Do You Consider Your Tinnitus a Disability?

The author of this thread asked a question which, to me, is an individual and personalized question."DO YOU CONSIDER YOUR TINNITUS A DISABILITY".

@Telis, I think this tirade was a bit uncalled for but completely understandable, but could have been thought through a little more. I do think you are correct in saying....

I agree with @nills ,...

It probably would have been a better question asked of those who just have Tinnitus only with no Hyperacusis to contend with.
Quite frankly, and I believe I am correct in saying this, ' If we only had the Tinnitus to worry about and not the reactive Hyperacusis that seems to go hand and hand with most who are stricken down with this, we may very well be able to continue in a more normal way, almost as we did before!

It seems to me that all of us that are debilitated by this, have H as well as a reactive component to our T.
Would love to hear from members who only have T to contend with, with no H or reactive T and hear their voice on this.

IE: Dr Nagler or anyone that TRT has worked for!

 

Great, then the question should be answered from a personal point of view. Statements like it isn't a true disabilty etc etc are just plain offensive to those of us that are actually disabled by this.

 

Tellis, I don't consider your post to be a "tirade". It makes me sad that you are living this nightmare. I had some bad T on the onset...very loud (my audiologist rated as severe). BUT...I am so much better, the T is lower. If I had the T as loud and as long as you have had, I can't even imagine the state I would be in. The only thing I know to do is to pray for you to get some peace.

 

Agree @Telis totally, and those members should carefully consider there opinions before posting them.

 

It was when really, it should have been directed at the thoughtless post in question.

But, like I said, totally understandable.

 

@RichL i completely agree with you.

 

If I may ask a question ...

Is tinnitus that is truly disabling destined to always be disabling unless the tinnitus itself improves in some way or other?

stephen nagler

 

Hyperacusis is definitely a disability for me. I'm unable to take part in life the way I used to, and the way normal people do. That's probably one of the definitions of disability.

 

FUCK TINNITUS!

Simply put: YES! I ve been suffering for 2 years now, no improvement, I dont see any perspective in things improving... All available treatments are BS. For me it clearly is a disability, i am not able to enjoy life they way I could in the past.... and the suffering is limiting my potential to be productive as well. I believed that I had a bright career in front of me. Now I think it is just a matter of time before I will have to drop out and find something else that allows me to cope easier. I am forced to taylor my life around this illness.. tough luck I guess, life is a bitch.

 

Does this mean the vagus nerve implant hasn't improved things for you at all?

 

YES, Im not the same. Depression, anxiety and insomnia are no fun at all. After all is said the H is a killer.
When you cant tolerate sound and it actually causes pain your screwed! Hopefully is goes away. I saw the ENT he said my hearing is not that bad. Bless us all! Man he was lame, couldnt wait for me to leave his office.

 

I'd rather consider T as a punishment more than a disability.

 

T together with H in combination with fear for the bloody thing to get worse clearly stops me from doing things I otherwise would. Sure, I could be persistent and re-qonquer my life, but as it can't be done without suffering and worries, it seems like an empty gesture.

No doubt do I consider my T a disability.

This said, there are other disabilites that I think would cause me even more pain, assuming my T stays at its present level.

 

Still doing my daily therapy and it's been a short time for it. I'm just saying that in my situation I believe tinnitus can be a disability for some.

 

Yea.. it affects your sleep and overall health. It has many long term effects to mental health which is crucial for a long life... but with T.. who the heck wants to live till 100.. unless they find a cure soon.

 

If I understand your question correctly, then; no. What makes tinnitus disabling for me, are the consequences; the sleeping problems, the hearing problems (my tinnitus fluctuates between different frequencies, and that combo aren´t always the easiest), concentration-issues, the depression and anxiety it brought on, vertigo attacks (not meniers) the insecureness about the future and so on.

But, there are aspects of my life that are very good as well! When I think of tinnitus as disabling, I think in the terms that I can´t hold a job, and I had to quit my studies. I cannot lead a sosial life, and I need subtexts on tv. Not necessarily because I can´t hear what they´re saying, but I need a second or two or three or four to understand what they´re saying. Having a conversation for twenty minutes makes me exhausted for the rest of the day. My sister have two small children that I can´t be around because of the noise. She actually believed that I hated her children. Now she knows otherwise.


Hmmm, did I understand your question correctly?

 

Well, autism doesn't drive you crazy now does it? Tinnitus affects your mental wellbeing and can cause insomnia and concentration issues thus making it harder to function and added with hyperacusis just makes you want to stay in as sounds hurt you. I believe that makes working harder..Plus being on all sorts of meds to just cope, well working will make you stressed thus worsening tinnitus. So I do consider it a disability.

 

Yes you did, but perhaps I should have phrased it better anyway.

Let's say that you have severe tinnitus that is so debilitating that have lost your job and are unable to work. Are you destined to always be that disabled unless the tinnitus itself improves in some way or other?

Anybody have a thought on this issue?

stephen nagler

 

I suffered greatly from tinnitus in the beginning, to the point I could barely function. My anxiety was so severe, I had to force myself to leave the house. However, even then I did not consider my tinnitus a "disability." But that is just my perception of my tinnitus alone. For others, it may impact their lives in a way that would be disabling.

I only lost one day of work in two years in regards to my T. I mention that because, as @attheedgeofscience points out, inability to work often is included in the classic definition of "disability." But my personal opinion is "disabled" is a very subjective label, and one size does not fit all.

From what I understand, its very tough to get a "disability" certification and stipend from the U.S. government due to tinnitus. But the Veterans Administration does grant disability status for tinnitus claims (although I believe many are for tinnitus and hearing loss).

When people ask about my tinnitus, I don't tell them I am disabled. I tell them I have neurological medical condition connected to my auditory system that I have learned to live with, although at times its really annoying.

 

Not if you find coping strategies that work for you.

 

Well, you can ESA over here just for depression...So suicidal tinnitus if far worse than just depression...

 

Well like with most chronic diseases it depends on the severity of the case. I have very mild tinnitus so no, it is not a disability. However, if it were loud and accompanied by hyperacusis i would consider it a disability.

 

I agree...So why are you on here instead of enjoying life? Surely mild tinnitus doesn't bother you that much?

 

I do not want to put words in your mouth, but I want to make sure that I understand what you are saying. Is it your feeling that what makes tinnitus disabling is one's ability to find a way to cope with his or her tinnitus rather than some characteristic of the tinnitus itself?

 

How loud is your tinnitus Dr. Nagler and how do you deal with sleeping? Do you use maskers at all?

 

Well in the beginning it was quite a shock. I was used to getting conditions treated and this was the first one that couldn't be fixed. I was also developing generalized anxiety disorder at the time and hadn't realized it yet myself so that made matters worse... I guess I was (still am) young and stupid and thought that life could be planned. Well I learnt that it can't and Im coming to terms with it. I got wonderful support here though and now Im just here to enjoy the company and support others
Also its good to know what's new in research. Estonia has no tinnitus specialist and all the information I have is from the internet

 

Ah, it's all cool! Well, I just thought that coming on here might make you focus on your tinnitus more. But we're here to support you when you have bad times, like a massive spike!

 

Exactly, Im investing into my future

 

Haha. Well, take care of yourself!

 

Lots of questions there. OK. Starting with loudness. On a scale on 1 to 10, I'd put the loudness of my tinnitus at a 10. In dB it matches at 91. In dB SL it is 11, which makes in louder in dB SL than 90% of people with tinnitus severe enough to lead them to seek evaluation at a university tinnitus clinic. Maskers do not work for me. As far as sleeping goes, my tinnitus used to keep me up all night. But now I sleep just fine.