Convincing New Tinnitus Sufferers of Habituating to Tinnitus and Life Returning to Normal

I’m a long time tinnitus person (16 years) and I have noticed a tendency to try and convince new sufferers that ‘once you habituate you will be fine and life will return to as it was before’.

I think we need to be more transparent - life changes with a chronic medical condition which is what this is.

In my years with tinnitus I have had numerous but fairly regular very anxious times with it. Life certainly continues to be different for me than it was prior to August 2002!

Also the aging process doesn’t help with tinnitus. My tinnitus I wouldn’t say is severe but it is more noticeable and consistent than it was say a decade ago. Wear and tear on our ears as we get older. That happens too.

Sorry to be a negative nelly but I’ve been on this train a while.

 

I too have been on this train for a while. Since I was a child in the early 1990s to be exact. I agree with you that my tinnitus has gotten worse over the years as well due to normal wear and tear, BUT this is due to lack of understanding and education from my doctors.

If my doctors would have said to me, "You have tinnitus, which means you have to really protect your hearing or it will get worse" than my tinnitus wouldn't be as bad today. The lack of awareness my doctors gave me is the issue in my situation. They didn't think it was a big deal that I should take more precaution than the average person.

If the average person who has mild tinnitus does take certain precautions their tinnitus shouldn't get worse. That, I firmly believe.

So yes, tinnitus does get worse over time IF you don't take it seriously.

 

My grandfather has had tinnitus most of his life (he was in the war), he said that his tinnitus hasn't changed much over the years, if anything his "coping" has gotten better and it doesn't bother him anymore. He didn't protect his ears much due to his "ignorance" of tinnitus. I think everyone is different, not everybody's ears are the same (it explains why a bathroom blow dryer spikes some people's tinnitus whereas for others it doesn't do anything).

Maybe some people just have stronger ears, but I really don't know if that is true.

 

Things obviously haven't changed in that department.

My ENT a few months ago, didn't say a thing to me about needing to be careful or about protection . . . or anything like that.

In fact, as he escorted me to the door of his office, the only words of wisdom he laid on me were . . . "At least it's something that never gets worse" . . . and "in 50% of cases, it goes away". From what I've since read on this site . . . neither of those statements are even remotely true.

 

YIKES! It is unbelievable how a few simple words can drop someone's quality of life down exponentially! That is so wrong omg

 

I've noticed since I started looking at this site that ENT's don't exactly seem to be revered for their vast knowledge on the subject of T . . . and based on my one experience . . . I think I'd have to agree.

I was pretty ignorant at the time . . . but even I knew the "50% goes away" thing didn't sound right. However when he said it was something that "never gets worse" . . . I actually took hope and comfort from that, because at the time I didn't know any better . . . and he was a 'professional'.

Still, during the first couple of months . . . I soon found out how wrong he was when mine continued to get worse, on a weekly basis.

By the way . . . how long have you been waiting to use 'exponentially' in a sentence? Very impressive.

 

I've only been on the train for a solid 30 years and have never come off it. Nice.

 

The truth is most people acclimate to their tinnitus in time. When I first got it, I was surprised to hear of so many of my friends who have it but never mention it because it doesn't bother them. Mind you, I'm not in that category; mine is severe and always has been, but I continue to give hope & encouragement to those new to it not only because that's what they need to hear, but because chances are things will be better for them.

 

@Hissy missy

I'm with you on this one. We really need to emphasize the need for precautions and changes. I agree that for most sufferers, their quality of life can kind of return to the one they enjoyed before tinnitus - but it will not be the same life, they can not just carry on with "business as usual". Their ears are now compromised and they need to transform their lives around their fact, even if that means sacrificing previously cherished activities - or they risk worsening a moderate and livable condition into something that's no longer bearable.

I'm always baffled, for example, when I see musicians on here with tinnitus who keep on making music, because they just can't let it go. To me that's akin to a weightlifter with fractured arms who just keeps on lifting weights. Even worse, because unlike bones, hearing CAN NOT heal.

 

Protection is key to staying on the habituation train once you get on it. My tinnitus has quadrupled because I didn't protect my hearing enough in the first month. I didn't know when to say no or avoid certain situations where there would be troubling noises. And it doesn't have to be really loud things. Everyone's different and its important to cautiously find your limit. My baseline raised early on simply from someone else answering a speaker phone call in a car and a telephone ringing next to me. Luckily my habitation is still holding even with increases. But I agree that for some, they will loose habituation after a base line increase and have to start over.

What bothers me more is when I read people suggesting "sound enrichment" and disregarding protection, I just want to scream.

Oh wait, I can't do that or it will spike my tinnitus.