Tinnitus Talk Support Forum

No, I don't agree with you, because I always considered myself an unlucky person even before this happened, and if something happens to someone "because of something," I pay attention to that. For example, I didn't even adopt a cat because there are people who lost their sight or had sepsis because of bacteria from their pets. I always think, "if it's a one-in-a-million chance, it'll find me."

@tomytl, If I had known in advance that headphones or loud sounds could lead to something worse than cancer, like tinnitus, which has no cure, I would have stopped using headphones immediately, just like I do now.

I have that tendency. But like many other victims of headphone use, I protest why I never saw a single public warning or awareness campaign about this in a school or elsewhere. Even though I've gone through a lot of physical pain and work accidents, lost family members during COVID and couldn't even attend their funerals, faced financial difficulties at different times in my life…

Nothing has worn me down or challenged me as much as these ear problems. Even though my mom knows this and knows what tinnitus is like, she still gaslights me. She says I'm sensitive and weak, but in reality, I'm enduring more pain and hardship than I've ever experienced in my life, and I'm trying to stay strong despite it all. Yes, unfortunately, I'm living through this all alone.

Even when my gf saw my situation and I said, "We won't give up, we'll get through this together," I knew she would give up too. So I'm not surprised, but of course, I'm sad. Especially when I think about my mindset, future plans, mood, and quality of life just four months ago, I can't believe it. It's as if I died and woke up in hell, living through hellish torment.

I definitely don't want to downplay the distress you're experiencing due to the very loud tinnitus; I can absolutely believe that this situation, especially combined with dizziness, is extremely limiting for you. All the more reason why it's important for you to thoroughly discuss this with your doctor again, as the dizziness adds yet another condition to your situation.

I was always aware, as most people are, that loud music can damage hearing. Yet, no one really protects their ears until it's too late. Whether it happens likely depends on many factors. I usually protected my ears before my first incident because I knew about my mom's colleague and her tinnitus. Still, it hit me unexpectedly. It's like with smoking or drinking—despite knowing better, many still do it.

How many people take drugs without even knowing what's in them? Life sometimes plays a cruel game, and suddenly you're stuck with some problem. I agree with you, though—anything affecting the head, especially near the brain, seems much worse to me than something further away, but I could be wrong.

Here, ear protection is even provided at all events, but no one makes use of it. People are just like that.

@tomytl, I don't have high expectations from doctors, but of course, I will talk to them because unfortunately, there's nothing else I can do. I truly didn't know that loud noise could cause tinnitus, balance problems, hyperacusis, etc. I had never even heard of these terms in my life, and I hadn't come across or heard of a single person who had developed such conditions due to loud noise.

It is really a hard incident you have from listening to music with headphones. But probably, there was something else going on in your body which led to this, a combination.
I guess it was something similar with my sudden hearing loss, I woke up in the morning on a Monday and everything changed. It was in the record hot summer, maybe I was dehydrated, less sleep.. who knows. ...

I never drunk alcohol, I never smoked, I never took any drugs... so what the fuck did I wrong.

But that's probably what a former colleague thought too. He always exercised, lived very healthily, only ate organic products, etc., and at 50 he died of a brain tumor... it's all very crazy... and then there are so many others who never pay attention to anything, and on top of that, they're carefree, selfish people who still seem to go on living...

Today, I'm having a rough time again; my hearing feels so muffled due to the pressure, it's almost stabbing, like the tinnitus is a needle poking into my inner ear.

@tomytl, As I mentioned before, I had surgery a month before the incident and had taken antibiotics. I was also given a lot of medication before the surgery, I don't even know what they were. I had the surgery under general anesthesia. The night before the ear problems started, I listened to very loud music with headphones.

When I woke up in the morning, everything had begun. These damn inner ear problems are full of uncertainties, I don't even know exactly what happened. I was surprised you don't drink alcohol, in Europe, it's usually consumed like water. Do you avoid alcohol for health reasons?

I only drink occasionally, I used to drink at hotels during the summers. The last time I drank was on New Year's Eve. I'm sorry to hear about the loss of your friend. Yes, life is really unfair. A lot of scumbags and terrible people, who don't deserve it, continue living without any health problems.

But good, honest people who take care of themselves can suffer severe health problems and even lose their lives. It's very unfair. Could it be caused by your sleeping position? I also wake up every morning with my ear blocked and in pain. Was your tinnitus always that loud, and is it still like that? Was it extremely severe? Which ear do you have hearing loss in, and which one has the tinnitus?

left and right ear hearing loss, but far more left. T on both sides, it's pretty loud but with pink noise I can mask it, around 8khz...
But the T feels like fog or sand ... like a brush shooting into the ear...

I just don't like the taste of alcohol and I had always a job where I was dependent on driving the car.