Strawberryblonde

for me it is impossible without masking,it is nauseating to be hearing the tinnitus.and masking is alsoshit,it is distracting yourself from one sound for another,you end up fatigued,this simply stinks,we want silence,not to change one sound for another.

My t reacts to masking sometimes so I'm between a rock and hard place :( basking in my misery and hoping I can beat the brain inducing sound. The brain put it there and I'm trying to un put it there :( sounds silly but with T you'll try anything.

My mum has hissing buzzing T and she can fall asleep so easy so I'm trying to be like her!! We have the same genes so I want it to work for me also :(

And video games help a lot :D also helps if you have a partner to snuggle with to help get your mind off it lol !

Sending big hugs from across the pond!

Thank you both for the kind words and suggestions. @Sydney13 id snuggle with my partner but the cat has stolen my space! lol @Guywithapug thank you :D

My T seems to be reactive at times. My morse code becomes louder and competes with my masking noises then sometimes it doesn't and the morse code dissappear aswell. Tbh I've no idea what to do and not what too do with this. @ErikaS its more complicated the second time around:(

@Strawberryblonde its so frustrating. I’m to the point I can even effectively describe my T and make it make sense. The volatility of it coming in and out, more intrusive, less intrusive, sounds coming to the forefront then being more back ground. Then just feeling like I have piercing 14k hz going through my ears. It’s a torture chamber we can’t escape.

We certainly drew the short straw with this!! But I guess we just have to take it day by day.
@ErikaS :)

I wouldn't be surprised if I develop that as a symptom next :-P

@Strawberryblonde Try swallowing, does this make a difference to you hearing breathing in your ear?

@Jupiterman not really. one of my ears pops when blowing my nose but feels like it clogged and the other one wont. Got some sort of ETD i assume as not been diagnosed.

Don't suffer about the past, nothing we can do about it. Focus on the better future that will come ahead.

Just having a pity party, anxiety is really kicking me. Just want some proper sleep Zzzzz.

Was it the antibiotics or the MRI that did you in?

@just1morething cold here too about 4°c. This time of year is a busy season for a lot of animals, always looking for that easy meal that we provide for them :)

Thanks @ErikaS :)

Aww I love the new pic @Strawberryblonde Youre so pretty ^-^

Not seen anyone for my jaw/neck issues yet. Been doing things I've seen on YouTube but too early for any difference yet. I did see a physio for my sciatica in the past which helped tremendously so I hope the same can happen for these issues too. Will try what you've been doing though. Anything that helps quite down this noise :)

Yes please @Joe Cuber :) I'm willing to have a go at them.

Thanks @Joe Cuber will have a look and hopefully have a go and see how it goes

Thanks @ErikaS i didn't know about the saliva collection, but will enquire at next appointment. My endocrinologist didn't even mention that when I told him I was very nervous about injections ect!
Learn more off TT and others than the Dr's lol.

@Strawberryblonde I am in the US so not sure where you are or what is their go to, but yes I just had to collect my saliva in a tube 4x in one day and return it to the lab where I picked up the kit from.

@ErikaS I am in the UK so rely on the NHS for health care. Slight waiting times but not to bad. May look into going private for that test too if not available on our health care system.

Yeah, breaks from here every now and then are good but glad to see you're still around too :) I'm doing alright now, had been recovering from covid for two weeks now, first time I ever got it and it's not pleasant lol.

Covid sucks, you'll better soon :) i had covid in Sept 21 and it knocked my taste and smell out the park for a while, came back though phew! Still around just not as often as I once was and taking it day by day till that magic cure of the dr susan shores device appears haha. :)

Thanks Strawberry, it's mostly better now :) I also lost taste and smell for about a little over a week, luckily it came back. I got worried when I read stories on people not getting it back after months or at all. It's good that you're taking it easy, and let's hope Susans device ends up delivering, a lot of people have high hopes for it.

This is new to me and is driving me crazy, every time I speak I can hear it. I also have pulsate tinnitus in one ear, regular T in both ear, plus MEM/TTTS in another and now this crushing sound. The TMJ destroy my ears for sure. I'm wearing splint, doing PT and daily massages etc but still no improvements.

Hi @NYCGuy I've had jaw problems for about 14 odd years now and I guess I've just gotten used to it. I have a bite brace but I don't think it's any use bar stopping my teeth grinding. My jaw crunches clicks aches and is misaligned. :(

@NYCGuy sorry to hear you are going through so many things with your T/ears/jaw problems. Have you ever seen a maxcillofacial specialist for your issues? Not sure if you have done? I do wonder if it's what's causing my T issues, I suspect noise trauma though but with T who really fully knows.

@makeyourownluck think I'm gonna have to resort to something sooner rather than later. Struggling more now that I was a few months ago.

I toughed it out for 8ish months. Got to the point where I was afraid to leave my house. I regret not taking benzo sooner tbh. Could of saved myself a lot of stress.

Got a few around the house that I keep for emergencies as Dr's aren't always that keen on handing them out. It may even help the head buzz too, one can only hope :)

Also sounds felt amplified like a hearing aid. Told my hearing therapist at appointment that I could hear things louder and he said that it wasn't set to be a hearing aid and that was it. Gonna go with my gut instinct with this one and not use them again.

WNGs should be introduced slowly. I have posted information in the forum a few times how to do this.

You made the right choice I think that's ENTs cure all pill for people to slap hearing aids on already overstimulated ears. I do believe sound enrichment works but natural sounds not artificial

@Ryan Edwards Don't ever go to clubs again if you don't want your tinnitus to get permanently worse. I hope it settles

I think you are right. I had hoped high db level earplugs would allow me to but perhaps not. It’s terrible at the moment I wonder if I am stuck with it like this :-((

Hopefully it'll settle down but it may take time :) as much as clubs can be fun, when someone has T, in my eyes it's just not worth the risk of increasing the T level even with plugs foam or filtered.

Two other people there with T went out to watch fireworks no problem and not even an ear plug. Tbh I was quite jealous lol I sat inside like a scared animal haha. Dreading new years eve now!

@Strawberryblonde Are your ears spiked or you good? Seems the worry and panic were the main issue. Sometimes I don’t know if T or my panic issues are worse.

I think its most likey anxiety contributing as I missed a dose of medication I'm on cause of order issues which effects anxiety . But with loud sounds and exposure to them is also making me anxious. I've honesty never heard fire works that loud, it was like a bomb lol glad I was indoors away from it though.

So sorry to read the sound change. You r new to this i think(?) I've had the hi pitched scream the whole time for years with a break every now & then. Stress is my trigger for sure. Hope u feel better

@Flowergirl, have you habituated to the hi- frequency scream. It is awful.

No @Forever hopeful I'm elated with low T days. Otherwise the hifrquency scream is tortuous

@Heikai mine is not reactive all the time. It comes and goes so I get a break from it. There is hope that'll go or diminish in time.

What does reactive mean?

reactive means it changes depending on what sound you are hearing

It was a mild hiss/buzz that was completely forgettable. Had to strain to hear it and when I did I'd forget about it straight away. Had it for 6.5 years till it all went shit (my own fault but anxiety played a part too as well as other health issues). I can handle my increased hiss/buzz. I just can't get a grip of the intermittent morse code that flares up randomly. Makes it harder to sleep.

It's good that you can forget about it or tune it out for the most part as you say. Anxiety and stress are the biggest obstacles with this, when I've got a hang of that on some days my brain doesn't even think or search for the T even though its there. It's a hard mind game. I hope you get there too @SamRosemary.

Thanks, appreciate it.

@Strawberryblonde I had a brain scan a few yr ago it showed 'cyst on pineal gland'. Dr said it's nothing, very common.i wonder about that. Idk what dopamine receptor agonist is. Hope u feel better

Maybe you should ask your Dr for more information regarding your cyst? Too see it effects your T in any way :) not sure how to explain what a dopamine agonist is, Google will explain better than me lol its helping with my mood though which in turn is helping my T :).

@Strawberryblonde ty you. I've never heard off I'm hopeful & will research this

Probably a spike. Apart from the medication you said hasn’t bothered you b4 any other possible triggers?

Think I am just stressed and I assume all changes will be permanent ones. This T fluctuates and changes that its hard to get used too. My new med can exacerbate depression to but helps other symptoms so stuck between rock and hard place.

But unless I get my anxiety under control then I know I'll obsess over it as I have done with other things in the past.

@Joe Cuber thank you :) everything feels so much better in my self when the negativity has lessened, the heavy feeling almost goes :) just gotta learn to keep it that way, but the brain is a sneaky little thing it loves to play games lol.

@Strawberryblonde @Joe Cuber, I think I would feel less guilt if I didn’t put myself in the situation. I mean if this just came out of nowhere I guess I would be a little better about the self blame. I’ve been making use of peer support on ATA. All say the same. Don’t give it the attention it wants. That’s the only way they habituated.

For me I have double feelings about it. I envy the carefree-ness of it, but I also cant help thinking that at some point some of them will probably be struck by these conditions and suffer so badly from it, and I cant prevent it, cause most people dont care. They only care once they are hit and then maybe its too late.

@TheDanishGirl correct. Unless one experiences this then there is no way too fully explain to them how it feels. Words don't do it justice. I do miss how carefree and in my own world it felt. Nothing else quite compares for me now.

I totally get the Envy part. I had a birthday celebration over the weekend for a friend of mine. I could only do part of the activities with earplugs. The other 10 women not a care in the world. Went to bars, karaoke, all screaming at each other. All I could think was oh back when I had fun.

Thanks @Forever hopeful. Struggling to mask it at night as its become slightly reactive which I hope will die down too. Think I've overprotected too much and my hyperacusis has worsened.
How is your spike today?.

@Strawberryblonde, Spike is no better. Thanks for asking. Can’t mask at all. I used to have spikes this bad but I always knew that they would get better so I never really freaked out -never lasted long. This is now 17 days. I’m so afraid of sound now that I agree with you that we may in fact be overprotecting when we shouldn’t. My only symptom of hyperacusis is reactivity.

Maybe this spike is just taking longer to recalibrate back to normal. You were very well protected, plugs, took breaks at the concert etc. Don't think that it'll never go down as that'll just reinforce it. Silly as it sounds with T, but I still think one day mine will get better and it keeps me going. You've healed twice before and you can do it again it may just take longer this time :).

He told me as as there's nothing he can do about (he has some hearing loss in that ear), that he just doesnt let it bother him. I guess he's fully habituated as he can fall asleep in an instant.

Hey strawberry, sorry for such a late post... Did it bother him at the beginning? How much did it bother him? How long did it take him to get used to it?

He said he's never been bothered by it ( nearly 20yrs he's had it) and that's because he has no control over it so he doesn't let it bother him mentally.
He says he can hear it over most things like at night watching TV and in bed at night, but he can fall asleep pretty quick. @tniuf

Think it's become reactive as it seems to compete with whatever noise I'm playing at night. Too loud and all over the place to listen to without noise. So no sleep for me last night. Absolutely shattered. Had it since Monday night out of nowhere :(.

I'm sorry. I know how your feeling. Loosing sleep is absolutely the worst. T is hard enough to manage with good/decent sleep. Since my T became reactive in May I've had to re-jigger my process. I hope you find something that works for you SOON! Don't forget to use your toolbox. You have some experience managing T already.

My old T was so easy never changed just got better and forgetful over the years. Until the idiot I am messed up when I had something soo good. Guilt feeding the anxiety and frightened itll be this way forever more. Trying to think positive. Thankyou @BrOKeN_1

I'm sorry you're having a bad night @Strawberryblonde :( Fwiw of all the success stories i've read I would surmise that the rate of recovery is higher for those with stress-induced T vs others

Unfortunately mine is acoustic induced made worse by noise/antidepressants and seemingly getting worse lately.