10 Months Later, My Noise-Induced Tinnitus Has Improved — But Hair Cells Don't Regenerate, So Why?

Hello,

I'm going to tell you my story with tinnitus.

I am 30 years old, I live in France. I have had tinnitus in my left ear for 8 years, very mild tinnitus. A wind noise. It was brought on because I work in a noisy environment (school).

August 2020: I was taking care of my garden. I made the mistake of passing the brush cutter without hearing protection... after I finished passing the brush cutter I had cotton ears.

Three days later the wind noise in my left ear increased, and acute tinnitus started in my right ear.

I quickly went to see an ENT specialist. I had an audiogram and everything was OK. He prescribed me Piracetam for one month.

The tinnitus in the right ear bothered me a lot, I couldn't concentrate, I had trouble falling asleep. My nerves were on edge.

Six months later, I noticed that the tinnitus was slowly getting better and better, it became more discreet. I could fall asleep again quite easily.

10 months later, it continues to improve, my tinnitus is still present but the tone has changed, the intensity too. I went from a tinnitus that I could not forget, even with the TV on, to a tinnitus that I notice much less; I notice it when I fall asleep, and in quiet places.

Keep hope friends, it is difficult to manage emotionally at the beginning but little by little you get used to it.

I would like to point out that for several months I tried Ginkgo biloba, but I don't know if it had an impact on the tinnitus.

How is it possible that tinnitus improves? I thought that hair cells in the ear do not repair themselves in humans.

Do you think it will continue to get better or have I reached a point where I can't get any better?

Sorry for my English, I hope you will understand me.

Kind regards.

 

The brain is constantly changing throughout our lives via neuroplasticity. Your brain can re-wire itself via learning, meditation, etc. Your brain is most likely just doing its thing and fading out your tinnitus since you've labeled it as unimportant to your brain.

 

I think it’s becoming more commonly accepted that we can regenerate our hair cell, just very slowly. I’m thinking under the right conditions, we can beat the clock and see some return of hearing function but the environment has to be ripe to do so.

 

Damn, there’s hope for me then.

 

Hello,

Thank you for your messages.

@chad, yes, tinnitus is something you can get used to, but it takes a long time.

I sometimes have tinnitus attacks. For two or three days the tinnitus is loud, then it goes back to its usual volume. I hope each of you find peace with your tinnitus.

I am not cured, but I live much better with my tinnitus. I even manage to have days when I forget about it completely.

The brain is an amazing tool.

@Lukee, I didn't know that damaged hair cells could regenerate, I thought the damage was permanent.

@Wrfortiscue, I don't know how long you have tinnitus but keep hoping, it will eventually become quiet.

I don't drink coffee, I don't smoke, I think that helps. I noticed that coffee increased my tinnitus, I used to drink a lot of coffee and I cut down on my coffee consumption .

 

@cayman, how is your tinnitus now? Better I hope...

 

Did you have hearing loss?

 

It's been a long time since I wrote on Tinnitus Talk.

I've had tinnitus now for three years.

The level of my tinnitus has gradually increased. It ranges from mild to moderate.

I have been working for about five months in a secondary school as a cleaner. I have to wash the dishes, the machine is at about 75 decibels, and there's also the high-pitched noise of the dishes having to be put away. And I find that my tinnitus has become less discreet since I started working at the school. Maybe it's due to stress.

In France, as elsewhere in the world, we have no treatment for tinnitus. Like millions of people, we have to live with it.

I'm probably autistic, I'm in the process of being diagnosed. It's a double punishment. I need silence, but that silence is inaccessible.

I've learned to live with it, but I find that I've lost my joie de vivre and that it sometimes distresses me. I try as much as possible not to pay attention to my tinnitus.

Sometimes I regret having had this sound trauma. If only I'd worn a pair of noise-cancelling headphones the day I used the brushcutter, but regrets are useless, they don't help, what's done is done!

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the level of my tinnitus remains acceptable

I wish you all a happy vacation

and for the years to come, I wish us all healing.

 

To clarify @cayman, are you saying that your tinnitus has increased in the past 3 years since your original success story?

 

Being autistic isn't a punishment!

 

Noise trauma followed by strong tinnitus, followed by stabilization of tinnitus, followed by a moderate increase in tinnitus. For the moment, it remains generally light. I sometimes hear it at work, but usually I hear it in a fairly quiet place.

We are very behind on autism in France.

There are many prejudices about autism here. They are either geniuses or people who bang their heads against a wall, but nothing between the two extremes according to prejudices x).

Here, people hide their autism to avoid being stigmatized.

Access and care are very complicated; Specialized diagnostic centers opened in 2012 and the waiting list is several years x)