- Jan 5, 2018
- 2
- Tinnitus Since
- 01/1995
- Cause of Tinnitus
- Meniere's / Noise Exposure combination
Hello, all. I am a 47 year old male veteran with Meniere's syndrome, severe bilateral tinnitus, and tensor tympani syndrome. I initially noticed a slight ringing in the ears back in 1995, which has progressed to a near debilitating state, as of today.
I am currently a senior manager for my company, where I used to approach each day with enthusiasm and drive; now I find myself struggling to make it through each day, primarily due to the deafening high-frequency warbling tinnitus I experience, combined with periods of dizziness and fullness in my ears which results in a 90% near-deaf experience for an hour or two at a time.
At times, my condition gets the best of me and I become overwhelmed, like a claustrophobic experience. Episodes of tensor tympani syndrome can best be described as a hyper-sensitivity to certain sounds (such as keyboard typing; high pitch speech) which causes an actual "thumping" response in the ear, at times a spastic pulsing which can best be described as being similar to having a moth trapped and trying to escape from my inner ear.
My overall hearing is degrading rapidly; I was fitted with hearing aids by the Veterans Administration back in 2013. I've had to have them adjusted twice since that time to compensate for my hearing degradation, which continues to get worse. At this rate, I'm fairly confident that I will likely be near/totally deaf by the time I am 50.
My greatest fear is losing my hearing completely while having the tinnitus remain. Not sure if I would be able to cope with that outcome on my own. All that said, I'm fully engaged in trying to live my life with this elephant on my back. I know my condition is just as frustrating for my loved ones (especially my wife who has to yell at me constantly) as it is for me!
But, it just seems that each day gets harder and harder. People who don't have this condition(s) just really have no idea how much we truly suffer each day, and it's very hard to explain it and get others to understand.
So, that's me! Not looking for any sympathy.....just some support from others who understand and may suffering as well.
I am currently a senior manager for my company, where I used to approach each day with enthusiasm and drive; now I find myself struggling to make it through each day, primarily due to the deafening high-frequency warbling tinnitus I experience, combined with periods of dizziness and fullness in my ears which results in a 90% near-deaf experience for an hour or two at a time.
At times, my condition gets the best of me and I become overwhelmed, like a claustrophobic experience. Episodes of tensor tympani syndrome can best be described as a hyper-sensitivity to certain sounds (such as keyboard typing; high pitch speech) which causes an actual "thumping" response in the ear, at times a spastic pulsing which can best be described as being similar to having a moth trapped and trying to escape from my inner ear.
My overall hearing is degrading rapidly; I was fitted with hearing aids by the Veterans Administration back in 2013. I've had to have them adjusted twice since that time to compensate for my hearing degradation, which continues to get worse. At this rate, I'm fairly confident that I will likely be near/totally deaf by the time I am 50.
My greatest fear is losing my hearing completely while having the tinnitus remain. Not sure if I would be able to cope with that outcome on my own. All that said, I'm fully engaged in trying to live my life with this elephant on my back. I know my condition is just as frustrating for my loved ones (especially my wife who has to yell at me constantly) as it is for me!
But, it just seems that each day gets harder and harder. People who don't have this condition(s) just really have no idea how much we truly suffer each day, and it's very hard to explain it and get others to understand.
So, that's me! Not looking for any sympathy.....just some support from others who understand and may suffering as well.
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