1 Year Anniversary — You Can Still Have a Life After Tinnitus

[Jomo]

Hey guys....just wanted to say thank you all for your support.

It has been extremely helpful and has without a doubt gotten me to almost back to the life I knew.

I also wanted to add I attended my 3rd wedding this weekend with no issues.

I have 3 more for the year to attend which includes my own.

For all of you new guys I hope you read this so you can see that you can still have a life after tinnitus.

It may take some time but it is very possible.

I still have some annoying days but overall I am used to it now (but that doesn't mean I stay in silent rooms).

Later guys

 

[Kolisar]

Congratulations @Jomo, both on getting your life back and your pending nuptials.

 

[Elfin]

I also wanted to add I attended my 3rd wedding this weekend with no issues.

Hi man, mine has spiked after attending a wedding. Wondering whether you use plugs etc? How do you move forward and stop worrying about it?!

 

[Jomo]

Hi man, mine has spiked after attending a wedding. Wondering whether you use plugs etc? How do you move forward and stop worrying about it?!

Sorry to hear you are spiking. Any chance it could have been related to somthing else? I just went to another wedding this weekend. Friday I was on a booze cruise with loud music (100 db to be exact) and saturday was the wedding (100 db) and then after i went to a bar and that place seemed louder than the wedding and it was (100 db). I use custom fitted musician ear plugs from westone. I use the 30 db filter when attending loud places. I have no spikes...nothing at all. i am not sure what you use but i would strongly recommend the ones i use.

To answer your second question....i take it one day at a time....there is always a chance that someday it gets worse but it does me no good to worry about it. I just live in the moment. Of course when I am attending loud events I am always cautious of my surroundings....i am always thinking about where to stand and how far away from the speakers i should be. This is applied to everything I do and even in just hanging out with the guys in a hotel room. Some groups of people are just loud. I may start off wearing no plugs but after a certain amount of time i will say i think i need to give my ears a break and just put them on (15 db filter). If your gut is telling you something dont hesitate...just go with it.

A side note...when i attended the wedding last weekend one of the guests noticed my plugs. She knew I had T so the conversation came up. The bartender of the wedding was sitting outside with us and overheard. He said I have ringing too. I was surprised...especially because the guy wore nothing to protect his ears. I told him about custom molds and he kind of just shrugged it off (although he did appreciate it). I didnt ask how long he has had it but judging by the way he talked about it he must have had it for years. We had a shot later that night as a "fuck you" to tinnitus lol

 

[Elfin]

Any chance it could have been related to somthing else?

I have been under a bit of stress - I have my own wedding coming up this weekend!

I have not really been able to clearly think about that though as I have been so consumed with this spike/hum that I can now hear everywhere. Hoping it is stress and anxiety etc, rather than a true spike and raise in volume, as I do not think that I would be able to deal with that. I have some er-25s, although these are older and I have worn them quite a bit - anxiety as to whether they are completely effective now.

Can you read and concentrate etc? I am inspired by your positive attitude and looking for the same within me!

 

[Jomo]

@Elfin

Thanks for the compliment. Well stress definitely doesnt help. Are you sleeping at least 8 hours a day? A wedding and all the prep to it can definitely be stressful. Also what is the db protection level on those plugs? Do you feel they fit properly? Remember I use custom plugs so I have the best form of protection possible because they fit me perfect which is the key. Yes I can read and concentrate but I do so with some type of noise on. If i had to stay in silence I would have a very hard time doing so. I am definitely not the type to sleep in silence. I usually put on this when I am at work......



It doesnt block out the T but makes it less of an issue. I am an accountant and i focus on numbers all day and am in quiet surroundings although the noises from printers and computers help. The only thing that distracts me from my work is the internet and text messages lol Dont get me wrong though...not a day goes by that i wish this pest in my head was gone.

BTW congratulations on your wedding this week man!! Make sure to tell the DJ to lower the bass. The first wedding I attended which was a few months ago the DJ had the bass so high that I felt soreness in my right ear. I was wearing my 15 db filters for most of the nite and then switched to 30 later when i started noticing the soreness. I took plenty of breaks at that wedding. I had no issues after the party regarding spikes but i did wear my plugs for a lil while after the wedding just to give them a break. Thats the one thing I think about when I attend loud places now. If I dont feel comfortable with it I will probably just leave. My bachelor party is this weekend and we will be going out in the city. If I feel like the bass is too loud I wont hesitate to leave. I have had to travel downtown on trains on a daily basis with no issues and the DB levels are easily 100. So if I can handle the subway at 100 DB the only thing that seems to be an a issue is the low level bass.

Feel free to write back if you have any questions about anything and congrats again on the wedding!! Do the best you can to enjoy it...hopefully things settle down for you soon. Wishing you the best

 

[Jomo]

@Elfin

Also I have a sound i recorded on this app i use called white noise. Its the sound of my heat (steam) being turned on. Its very relaxing. This is what i use to sleep at night. Its the best masking sound I have found. If you want to give it a try download the app (i have an iphone...not sure if you can get it on other devices) and I will send you the sound via email. It will upload onto the app from there.