Do You Really Habituate to 24/7 Tinnitus in the Years to Come?

Hello,

I have had tinnitus for over a year now and in my opinion it is hell. It is present throughout the day. Whatever I do, my tinnitus is there. I use Mirtazapine 30 mg for my mood.

But I really want to know from Tinnitus Talk members who has had 24/7 tinnitus for years, does tinnitus really settle down over the years? And did you really get used to it at some point?

Hope to read some comments from you all.

Kind regards,

Roger

 

I have had 24/7 tinnitus for close to 32 years and now it's at hell level/severe ringing. It takes lots of patience, time support and distractions to reach some level of habituation. My early years were very instrumental in how I deal with my tinnitus now. It's impossible to not hear, the hell that screams out my head, it's so so loud and very aggressive. I still have my moments that I say "WOW, this is so loud". All in all, I may give my self a 5 minute time out and think about the tinnitus, but after that I take care of my daily objectives.

I also live a life filled with athletics, so I am always doing something and not listening or scanning for my tinnitus. A lot of folks tend to scan and listen to that noise, it is normal to do this.

I have reached a point in my life that I expect the ears to ring loud 24/7, it is a the norm for me. I do not give it attention and simply try to live a life. It's never easy, but it is possible.

If we habituate it does not mean that we do not hear our tinnitus, I hear mine all the time. It simply means that we can manage to live with our tinnitus . I am not 100% habituated, I am somewhat close but it's never perfect. All of us will have times when the tinnitus will annoy us, even myself.

It's all about doing something and have a plan that will help us live a better life with the tinnitus.

 

For some people (perhaps most?) it does. For others (like me) it doesn't. It probably depends on the root cause.

I'm used to it, in the sense that it doesn't surprise me any more or cause me much anxiety. It still sucks every second of the day, though.

 

@fishbone

May I ask you how do you sleep with this level of severity? Mine is fluctuating between mild and moderate level in volume, the pitch is awfully shrill, but it just doesn't warrant my extremely poor sleep. When I had a low hum which was actually really, really loud and vibrating, I understood why I couldn't sleep, the volume kept waking me up.
But now? It's even the quietest during the night and close to getting up, but I can't sleep, not even with pills. I guess, almost everyone goes through this phase, but I just can't see a future/habituation without sleeping.

 

HI @Roger79

Many people do habituate to tinnitus. The process takes time and will be different for each person. Some people have difficulty habituating for various reasons. Please click on the links below and read my posts that you might find helpful.

All the best
Michael

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/the-habituation-process.20767/
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/habituation-and-tinnitus-treatments.38091/
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/new-to-tinnitus-what-to-do.12558/
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/tinnitus-a-personal-view.18668/
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/hyperacusis-as-i-see-it.19174/

 

I have had sleep issues for a long time. It's been a tough road for me as well. What has worked is creating an environment that is welcoming for sleep. Having a mind filled with thoughts and things was not allowing me to sleep. I let go of all my distractions and when it was time to sleep, I really don't think of anything.

Yes, the tinnitus is very loud and annoying, but my body is already tired and ready for rest and I pay no attention to the ringing. This is achieved by getting some exercise (that is safe for your tinnitus). Some will meditate or do yoga, you have to decide what works for you and what doesn't. All of us are different, but if we go to sleep and have lots going on in our mind (I had this issue for a long time), then it can be a little tougher to sleep.

All of this has been years and decades in the works for me, it was a struggle but I just stuck with it....

 

I found that the first 5 months the tinnitus was having a bad effect on my sleep (some nights having zero sleep) but the last 3 months it has not really had any effect on sleep (I hear it when lying in bed waiting to go to sleep but there is no negative effect from hearing it) yet some days can be annoying during the day (other days not so bad).

 

For most, tinnitus either improves or people no longer pay attention to it. For me personally, nearly 9 years into it, sadly neither has happened.

Not to complain but mine has actually gotten worse of late. They say that can happen as you get older and it appears so. That isn't to say I don't live a good fulfilling life, I do. It's just something I have to accept and contend with in my older years.

 

Do you have spikes or fluctuations at all?

 

Do you take anything for sleep?

 

Sometimes I can't help but think about it. But most of the time when it's just noise i've learned to tune it out and ignore.

It spikes sometimes and there are good and bad days. The worst days are when the Tinnitus isn't just noise but it's actually accompanied by some kind of physical sensation in my right ear. I can't just hear it, but I can feel it. Other times I have issues with the muscles attached to my left ear and it feels like some kind of muscle in or around the ear is being pulled on so it aches a lot and that makes me notice the T too sometimes.

But even on those worst days i've learned that emotionally I can control how I feel and that plays the biggest part in habituating to the noise. At night I welcome sleep, I often put on just some very very soft music on my phone, just loud enough to hear over the noise to help focus my mind on something to lul me to sleep. I hope you can learn to coexist with the noise too.

 

I don't take anything for sleep.

 

It's so loud that it feels like a never ending spike. I don't have much fluctuations.

 

And have you never? I'm in awe of you, fishbone, I wish I had your mental resilience. I'm not having it anywhere near as hard as you, and I'm unable to cope. I know it's a journey, it will take a long time to get better, if it ever does, but I'm not sure I have the strength to go through with it. It's just ruining my life. I did my fair share to ruin my life, but tinnitus seems to be finishing the job.

 

Sleep has been a HUGE problem for me all my life. It's been tough, I was addicted to sleeping pills for about 3-4 years and I could not sleep without them. Some folks can function and do well with sleeping pills, I could not. I made up my mind to be off pills and worked hard to get off them.

 

This sounds very much like mine, but as i've only had it 6 months I fear that it's going to get much louder. For me at the moment it's the actual pitch and shrillness of the sound that do me in over the the actual level of the sound. I would say mine is severe, but I'm sure it can still get worse.

I don't take anything to sleep either, can't bring myself to take benzos etc, and I don't even have sound enrichment as I can't stand the noise. That may change if things get worse though.

If you get the chance, are you going to try Lenire or Shore's device when it comes out?

 

HI @fishbone

If I may say so, I believe you have habituated 100% the same as me and others in this forum. My tinnitus can be overly intrusive at times and I may need to take medication to calm it down. It can make me feel despondent especially when trying to read which can make concentration difficult. My idea of habituating, is to accept the tinnitus along with all of its idiosyncrasies and yet, to be also positive even in the downtimes by not allowing negativity to take hold and become all consuming. This takes time to learn and I believe you have this ability in abundance.

All the best
Michael

 

I agree. As I have said in a few new posts that I have made, I am dealing with a new baseline due to a new accidental noise trauma. So, my tinnitus is a little bit louder and daily new pains in the ears. When I first realized that I had a newer baseline, I was just disappointed that It reached another level. I just told myself that I will be ok and I can deal with it. I did NOT get emotional over it. Tinnitus has thrown me so so many rotten eggs, that i will not give it the joy of getting me down anymore.

I was in the gym last week with plugs in and a guy must have flipped a weight lifting machine by accident, I was like "oh,boy my ears will not like that noise" and just pushed through. This has been a re-occuring theme in my life, but in the early years it would have affected me mentally. Now, even with all the pains, struggles and ear issues, I just say it's ok, I will not let it get me down.

I use to be consumed a lot by negativity in my early years and my outlook was not like how it is today. I learned and now I try to just remain positive in my best of times and worst of times

 

@fishbone

I am sorry to hear of the new sounds that you are hearing but like the veteran you are, you're able to push through this and overcome whatever adversity comes your way. Your post is an excellent example of what habituating to tinnitus means. I hope, newbies and those seasoned to this condition find it inspirational. It does take time and each person's habituation journey will be unique to them. I am a firm believer in never giving up and that is the key. It doesn't happen overnight but a lot can be achieved if one is willing to try and not throw the towel in. Be patient and try to never think that things cannot change for the better because they certainly can.

Michael

 

How old were you when you got tinnitus if you don't mind me asking?

 

20 years in, here.

Tinnitus is obnoxious, sometimes a lot more than that, but I think about it 10% as much as in the early years and for the moment my life is pretty good, given my various physical problems.

 

Habituation = You just keep living with tinnitus no matter what, how, why.
I'm not used to this thing on my ears and head. I just live with it.
I'm talking about severe, intrusive tinnitus.

 

I was 55 at the time. I got it after years of running with earphones. I have a photo of myself standing at a finish line smiling with my earphones at my side not knowing what was about to come as a result.

 

@OnceUponaTime

When a person has achieved Habituation it is as you say: You just keep living no matter what. However, the habituation process or the way one acquires it is more complex and for each person the journey will be different. My post: The habituation process covers this in more detail, in the link below.

Michael

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/the-habituation-process.20767/

 

Did you mean to say with plugs in, i.e. with hearing protection? That must have been really loud. I am learning the hard way all the time how fragile our hearing is with tinnitus.

 

Yes, I had ear plugs in. Even with the plugs in, it can be very loud in the gym.

 

I can't imagine how you've been able to put up with this for 20 years. Has it always been severe and intrusive?

I'm only 6 months in and going stark raving crazy. I just feel like my whole nervous system has now been weakened and that there is going to be an onslaught of other problems. Catastrophic thinking.

Yeah, but did you know in all those years that using earphones could cause tinnitus? Obviosuly not if you didn't know what was about to come. Difficult not to kick yourself with hindsight. I know, I do it everyday.

 

A day at a time, and, no, wide variance and there was a bad noise induced worsening in 2010 or so.

You are right that your nervous system will react to this, use that as a feedback loop and a tool. You may not be able to do much about the noise but still calm down the rest of your system, sleep well, etc.

It's about time, patience and finding what works for you.

 

This is normal, many folks are like this. Do your best to protect your ears, manage stress and let tomorrow be.

Worrying will not help at all. Just take it day by day and remain proactive about your ear health

 

Exactly!