feel a pressure in my ears with each strike, and it seemed a little unsafe. Timpani drum strikes are much softer, though (you have cotton and what feels like panty hose wrapped around that cotton on the end of the sticks) so I never really felt pressure in my ears, at least as far as I can remember, and even though I was trying to make it loud at times, it didn't seem significantly louder than when I was playing other instruments surrounded more closely by other musicians playing (like when I was playing saxophone sitting amongst the trombone and trumpet and tuba players).

pc86 4y ago
I don't think there's any evidence that tinnitus can be caused by open office floor plans.
- cableshaft 4y ago
  It can be caused by wearing headphones and playing music loud enough and long enough, which I had to do extensively in order to do my work and focus, because if I didn't have them on there was often 4-6 conversations that I could hear from my desk at various times throughout the day (and not too uncommon there'd be 2-3 different conversations literally next to and across from my desk, it was apparently a hotspot for BAs and scrum masters to congregate and chat for 45+ minutes at a time. I tried to get my assigned desk changed but had little luck with that). I think at one point I got noise cancelling headphones and that helped a bit more, but I still had to play music at a certain level to cover the sound. Don't quite remember anymore though since it's been four years since I was in that situation. I'm sure not every open office is like that. In particular the one at my current job, the one time I went in, was significantly quieter. Although the office was only a third full as well, since things changed a lot since the pandemic started for how many people show up to the office (I work remote almost exclusively now). To be clear, I don't know for certain it caused it, it just seems the most likely culprit out of the possible causes in my life.

pc86 4y ago

I don't think there's any evidence that tinnitus can be caused by open office floor plans.

cableshaft 4y ago
It can be caused by wearing headphones and playing music loud enough and long enough, which I had to do extensively in order to do my work and focus, because if I didn't have them on there was often 4-6 conversations that I could hear from my desk at various times throughout the day (and not too uncommon there'd be 2-3 different conversations literally next to and across from my desk, it was apparently a hotspot for BAs and scrum masters to congregate and chat for 45+ minutes at a time. I tried to get my assigned desk changed but had little luck with that). I think at one point I got noise cancelling headphones and that helped a bit more, but I still had to play music at a certain level to cover the sound. Don't quite remember anymore though since it's been four years since I was in that situation. I'm sure not every open office is like that. In particular the one at my current job, the one time I went in, was significantly quieter. Although the office was only a third full as well, since things changed a lot since the pandemic started for how many people show up to the office (I work remote almost exclusively now). To be clear, I don't know for certain it caused it, it just seems the most likely culprit out of the possible causes in my life.