During the Moment When You Acquired Tinnitus, Were You in a Surprised or Fear State?

A random question:

At the moment when you acquired your noise induced tinnitus, were you in a surprised or fear state?

Some acquired this during a firework or gunshot.

For me acquiring this was a loud nailgun with no hearing protection.

If we are in a flinched state before or during a noise, does that perhaps make us more susceptible to getting tinnitus?

 

Mine was not a "flinched state". But the limbic theory of tinnitus might suggest that you're on to something - that it could increase susceptibility. I don't think the limbic theory is, broadly, an accurate model for tinnitus; but it could explain fear-potentiated tinnitus (see work on "fear-potentiated startle", if interested).

 

I was sleeping, so no.

 

I was like, "Oh ok, this again". And then I did actually not worry at all. It wasn't until one week later when I was struck with catastrophic anxiety.

 

Surprised at first, as I never even heard of Tinnitus before.
I remember thinking: "how the f**k is this even possible?!?!"

The fear and anxiety arrived shortly after I found out, that there is no cure or relief available and that it never stops.

 

You mean the very first seconds we heard our tinnitus?

I noticed mine first when going to bed one night in may 2017. I have had temporary ringing (lasting a few hours) in the ears several times over the years, so it didn't scare me too much just then, although this ringing sounded a bit different, plus it was only in one ear, which also differed from the tinnitus I had experienced before, which were always in both ears.

Several days later I sat in my bed and read a magazine during the evening time, when suddently I heard my tinnitus had moved to both my ears and became more intrusive. Then the anxiety/scared feeling set in, and it was all downhill in my mental state from there.

 

Yup! I was in a huge huge huge anxiety state this day. I was also hypersensitive due to my anxiety. I'm sure there is a correlation ! I'm totally anxiety free today, but still have it.

 

Exactly the same for me. I did not even know that something like tinnitus is possible. The fear/anxiety came a day or two later when it did not go away. I also experienced multiple scary moments from then on, such as when the tinnitus shifted to the other ear or when it blared once waking up.

 

Mine was very mild ringing that came and went for almost a week before it went fully mental on me so I wasn't too worried originally, thought it would be gone in a day or two. It's actually essentially cured now.. The original ringing in the ear that is but I have developed a hugely loud somatic screaming in my brain which seems to have nothing to do with my ear at all... Other than it beams into my ear :/ I can pretty much pinpoint where it comes from and it's right under the skull in my neck. That's the problem area. I'm sure it'll go away eventually................ in some months/years

 

I think my question was misunderstood.

Did you anticipate the loud noise that caused your tinnitus. For example, you knew someone was going to shoot a gun so you tense up before the shot?

 

I understand your question and yes, I was in fear if the loud sound that I heard would hurt my then nine month old baby. I panicked.

 

I almost shit my pants.

 

I was on a high dose of mushrooms when I noticed it. It was either a direct effect of the mushrooms (unlikely) or a suspected noise trauma from one week before that I finally manifested as tinnitus because I was just laying on the floor in a very quiet house.

This was when my T worsened, or came back rather because it was so low before this incident that I either forgot it or it disappeared

 

I will never forget the exact moment (1:15 P.M. on the first Saturday of 2014) when with the immediacy of a light being turned on I heard this high pitched sound in my left ear. Everyone assured me that it was temporary, but I knew that something was monstrously wrong.

Three days later the sound erupted into terrifying, multitonal dimensions because of a severe cold.
Every doctor I called said that it was temporary, but after 8 weeks it was still present.

Then, when I went to an ENT doctor, he said "if you came here immediately we could have done something, but after waiting this long nothing can be done" (although he did not specify what that something might have been, since he concluded that I probably had tissue damage caused by the cold virus).

Then I had an MRI, and three weeks later the ENT Doctor called with (I'm not kidding) a 9 second phone call; he said "I could'nt find anything - keep the passages clear" and hung up.

Someone on this forum said that her ENT doctor "left her to drown", and after leaving my ENT Doctor's office I had to take 15 minutes to process my panic/rage so that I could safely drive.
I can recall that on that afternoon I mentioned this condition to a college senior I knew who was working the checkout counter at the local foodstore. She said, "if I had a constant sound in my head I would go batshit crazy."

I had to keep swallowing, because that flat out barebones assessment made me want to vomit with fear; it demolished every "it's only a harmless sound" rationalization I had erected.

Nearly six years later, and I objectively ask myself if I can cope with this for however many more years I have to live.

 

yes; was in a heightened anxiety state for unrelated reasons and had been so for a while, meaning it's very likely I was magnesium deficient and this worked against me in terms of neurological damage from noise.

However, I do not think that simply being in a "flinch state" from a momentary panic, seems likely to be problematic in the same way.

 

In the beginning I was surprised. Went to the docs the next day, got on a some prednisone which gave me horrible acid reflux. To make a long story short, anxiety kicked in a week later when I saw another ENT and said there wasn’t anything to do but to wait and see if it goes away.
It’s been 9 months for me and still have it. It has gotten better though overall.

 

No.

 

Same... basically crapped my pants...

This was after I head what felt like a nail being driven into my brain... literally.
I am here, I am strong, and fighting.

But yeah... it was a shocking life changing series of events.

 

Fear

 

To WestCoastGirl85:
I have followed and admired the wide ranging, informed content and courageous emotional honesty of your
"My Life With Tinnitus" You Tube videos.

 

I was on my way to a much needed ski vacation with my son. I had some brief episodes the two months prior, but then it just went on permanently. I had lost my dog and girlfriend in those two months, and I believe stress plays a role. It’s taken 6 months, but you start having better days, and that relief gives you hope.

 

A dog bite followed by a visit to urgent care for an antibiotic and a tetanus shot. Went back to urgent care the following day asking the doc "What did you do to me!!

 

I woke up one morning and asked,

"where's that ringing coming from? It's really annoying."

Then someone said, "there is no ringing."

And I said, "f#*k! I've got tinnitus!"

I always knew what it was before I had it because I've suffered from pulsatile tinnitus for over two years, and was always told PT is usually fixable but normal T isn't.

It was in that moment I realised I was screwed

 

Mine didn't appear after a noise, but it did appear when I had severe anxiety over reduced heating from earwax (all taken care of months ago).

Definitely had no tinnitus at all before that because I'd check now and then (when I heard a faint noise for example).

 

TL; DR: fear

First time I got it in 2016, I was highly anxious because of unrelated causes, but the anxiety was the normal for me. For some days I actually thought there was some party or maintenance work. I didn't realize until I visited the countryside that it was coming from inside my head. I got shocked and fearful, but it went away in about 2-3 weeks.

Flash forward to 2019, still untreated anxiety and depression, had the worst year of my life, had a cancer scare 2 weeks prior, and out of the blue, similar low humming. And it's ironic, because the day before it started was the best day I had in ages. I don't know why I got into the flight or fight, panicky mode, because the last two times the low humming went away. But I did, and I haven't slept properly ever since. The UHF sound joined the party like two weeks later. I was still bothered by the low hum and was like "OK, I can live with the high pitch, I just want the low, vibrating hum to go away". It did, and if I'm honest, the UHF sound is better than the low buzzing, but it still enough for me to not want to live like this. Totally ruined my life.

 

Based on my own research and anecdotal evidence, I believe that some 80% of people out there have never even heard of tinnitus.
Almost everyone has experienced some form of fleeting tinnitus when the ears are ringing for few seconds (or minutes), but it all falls into the "someone must be thinking about you" category.

Most people have no idea there is an actual name attached to this and most have no idea it could stay for life.
I get blank stares all the time when trying to explain.

This is why most people probably won't think much of it at first, until they look it up and realize that the normal life as they knew it has been replaced by an existence of sorts, which has nothing to do with life anymore.
This condition is nothing short of pure evil because of its underhanded and irrational nature.

 

I never thought I would be stuck like this. I am absolutely miserable every single day. I cry and hope this goes away but I'm quite sure its for life. I even did the right thing and used ear protection only to be fucked over regardless. My life sucks balls.