Help, Feeling Like a Failure

I've done my best to be positive.
I was going to be one of those people who lives with tinnitus with no issue.
After 2.5 weeks there are times where I don't even hear my mild to moderate tinnitus for hours. And it usually doesn't bother me when I do.

But I've had insomnia, and that's been getting to me, fatigue and lack of sleep.

Have a white noise machine. Tried melatonin, no dice. Benadryl is inconsistent.
Ambien worked well Tuesday night, but not as well Wed night, and I tend to be groggy the next morning.

I'm afraid it'll get to the point where normal functioning becomes impossible.

I'm trying to be hopeful but I'm scared how this might affect my life.

I have plenty of good days and good things in my life. But I worry.

 

I am so sorry to hear this, Tom.

You say that you have plenty of good days and good things in your life, this is very positive. Being scared about the future is completely understandable, it happens to me, too. When it does I try to put my focus on getting through the current day, only. I let tell myself that tomorrow will be better.

I hope you are able to find a way to get a good night's sleep. You have tried many things. I wish there was something else that I could suggest that would help you.

It is okay to have bad days and it is okay to come here for support.

 

Hi @Tom71,
Sleep deprivation is enough on it's own to deal with and I went through it also.

The doctor gave me sleeping tablets but changed me to a low dose AD due to them being adictive and was the best thing he did.
I would maybe try see your doctor tomorrow and just have a chat with him .
Don't worry you will start sleeping better again.
Your not a failure and everything is new to you .
I'm glad you get good days so thats nice to focus on and look forward too...
Keep posting ..love glynis

 

Please try taking valeriana or pasiflora for insomnia, clear herbal options, yellow cantarion helps as well. Sleep is what gives me hope against T, because I don't hear it then (mine is weak to moderate, too)... I use stronger drugs, but for you general calming of the nervous system with herbal pills might just work. Good luck!

 

Thanks everyone I'm feeling better

I talked to my GP he thinks I have a touch of depression, so we're going to try Remeron to help with that and with sleep, I know it helped many of you

Also think I overreacted this morning, thinking the Ambien induced grogginess was sleep deprivation. As the morning went on I felt more awake but was too worked up by then to think straight

 

Tom, another thing you could try is cardio exercise. The exercise can produce endorphins to help you feel better and also might help with sleep.

 

You're not a failure you're a survivor. Everyone here is.

 

Also going to begin counseling again. Tbh even before my T started I noticed some issues, I think the T just made them more prominent

I've made progress already, even this this short a time, so I shouldn't be so down on myself just because I had a bad morning

 

I went through what you did in a similar fashion. I first noticed mine as far back as April of last year. Back then the tinnitus was easier to tune out and ignore, and was mostly confined to my left ear. Over the summer, I had severe sinusitus which seemed to amp up the ringing and spread it to my right ear. Slowly my patient with it eroded and before I knew it, I wasn't sleeping, relaxing, or thinking anymore. Today I still find it hard, but it tends to get easier.

You are still in the acute phase (less than 3 months of tinnitus), so my advice to you is if you are going to use sound therapy or anything else, now is the time to do it. Your brain likely hasn't undergone any major neuroplastic changes that the chronic sufferer (like myself) has, so you should do notched music therapy or residual inhibition. You may get it to decrease or even stop entirely. I can't promise it will happen, but you have the most potential to alter it. Don't cave into the anxiety, it only fuels the noise. Trust me, you owe it to yourself to try. Don't be like me and lay in bed sobbing for the next six months, it didn't work. If anything else, time usually makes it less annoying.

 

This might be something you will have to be patient about. I think it is harder for people with mild tinnitus to go to sleep since they don't really hear it during the day. But I'm sure with time you will get used to it. That's all that can really be said, I think. Almost none of us are doctors. And those of us that are don't have the authority to give the medication.

 

Have heard of notched music therapy, might give it a try
What is residual inhibition?

 

RI is when you play a pitch or tone that matches your tinnitus, and it makes your tinnitus completely disappear entirely for a very short period.

 

Yeah. When I had Mild T I could hear it at night and needed sound oasis making. Now that I hear it all the time it sucks. God I hate this so much.

 

@Tom71,
Im glad to hear you had a nice chat with your doctor and starting on a medication to help you and counselling also .
Keep posting for support and making friends also is nice.
Love glynis x

 

Hi Tom, it seems like you’re doing the right things already. Just remember that getting over tinnitus is never a straight line of improvement. It’s pretty much always 4 steps forward and two steps back, so try not to get discouraged when you feel utterly useless and depressed. It’s par for the course. But then again life isn’t a perfect journey either; there will always be problems to overcome. Remember that everyone has their demons even if they don’t openly talk about their troubles. Facebook is particularly bad for this. You’ll probably notice (if you’re on there) that EVERYONE has the perfect life, and seem to be happy 24/7. Behind the scenes however are tears, upsets, anxiety, sleepless nights, etc that never get spoken about. That’s one of the problems with society. We don’t openly talk about our problems because we think it shows a sign of weakness, but I believe it’s the opposite. I believe it shows strength, integrity, and character.

Hang in there Tom better days are coming.

 

Also, based on title of this thread I think this is very apt here:



The closing scene from ‘it’s a wonderful life’, and never a truer word said.

 

Remeron + Ambien is not a bad combination, I think. You are on the right track!

 

Yup. I agree.