A Month of Hell, Petrified Out of My Mind and Desperate for a Plan of Action

Hi everyone, been lurking on this forum rabidly for the last month since frankly the worst health issue I've ever experienced. I can take physical pain, I'd much rather have a tooth taken out in excruciating fashion like I had last year but I can't tolerate this. I know members here have heard that COUNTLESS times so I can apologise if I sound like the millionth person saying it. Please bear with me.

On January 22nd I suffered from a bout of gastroenteritis and vomited fiercely at least on three occasions. That wasn't the worst bit. The following evening was torturous as I suffered from tinnitus like sounds in both ears and couldn't sleep all night until I finally drained myself out. I also suffered from a sharp migraine for at least a week. There were initial whistling sounds in my right ear but that has resolved and is perfectly fine but my left ear is a 5 or 6/10 in terms of the T. I don't notice it in a university classroom where there is a general hubbub of background noise but in a quiet room its audible.

My left ear has always been full of wax whereas my right ear is clean. So I've used olive oil and sodium bicarbonate drops to clear it out. I got it syringed yesterday but no relief and now have referred to ENT to get a microsuction after a number of days desperately trying to get into touch with the overworked local GP. My GP said there was still wax at the back of the eardrum/tympanic membrane but after reading some of the horror stories here I am absolutely petrified this is long-term and microsuction will have no difference.

Will the microsuction resolve the T ? Since its early on in my tinnitus should I get some corticosteroids/Prednisone that has apparently worked for some ? Should I sign up for AM101 seeing as though the T has only been with me for a month ? Does the sort of T I've described resolve itself eventually in the next few weeks/months as some say ? Shall I get some in-ear tinnitus masking devices ?

I cannot live with myself if this is permanent, I'd take even a 50-60% reduction at this stage. I'm 19 years old and last night my heart was pounding because my silence is robbed, I dread the evenings knowing how difficult sleep has become, my anxiety has been through the roof and I desperately need some hope this will resolve.

 

Couple of extra details - whenever I swallow I feel the sensation of clicking in my ears and very rarely I can hear my pulse but its mainly a "radio hiss"/ringing sound.

 

Welcome to TT. Don't panic and don’t despair. We understand what you are going through. We have been there where you are now. So members here have empathy for your sufferings. Since your T is so new, you may want to get your doctor to prescribe a course of prednisone. But it is generally prescribed for acoustic trauma or when there is infection.

As far as the suffering, the endless ringing, the fear, anxiety, depression and sleeplessness etc., they are all very normal when T is new or when it kicks into another level. We all had experienced the T trauma to varying degree. I went through hell with my ultra high pitch dog whistle T and severe hyperacusis a few years back. I was in a mess for a while. But now I am living a normal life, enjoying and living it abundantly despite the T still being there. I wrote my success story like many other members. Do read up as many success stories as you can to learn how to get better. If you have time, here is my story as well as two success stories of university age members.

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/thread...w-i-recovered-from-tinnitus-hyperacusis.3148/

Here are some people who have struggled very tough with their T initially but are continuing with their college/university studies or even going onto medical school:

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/anybody-going-to-grad-school.7212/

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/tinnitus-university-college-success.7997/

Give it time. It is the common element of success for most people. Time will heal and your perception of T can change. Trying to be positive can definitely help. The first step towards positivity is to read up on the success stories and the Positivity Thread. They give you hope and you can learn some insights how to get better. Being positive will help reduce stress which will help to calm T. So keep being positive, seek some helpful strategies such as CBT, TRT, mindfulness meditation, exercise, hobby, etc. etc.

Try take supplements such as NAC, Magnesium, B12, D3 etc. and see if you need some diet change to cut down on intake of salt, sugar, MSG, caffeine, alcohol etc. Use wisdom there as you still need to enjoy your life. You may want to consider masking if T bothers you. Here is a TT thread with some nice tips and some masking sounds, and it has link to a sleep thread too. Take good care and God bless.

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/panic/

 

Don't panic, I know what you are going through. If you start breaking down, you can go to the doctor for medication that can help calm you down but please use it wisely if he gives you something like xanax. Go to the ENT and get checked out. You can also get your hearing checked for free at a hearing aid place and see if you got any hearing loss. If so, sometimes a hearing aid correction can get rid of the ringing. If not you can get one with a masker. Also, maybe you can get a nice decent fountain for your room is sleeping is causing you to panic. Fountains can help mask tinnitus. I saw one the other day at "At Home" (formerly Garden Ridge). Hang in there man. The body will calm itself down once it stops perceiving the ringing as a threat and then you can ignore it a whole lot better and it can be like it isn't even there..kind of like a background fan noise that people get used to but hopefully your tinnitus will go away.

 

Thanks guys, that means a lot. I had a good night of uninterrupted sleep and the T has subsided somewhat. I'd say its at a 2/10. I took some Kalms remedies yesterday and they seemed to work - maybe its stress related T ?

I really hope this is not a false dawn.

 

OK so have been to ENT this morning and had a hearing test - hearing is fine, no issues there. The doctor said it should go away with time, didn't recommend taking any medication and to stick on some background noise below the volume of the tinnitus.

I'll be having TRT with an audiologist and maybe getting some tinnitus masking devices too. I hope to god he's right and this isn't permanent. Will have a followup with ENT in 3 months time.

 

T is screaming at the moment in both ears. God knows how I'm gonna make it through tonight.

 

Hang in there. You can go to mynoise.net and listen to some sounds to help you mask the sound (might have to do it on a computer if you don't have an iphone). I kind of like the water stream or rain one.

 

Thanks, managed somehow to get to sleep with masking. Last night was scary.

I'm really not good at dealing with spikes or tone changes.