Reading other people's stories on Tinnitus Talk has brought me a lot of comfort and hope since my tinnitus started 6 months ago. So I wanted to share my experience in case it helps others, especially people who are still in the early days...
About me / my tinnitus:
- I'm 31 years old, in good health, not on any medication, not stressed, good diet etc.
- Tinnitus started randomly one night in February after a night at the cinema – it was the film 1917, so quite loud / a lot of explosions, but unlikely to trigger tinnitus on its own and could just be a coincidence. I believe it was brought on by listening to music too loudly through headphones for years…
- Tinnitus is in both ears, high-pitched (I would describe as a hiss) – from reading other people's stories, I think mine is mild/moderate, not severe. I had a few hearing tests and all came back good/normal.
My experience:
- Month 1
The first few weeks/month were extremely difficult – I was tuned into my tinnitus 24/7, thought about it constantly. I felt really down about it and scared that I would have to live like this for the rest of my life. I also blamed myself for not protecting my ears from loud music all these years. I fixated on finding answers/cures, took lots of supplements, kept a tinnitus diary every day and tried to mask it during the day with birdsong etc. Luckily it didn't affect my sleep – I feel very fortunate about this as I know this is a common issue for others. The fact that my tinnitus started just before lockdown here in the UK made it particularly difficult as I spent most of my time at home in a quiet environment – though in hindsight I think this may have helped me adjust/habituate to it faster.
- Month 2
This is when I turned a corner – I decided to be more positive and stop giving it so much attention. I gave up on the tinnitus diary, supplements etc. and started to go for longer stretches of time without noticing it.
- Month 3-5
Gradually I became less and less aware of it. Many days I'll only hear it about 20-30% of my day (vs. 90% at the start). I still have some bad days where it's much more noticeable, but even when I hear it now it doesn't bother me. The most I feel is that it's a slight annoyance, but it doesn't upset me at all.
- Now (after 6-7 months)
My tinnitus is still there but I've learnt to accept it and adjust to it. In the early days I would have been disappointed to read a story that said this (I only wanted to hear that it completely disappeared) but honestly, getting to the point of not caring / not being upset, is as good as it being gone. It doesn't stop me enjoying life in the slightest and I'm completely back to my happy self (something I didn't think would be possible). Unlike the early days when I'd hear it all the time, I have days now when I'm barely aware of it even at home in a quiet room, and never hear it when I'm out or busy. So I suppose I'm almost habituated… and I believe it will only continue to get better and who knows, maybe one day I'll stop hearing it altogether!
So it is a very positive story! Yes I still have tinnitus but its MUCH less bothersome and I am living a full and happy life! So if you're in the early days, hang in there and keep focusing on the positive stories, it just takes time.
My top tips for people in the early days:
- STOP googling tinnitus and searching for answers to questions like 'will it ever go away', 'can tinnitus go away after 1 week/2 weeks' etc. - Read what you need to online, but focus on the positive stories and then take a break from it. Remember that a lot of the information online about tinnitus is negative and outdated.
- STOP fixating on finding a magic solution / cure – there may be things that help, and one day there may be an easy 'off' button. For many people it also does disappear on its own. But in the meantime, manage your expectations and instead focus on your mental state / being positive which I found to be much more productive/healing. There's definitely a mental connection to tinnitus.
- DISTRACT yourself – go out, see friends, watch TV, listen to music (at a reasonable level, and from speakers rather than headphones ideally!), let each day come and try not to monitor your tinnitus from hour to hour. Accept that sometimes it will bother you more than others, but know that a good day will come again.
- BE PATIENT – it takes time to feel better, but know that you will and remember it's not linear (one step forward and two steps back is so true with tinnitus.)
You can do this!
About me / my tinnitus:
- I'm 31 years old, in good health, not on any medication, not stressed, good diet etc.
- Tinnitus started randomly one night in February after a night at the cinema – it was the film 1917, so quite loud / a lot of explosions, but unlikely to trigger tinnitus on its own and could just be a coincidence. I believe it was brought on by listening to music too loudly through headphones for years…
- Tinnitus is in both ears, high-pitched (I would describe as a hiss) – from reading other people's stories, I think mine is mild/moderate, not severe. I had a few hearing tests and all came back good/normal.
My experience:
- Month 1
The first few weeks/month were extremely difficult – I was tuned into my tinnitus 24/7, thought about it constantly. I felt really down about it and scared that I would have to live like this for the rest of my life. I also blamed myself for not protecting my ears from loud music all these years. I fixated on finding answers/cures, took lots of supplements, kept a tinnitus diary every day and tried to mask it during the day with birdsong etc. Luckily it didn't affect my sleep – I feel very fortunate about this as I know this is a common issue for others. The fact that my tinnitus started just before lockdown here in the UK made it particularly difficult as I spent most of my time at home in a quiet environment – though in hindsight I think this may have helped me adjust/habituate to it faster.
- Month 2
This is when I turned a corner – I decided to be more positive and stop giving it so much attention. I gave up on the tinnitus diary, supplements etc. and started to go for longer stretches of time without noticing it.
- Month 3-5
Gradually I became less and less aware of it. Many days I'll only hear it about 20-30% of my day (vs. 90% at the start). I still have some bad days where it's much more noticeable, but even when I hear it now it doesn't bother me. The most I feel is that it's a slight annoyance, but it doesn't upset me at all.
- Now (after 6-7 months)
My tinnitus is still there but I've learnt to accept it and adjust to it. In the early days I would have been disappointed to read a story that said this (I only wanted to hear that it completely disappeared) but honestly, getting to the point of not caring / not being upset, is as good as it being gone. It doesn't stop me enjoying life in the slightest and I'm completely back to my happy self (something I didn't think would be possible). Unlike the early days when I'd hear it all the time, I have days now when I'm barely aware of it even at home in a quiet room, and never hear it when I'm out or busy. So I suppose I'm almost habituated… and I believe it will only continue to get better and who knows, maybe one day I'll stop hearing it altogether!
So it is a very positive story! Yes I still have tinnitus but its MUCH less bothersome and I am living a full and happy life! So if you're in the early days, hang in there and keep focusing on the positive stories, it just takes time.
My top tips for people in the early days:
- STOP googling tinnitus and searching for answers to questions like 'will it ever go away', 'can tinnitus go away after 1 week/2 weeks' etc. - Read what you need to online, but focus on the positive stories and then take a break from it. Remember that a lot of the information online about tinnitus is negative and outdated.
- STOP fixating on finding a magic solution / cure – there may be things that help, and one day there may be an easy 'off' button. For many people it also does disappear on its own. But in the meantime, manage your expectations and instead focus on your mental state / being positive which I found to be much more productive/healing. There's definitely a mental connection to tinnitus.
- DISTRACT yourself – go out, see friends, watch TV, listen to music (at a reasonable level, and from speakers rather than headphones ideally!), let each day come and try not to monitor your tinnitus from hour to hour. Accept that sometimes it will bother you more than others, but know that a good day will come again.
- BE PATIENT – it takes time to feel better, but know that you will and remember it's not linear (one step forward and two steps back is so true with tinnitus.)
You can do this!
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