Health - A Case of Extended Earworm Syndrome

about 1 month ago

Having song stuck in ones head is something I haven't experienced before and I haven't seen anyone who has had a personal experience. Before I continue it is important to know that I will be sharing on this post a case that has to do with a song continuously playing on the head which led her to the hospital.

A quick one, if it were to be Nigeria a person said they heard songs in their ears, we would see it is something medical, rather we would attach a lot of spiritual things to it. I am not saying people should hold up to their believe but visiting the hospital should be a first choice when it has to do with our health.

This is the case of a 32 year old woman who arrived at the hospital with report of anxiety, distress and trouble sleeping. The part of having trouble sleeping was very concerning to her but when the doctor asked why, she said she was hearing songs in her ear on a loop. She said the word's were stuck in her ear that she couldn't have a meaningful conversation without getting lost in thought.

She mentioned that the condition was beginning to have a negative effect on her relationships, health and academics as she was a student of psychology in the university. She was hearing the songs in her head ranging from songs she liked, songs she didn't like, commercial jingle, and voices.

This wasn't the first time she was experiencing this, as she had experienced episodes about 12 years ago although it was temporary as it would come and go in weeks but within the last 6 years, she has been experiencing this growing and it was associated with compulsive behaviors. When she tried to play another song different from the one playing in her head, she experienced intense anxiety but when she played the same song, she felt relief in the short term.

It is regarded as a ear-worm which is a repeated musical composition in our head. It usually happens when our brains are idle, looking for a distraction, or when it is overwhelmed. Stress, tiredness or cases of neurosis can lead to ear-worm. Earworm is usually associated with musics with simple lyrics, and easy to sing as it will keep playing in your head. This is why people will keep repeating a song that trended since it has been repeated in their ear.

Our brain uses pattern to remember things and we use verbal interactions from our early days which makes our brain use to this patterns and when it comes to music, we use words which the brain picks as patterns thereby causing a loop in the brain. You see, phonological loop with memory allows us to keep information and with ear worm, the song is stuck in the phonological loop. This is similar to what happens when you recite a song continuously for storage.

For the case being discussed, the reason for her unending earworm was triggered by her Co-morbid mental illness which OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) was part of. She was treated with medications and psychotherapy treatment for her underlying problem because every one have temporary earworm but it can become a serious issue when there are underlying problems. Also, you do not need to fight the recites in your head when it comes because it is temporary and it would go.