Greetings, All. I'm New to Group.

[Scott Q.]

About me: I'm a 45 year old male, have always had negligible bi-lateral tinnitus as far as I can remember up until about 3 months ago when it changed pitch to a much higher electronic piercing dog whistle variety...with no significant trigger to my knowledge. It is awful.

Where before the tinnitus blended in with ambient/environmental noise, now it does not. Some things about my health that may or may not be relevant: I have Hashimoto's Thyroiditis, inflammatory bowel, insomnia, chronic sinusitis, inner ear pressure with crackling ears and possible TMJ. I have had digestive problems my entire life, was a sick kid, took several cycles of antibiotics and likely suffer from gut dysbiosis, leaky gut, or fungal infection(s). I have Amalgam fillings in 4 of my teeth, which have been there for 30+ years (scheduled to be removed 5/1/17) I think mentioning the amalgams is relevant in the interest of Heavy metals and its relationship to tinnitus.

I think it is also important to mention that I was never breast fed, not one drop...formula baby the whole time. If you know anything about the human gut Microbiome you know why this may be relevant. The diagnosis of the Hashimoto's was devastating news because I knew that it meant my immune system was attacking my thyroid. The peroxidaise antibodies showed up during a random blood test. I already suffer from anxiety, and bi-polar depression with suicidal ideations, so getting that news was very saddening and set me back. And when the tinnitus changed pitch,...well,. let's just say that every day feels like a different kind of nightmare for me now, and I try to stay positive by listening to music (silence is the enemy now) or doing other activities that involve exercise and/or sound.

I can't fall to sleep without headphones on now, playing some sort of white noise or ASMR type youtube video,etc.. I really believe that there is a connection with inflammation in the body and tinnitus. I believe that Hashimoto's Thyroiditis is a condition AND a symptom. Something in my body is causing my immune system to be confused enough to attack itself, and create an inflammatory response. I feel as though I am in a perpetual fight or flight phase because of my immune disorder. Whether its heavy metals, viruses, bacteria, fungi.....something is the root. Pretty much anything in your body can become inflammed. I can feel each and every red flag going off in my body. It is screaming for help. Literally.---


Anyway I hope to hear from you kind folks, and feel free to offer up any links, theories, remedies, or philosophies you may have regarding this nasty, awful ailment.

Thanks-
Scott

 

[billie48]

until about 3 months ago when it changed pitch to a much higher electronic piercing dog whistle variety...with no significant trigger to my knowledge. It is awful.

Welcome to the forum. Sorry for your high pitched tinnitus. Incidentally quite a few posts recently come from people with very high pitch T, yes, the percing dog whistle variety. I have ultra high pitch dog whistle T like you. I suffered a lot with it initially as it was like a dentist drill with 10 times the pitch. But worse, I was also attacked by severe hyperacusis (H). I posted about the awful experience of living with both ultra high pitch T & severe H in another post. For brevity, I c&p my post here:

"I suffered unimaginable horror and I was in a mess initially as on top of my new ultra high pitch dog whistle T, I also had severe hyperacusis to add more to the misery. T alone was traumatic enough, but H made it almost impossible to survive. Why? Because T & H don't like each other. Hyperacusis turned all normal sounds soooo loud and piercingly hurtful as if every sound drilled through the senses. It can literally cause pain. So I tried to protect against H with earplugs (I bought $200 worth of them from Sonic Shop in Germany), but the earplugs made T so unbearably harsh to hear when there is no other outside sounds to help mask it. So if you try to let more sounds in as silence is deadly for T, then H said I would drill you with every sound you let in. Even the soft voice of my wife was hurtful, not to say those from TV, driving, parties, social conversations,restaurants, etc. Gosh !!! Talking about getting TRAPPED by these two monsters.

Worst, I also had suffered from PTSD and anxiety plus panic disorders prior to T & H. So my already weakened nerves had no chance against T & H. They literally opened the flood gate of hell of relentless anxiety and panic attacks on auto mode every day the moment I woke up with the loud T (if I could sleep at all), and these attacks would come on and off all day. I had no choice but to use drugs to survive, taking Ativan, Prozac and sleeping pills. Either I did that or I could harm myself due to immense suffering. My tired and stressed out mind was suggesting the big 'S' word daily, as it saw no way out of the suffering. My good life was gone, and I was worrying how I could even survive this each day, not to say my entire life. I never thought I could survive and have good life again.

But never say never. Today, I do just that, living a normal, productive, happy and absolutely enjoyable life. I wrote my success story and share some helpful strategies. If you want to check out these strategies, for brevity, here is the link to my success story. While there, you should read as many positive success stories as you can to give you hope.

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/thread...w-i-recovered-from-tinnitus-hyperacusis.3148/

You take good care. Don't despair and don't give up. Good life can be back. Believe it. God bless.

 

[Scott Q.]

Thank you so much for your reply. I read your story. I am so glad you found some relief from all of that madness. I can only hope I muster the strength, self-awareness and mindfulness to habituate to this craziness. When the T changed pitch I had no idea the impact it would have on my quality of life. I was already dealing with so many pre-existing conditions then... WHAM! electronic dog whistle. Anyway, thank you again fo your kind welcome and response- Be well,
Scott

 

[Paul10]

Hey Scott, welcome to TT! You'll find a lot of us here have ultra-high frequency T, but it's really down to how one reacts to it that determines how 'severe' it is. I'm glad Billie has directed you to his success story as it honestly kept me going forward through darker times. Please don't let some of the more negative stories get you down; they are just people like us who are reaching out for help. Re-read Billie's success story as often as you need, along with the other great success stories. You'll find some very helpful people on here who's posts will give you a positivity boost when it's needed. Hope you have a good tomorrow, God bless!

 

[Scott Q.]

Hey Paul- Thanks so much. A trend I am picking up on is to remain positive and active, and to pay more attention to the success stories. I am especially prone to that , on account of my insomnia,depression and anxiety... and propensity to obsess and even sometimes self-diagnose. The internet,...ahh the internet is a Tempting Mistress. One can ramp up their anxiety just from reading the fear-mongering, negative crap alone. I'm big on getting all the facts and am very much a self advocate when it comes to my health. I read lots of doctor's journals, clinical trials,mechanism of action of medications,.etc. I love to read. But.,..it's the separation of fact and fear that is the delicate line to walk, that can determine how you interpret your attitude and possibility of improved health or not. Im getting all of my amalgam fillings out on 5/1/17, a little nervous about it, as I have a theory that my T could possibly be from having those for 30+ years. I have TMJ issues too, so it's hard to say. I'm pretty sure it is not the result of hearing loss via. damage/loud noise, as I have recently had my hearing tested from an audiologist and she said I'm in great shape for a 45 year old. Either way. getting the fillings out is a healthy move on my part, so I guess we will see what we see.- Thanks again and wishing you well-
Scott