Recent content by Sonia554

Have you had a hearing test since your second trauma? Did your doctor tell you anything about your prognosis or give you steroids?

I am doing much better with sleep than I was during the first six months. Those first months were brutal. I was only getting a few hours each night. Now I sleep pretty much normally with just a little ambient sound. It goes almost completely silent at night for me now. My doctor also suggested...

I’m so sorry you’re going through this too. It’s truly awful, the worst thing I’ve ever been through. I really hope it resolves completely for both of us. For the first six months, I used my Alexa, my cell phone, and my computer for sound support. At night, I would set my phone on the bed about...

Hi @Tika, Honestly, I don’t really know how to describe it right now. I’ve been at my parents’ house for the past week, hoping that not being alone all the time might help take my mind off it. I’m having longer stretches where I can barely hear it, or can’t hear it at all, but I still have...

Are you still noticing muffled or altered hearing? Did your audiologist say the 5 dB shifts were significant? I had a similar small shift in my left ear, but my audiologist told me it was still within normal ranges. I think the ringing is continuing to fade for me. I have longer periods where I...

I’m so glad! Your story gives me a lot of hope that mine will also resolve. I’m getting close now. It has reduced dramatically over the last three months, and I feel like I’m in the final stretch. Stories like yours remind me that recovery is possible.

That’s so great! Is your tinnitus completely gone, or do you still have it?

I read your original post, and I’m so sorry this is happening to you. It sounds like your case is exceptionally severe. Can I gently suggest that you still have time to improve, and that your condition isn’t necessarily permanent? It seems you’ve had tinnitus for about the same amount of time as...

Today is the quietest my tinnitus has been since this all started. I’m in a completely silent room, and I can barely hear it—it’s so faint. I truly hope this means I’m in the final stretch before it disappears for good. I’m running low on food, though, and really need to go to the grocery...

Your noise will go down again. It's very possible the spike would have happened no matter what you did. I had a day about 7 weeks in where it nearly vanished and I celebrated like you did, then it came back. I was injured in January and I think April through June were actually the worst months...

Are you lying flat at night? Elevating your head with an extra pillow, or sleeping in a recliner if you have one, could help the fluid in your ear drain more effectively. If it is collecting at night, that could definitely explain the reduced hearing in the morning. Try drinking something warm...

That’s great to hear! I think having a busy household is actually beneficial. It gives your brain many opportunities to learn that sound is not threatening and provides plenty of distractions from the tinnitus. Sometimes I wonder if living alone in a very quiet house has actually slowed my...

I had water irrigation after my acoustic trauma, and it didn’t affect me. If it had a negative impact on you, you would know by now, as it would have changed the tinnitus. I wouldn’t worry about it. Get plenty of rest and avoid loud noises. Your tinnitus has every chance of resolving completely.

I’m so sorry to hear that. This is such a difficult condition. This likely isn’t new damage, though. Your system is still hypersensitive and will be for a while. Seventy decibels is still a safe sound level, but your ears are re-learning how to process sound and will tend to overreact. It can...

Yes, you want it to reach your sinuses, not just your nose. I lean forward and aim the nozzle toward my eye. If you taste it or feel it going down your throat, you did it wrong. If you taste it, you waste it.