Bowl of Rice Krispies making noise in your ear.

Are you hearing crackling in your ear? A condition called tinnitus can bring about numerous different sounds in your ears including buzzing, ringing, whooshing, and crackling. Here is what you should know.

Ever hear crackling, thumping, and buzzing noises that seem to come out of nowhere? In the case of someone who has hearing aids, it might mean they need to be adjusted and fitted. For everyone else, tinnitus might be the answer.

Even though we usually think of our ears with regards to what we see on the outside, there’s more than meets the eye – or in this case, the ear. Here’s what it could mean when some of these more prevalent noises are playing in your ears.


It’s not Rice Krispies that’s for certain. When the pressure in your ears changes – whether from a change in altitude, going underwater, or just yawning – you may hear crackling or popping sounds. A tiny part of your ear called the eustachian tube is the source of these noises. When these mucus lined passages open up to neutralize the air pressure, fluid, and air move causing these sounds to manifest.

It’s an automatic process, but sometimes, like if you have congestion from allergies, a cold, or an ear infection, your eustachian tubes can literally get clogged up from an excess of mucus in your system (keep in mind, your ears, nose, and throat or all connected). Medical help, like surgery, is occasionally called for in severe cases where nothing else has helped clear the blockage.

I’m Hearing Vibration in my Ears – What Does That Mean?

Vibrations in the ear are sometimes a telling sign of tinnitus. Tinnitus is the medical term for a disorder that causes people to hear noises that have no external cause, such as vibrations, inside of the ear. It’s commonly characterized as a ringing in the ears and can, in some cases, be mild, and in others, debilitating.

What Should I do About Noises in my Ear

If you have hearing aids, again, checking those is the first step. You may hear these types of sounds for several reasons: your batteries need to be recharged, the hearing aids aren’t correctly seated in your ears, the volume is too high, or your hair is brushing up against it. But if you don’t use hearing aids and you’re hearing this type of sound, it could also be due to excess earwax.

It makes sense that excessive wax could make it difficult to hear and cause itchiness or even inner ear infections, but how can earwax cause a sound? The ringing or buzzing can be caused by earwax touching your eardrum and impeding its function. Fortunately, earwax issues are easily fixed.

If you’re hearing odd sounds, contact us. We can check your hearing aid to make certain it’s working properly.

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