Does Most Acoustic Trauma Induced Tinnitus Go Away by 6 Months?

I just protected my ears and with time things got better.

 

Definitely improvement in terms of mental steps. Overall my hearing has got somewhat better. In the morning my tinnitus is quieter, but it gets reactive throughout the day. And overall my tinnitus feels lower in pitch. But for 8.5 months, very small steps I have to say. Is more improvement a possibility?

 

No, in the beginning it was 11 out of 10. First small improvement was after 10 months.

After 1.5 years healing became really slow, I agree.

Yes, I did. And continue to do that. I stay away from everything that causes discomfort or pain.

Bill, your answers always give me hope. Thank you.

P.S.
My right ear was worse.

 

Ears take forever (2-3 years) to heal.

I think that, for now, it is reasonable to assume that you will continue to improve. Make sure to not be hard on your ears/don't get exposed to loud noises, make sure you don't take any ototoxic drugs.

How long ago did you get to the "can hear it only in quiet rooms" stage?

We are used to our bodies healing within days, or weeks, or months. The reason it can feel hopeless is that ears take years to get better. So everyone who has experienced some improvement has a reason to be hopeful. Just make sure to be patient...

 

I think 4 months ago. After 1,5 year mark.

Thank you, Bill.

 

I am sorry to hear that. I can't even imagine how frustrating it must have felt to get this symptom back.

I definitely will protect my ears really carefully if my tinnitus will go away some day. And now too.

 

One time it took me a year to notice a difference. Throughout the year the fading was hard to notice, however one time I was at the same place where I recalled myself listening to my tinnitus a year prior, and a year ago it was definitely louder. Give it time.

 

I avoid obviously loud environments, in situations I can control.

I live in a loud area, though. What can I do?

I think I have minimized damage from quitting/avoiding loud work areas.

However, my tinnitus worsened in the past year and a half. So, I am inclined to think you are probably right - but, if that's true, I am fucked and should just kill myself.

 

Hey Pete. I'm sorry you didn't find my post helpful. I was trying to advise caution to the OP who is clearly new to this condition, and to help point a way forward. For the likes of you and me who have had this thing for two years or more, it's a different ball game. We know it probably isn't going to go away, so we can just hope for remission, or for an increased acceptance of our condition.

I've not been on this forum much lately, because I often find it tends to trigger negative thoughts and feelings for myself. I wish I could give you better advice Pete. It sounds like you have found a way to manage situations where possible, although any periods of worsening tinnitus are obviously stressful. When you say you live in a loud area, I guess you mean a busy city? I live in a suburb, but I used to have to walk to work through busy traffic and past two building sites, so I feel your pain. Any effect on my tinnitus from those conditions was only temporary though. Actually my tinnitus was getting better all through last year, probably thanks to lockdown, till I made it worse again in January through listening to music too loud in the car for just a couple of days. My own fault. It's improved a bit since then, but I guess I'm reaching greater acceptance that there will be ups and downs in this condition throughout life.

I know for some people it does steadily get worse though with no signs of remission, so that must call for a lot of mental toughness to deal with it. I believe in the power of the human spirit - we are tougher than we think. There are a lot of success stories here from people for whom it has got better, or who have learned better coping mechanisms. I try to read those more than the negative posts. Maybe you'll find something that helps you there.

 

Thanks for your kind and hopeful words Bill, i will follow up your advice.

Does healing ears also mean an improvement of the quality of hearing (in my case, less hearing problems in my left ear)? Some people say nerves in the ear can recover. Does that also mean hair cells and damaged synapses/auditory nerve can recover?

 

When people talk about "tinnitus getting better" - that makes no sense to me. It's either the same or if you are really lucky, it fluctuates, temporarily.

Yeah, some people might get used to it but then I suspect it's mild. I dunno if people can learn to deal with moderate tinnitus.

As for severe, I don't think it's possible. The only way is if there was something that would physically affect it, like the treatments in the Research News section.

 

Sorry, when reading this forum in the past, I haven't been paying attention to what happens to hearing loss over time. I had been focusing on what usually happens to tinnitus and hyperacusis as time goes on.

 

Ok, I understand. Is your tinnitus manageable at this time? Was it very severe in the beginning?

Maybe other people can answer this question: can (slight) hearing loss also get better in 2-3 years after the acoustic trauma?

 

Mine used to be severe.

 

I am happy for you that things got better. What was the cause of your tinnitus? And is your life as good as before?

 

You should read this post:

Both My Hearing Loss and Tinnitus (Almost) Cured — Caused by .223 Sniper Rifle Fired Near My Ear

 

Thanks for this motivating story!

 

Hi Bill,

You mean your tinnitus is actually quieter now? That is great to hear!

I am not sure if you remember me.

You helped me a lot when I first got tinnitus in April 2017. Unfortunately I am one of the unlucky ones whose tinnitus never improved, but I guess I have habituated as life has gone on, and I just visit the forum once in awhile in the hopes of looking for a cure for tinnitus.

Hope all is well with you.

 

Hi @Bill Bauer, I wanted to ask you - did you have tinnitus sounds at the beginning which disappeared afterwards?

 

I did, in total I've had more than 10 different sounds. Over time they changed into one typical tinnitus sound. It does change a bit sometimes, mainly in loudness. But not anything comparable to the first 1.5 years.

 

Hey Bill, do you have any idea why that is? Why it fades? Would love to hear your thoughts on this.

 

Have you ever tried Carbamazepine for your morse code tinnitus? Dr. De Ridder recommended it to me.

Do you still have the same tones?

I find the high pitched morse code to be the most intrusive...

 

I'm 3 weeks into an acoustic trauma induced worsening. It isn't fun. Thing is it happened while I was taking Prednisone. I was trying to test my hearing, it only took a minute for the ringing to come on in full rage.

It seems to have quietened down a bit, or this is just lingering effects of the Prednisone... I'm unsure.

 

I would be curious to know how the recovery curve looks like, i.e. where exactly the mass of those who recovery is concentrated. If I had to throw (Gaussian) random numbers, I'd say that among those who recover within 6 months, the 90% recovers within a few weeks from the onset, 6-8 weeks at most.

 

The severe cases need a lot more time to recover. Of course people with light/moderate tinnitus will recover quickly.

 

My acoustic trauma induced tinnitus is bad every other day. It's mild today but my ear hurts inside and I have headache on one side. It's funny the tinnitus is worse in the ear that has less hearing loss.

 

I feel the same. Hearing loss AND tinnitus is double trouble.

How long is it since your acoustic trauma?

 

30 days. I started to take more NAC and Acetyl-L-Carnitine 3 times a day since yesterday and noticed my tinnitus is actually quiet tonight and my ear pain and headache went away. I don't want to sleep yet, I got so much to do while I can think at the moment and function.

 

Good to hear you started NAC and Carnitine. Wish I had that knowledge during my acoustic trauma. 30 days is not long, you still have much time (2-3 years) for a good recovery or at least habituation. Take care and never lose hope.