Hope for Musicians :)

Hello there
I'm a 20yo girl from Poland I just wanted to post quickly here that soon it will be my 4th year of Tinnitus and I'm managing well
I was on the verge of losing my passion in music when I got an acoustic trauma.
Hopefully, I had it cured in hospital and my acoustic trauma almost disappeared (i would say 99% of it)
What stayed was T. But it has faded away with time. Now it's not really an issue. Well, recently I got super anxious because it did worsen... from stress. But it's settling down now and I also take proper suplementation.

I continue to learn music and go to concerts with precautions- I said no to:

• cheap earplugs (I only use custom moulded ones- the strongest ones I could find)
  
• not taking breaks when I feel I need to
  
• standing just next to the speakers

Doesn't affect my T, really. I could say I live a normal life, just with awareness that I should be careful.
Nowadays I'm mostly learning guitar and I could say I developed a big passion in it and also I think I have some talent in this field. I also play drums sometimes.

You know what they say? "Where there's a will, there's a way"
If I find out I'm not cut out for a metal band (probably I'm not because of my shyness, lol) I will try soft rock for example

I would say, if you're a musician, don't give up. This problem settles down with time. There are so many musicians that did not stop playing music you can't even count. I recently heard Leona Lewis also has this problem. You are in a very good company and yeah, being a well known star doesn't make your hearing better.

You just have to be careful and if you feel uncomfortable, take a long break. Let it come back to normal. Be gentle to yourself and take your time to heal. Find out what's the best for you. Every case is different and the best advice you can get is the one you can give to yourself.

I know it depends on the case and the severity of the condition. So I understand some people whose advice is to avoid loud places. Again, it is you who can assess whether you can do something or not, how your body reacts to it. It also depends whether the condition is reactive or not, but all I can say- it does get better, maybe does not regenerate in 100% (humans aren't able to do this, poor us), but when you are gentle and all, it does. It took me 6 months to get to the silent hiss sound-my ringing was terrible just after the trauma.

I will probably never come back to this forum again so this is just a random positive note passing for you
Ichigo

 

I read that Trent Reznor also suffers from tinnitus. For me one of the best musicians of the last 20 years
There are countless other cases but I wanted to point out in someone that I consider an inspiration

 

Most of the classic rockers now have T.

I like to think that I share the same ailment although I was in the audience.

This girl's story is very encouraging since I'm going through my worst spike yet after having this for 2.5 yrs.

 

I'm sorry to read that. surely with the passing of weeks / months it will decrease, as it is in most cases

 

I've had it for over 2.5 years and it hasn't decreased at all, however, someone told me that at 3 years most people's brains just decide to completely ignore it so that is the milestone that I am working toward.

In the meantime, I just try to eat healthy, exercise, stay busy, and mask on the really challenging T days..

 

sorry! I had missed that detail. Exercising is one of the most important things that anyone with our condition could do. I liked to go running but it's been a while since the last time. Maybe i should take your routine as a example!

 

Yes, I am in the middle of a nasty spike but worked out and then ran and am in a much better head space. -- That is really what it all boils down to right?

 

Are you studying music at a music school?

 

Sadly I'm not! But I would like to... I only have private lessons with a very competent teacher. Maybe one day I will go to a music school, I hope so. I work on my skills a lot.

Also, a warning I think I need to give you. I recently got a bad spike because of... it's a long story. I had 11 exams in 3 weeks so I became very stressed and the last day my T got worse, then I became stressed about T so in the end my immune system gave up and I ended up with a bad flu and then, afterwards, just after I got better... idk how its called... quinsy? And I was given Augmentin which screwed my ears pretty bad and gave me new sounds (horrible! I texted my boyfriend in the middle of the night scared to death. BTW These sounds settled down).
Now it's just getting better and better since I stopped taking this antibiotic a week ago.

So, folks, don't stress about T or exams or work and don't screw your immune system. Lol.

It's not worth caring about things you can't really have an impact on. Including T.

 

How did you get acoustic traiam? Doesnt that mean you had some hearing loss?

 

I’m not a huge U2 fan but Bono wrote the song staring at the sun about his struggle with tinnitus. At the ripe age of 37 he was in the throws of it. In the song he struggles with giving up music and accepting fate...or living his life. Don’t let it hold you back... a nice little quote from the song:

There's an insect in your ear
If you scratch it won't disappear
It's gonna itch and burn and sting
Do you want to see what the scratching brings

Waves that leave me out of reach
Breaking on your back like a beach
Will we ever live in peace?
'Cause those that can't do often have to
And those that can't do often have to preach
To the ones staring at the sun
Afraid of what you'd find
If you took a look inside
Not just deaf and dumb
Staring at the sun
I'm not the only one
Who'd rather go blind

 

@CsaulNol I did have hearing loss straight after the incident but it returned back to normal, I have had several audiograms.
I got this shitty thing because of a rock concert, I had no idea that one time noise exposure might do some harm. Still, its great that I decided to go to the hospital, the considerate thing i did shortly after. It stopped 100% for about 10 days after some treatment and I've never had hyperacusis so I dont think I have super major damage but still I hear a faint hiss all the time as a reminder that now I need to take the best precautions I can.
@kelpiemsp yeah, a lot of musicians have it, about 20% according to a survey i've read. About 30% have hyperacusis to some degree. Doesn't surprise me at all, considering the fact that most of them work in a loud setting and many dont know what tinnitus is until they get it.

 

So you received steroids? In my case... I did not lose any obvious hearing so the ENT sent me home telling me it was nothing... And then, I slightly started developing hyperacusis and tinnitus spread to both of my ears...in my opinion it got worse... Especially because I was at home and everyone was yelling so my ears did not get the opportunity to rest. Also, I was severely depressed...

 

Ok, looking at your profile I think you really need help Apolonia. I received something like xylocaine and also I take magnesium, zinc and calcium supplementation daily (partially because I'm a vegetarian).

I think you should see a really good audiologist. It should be an audiologist that researches about Tinnitus and performs TRT.
I need to recall my last visit to a doctor... Well, she is a profesional. That's the kind of person you need to talk to. Not a regular ENT. A professional.
She told me she had a severely depressed patient- a girl in high school.When she went to a rock concert here, in Poland, she got such a noise trauma that she developed SEVERE tinnitus and hyperacusis. And she was cured to a HUGE degree. She did TRT every day and her hyperacusis disappeared and tinnitus faded away to a HUGE degree. And now she is a professional pianist!
Have hope, my friend!

 

well it has been 4 months.... I really don't know any expert in my country for this. I will see what I can do. I am taking vitamins as well....