<html><div style='background-color:'><DIV> <P><BR><BR></P> <DIV></DIV> <P>Hello Anthony,</P></DIV> <P>Your post resonated with my experiences a lot:<BR><BR>> </P> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>Fortunately, I had a personal friend who is a Doctor of Osteopathy (D.O.). <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>..................... <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>So he did a gentle mechanical manipulation to my body, yet I am unqualified <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>to comment on what he did in specific terms. Within 3 days my tintinus was <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>significantly reduced, and within 1 week, was at levels prior to the onset of a the high levels that had brought me to the first doctor. <DIV></DIV> <P>Wonderful!!!  I did not know a DO could cure tinitus, however one surely helped me when a parade of other doctors, over a number of years, had kept me miserable, (one with a surgery that was supposed to cure the problem, and the ones thereafter simply telling me that I <U>was</U> cured now, it was simply that I was a 'hysterical female").  Until that is, a compassionate woman doctor referred me to my DO.  Within a few days after my first treatment, I was feeling much better.  Now he is my primary care physician!  I threw my upper back out on Tuesday and was in excruciating pain; two days after seeing him I feel much better.  <U>Now </U>I  believe that a Doctor of Osteopathy should be a person's first refuge in case of illness.</P> <DIV></DIV> <P>> </P> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>I wholeheartedly agree that ear protection is critical while tuning, for the <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>high dB levels (particularly in the mid to high treble) we are exposed to <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>during the process of tuning. Some most creative solutions have been had <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>through hearing aid professionals who can mold fitted hard plastic earplugs <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>specific to the individual ear for the highest rates of sound blocking, and <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>further, I understand these earplugs can be fitted with band-pass filters <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>for specific frequency ranges, to adjust those ranges for specific dB <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>levels. The earplugs of this nature aren't cheap; I believe to be more than <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <P>>$100 per pair.</P> <DIV></DIV> <P>My DO fits some people with molded earplugs, but he prefers the earplugs I sell for most of his patients (and for his children to attend movies) because they move with the bones of the head, whereas the molded ones are fitted to the ear canal at a single moment in time.  When you yawn, chew, sneeze, talk, the bony structure of your head causes the ear canal to change shape and the protection you get from the fitted ones suffers.  The Proplugs are ear canal caps made of a flexible plastic material, they don't go deep into the ear canal so they don't push any earwax in further.   They have a pretty flat attenuation too, similiar to the ER-15's (no plugs are absolutely flat, despite the ads), and are inexpensive too. ($20)</P> <DIV></DIV> <P> >My personal everyday preference is the foam earplug that is </P> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV>>cheap and available in nearly any drug store; and affords a 29-31 db level <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <P>>of protection. </P> <DIV></DIV> <P>Foam plugs are some of the best plugs made, especially for shopwork. However, they cut out an awful lot of the high frequencies, so aren't the best for tuning.  Of course, you can always take them out when you really need to hear.</P> <P>Sounds to me like you are taking good care of yourself--congratulations!</P> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <P> </P> <DIV></DIV> <P> </P> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <P>>Anthony Wright </P> <DIV></DIV> <P>Diane Hofstetter </P> <DIV></DIV> <P>245-M Mount Hermon Rd.#343 </P> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <P>Scotts Valley, CA 95066 </P> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <P>ph 831-438-6222 </P> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <P>fax 831-430-9741 </P> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV> <P>dianepianotuner@hotmail.com </P> <DIV></DIV> <DIV></DIV></div><br clear=all><hr>Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at <a href='http://go.msn.com/bql/hmtag_itl_EN.asp'>http://explorer.msn.com</a><br></html>