How Do Different Soundscapes Interact With Your Tinnitus, City vs. Country?

[linearb]

I live near an airport and some highways. We have good sound insulation, but in general a fair amount of low frequency urban noise gets through.

I've spent the last few days way out in the sticks, mostly working on my laptop sitting outside, and what you get here is a lot of quiet, high-frequency stimulation: birds, crickets, wind chimes, running river noise in the distant background, goats making goat noises, wind in high branches.

My general observation is that my T is much less of an issue after a day or two in this kind of environment, and this is actually one of the reasons (though far from the only one) that I'm eyeballing a move into a more rural area next fall. (I do computer work, I can take my job with me, and the timing is right for several other reasons related to my marriage / long-term goals).

Anyway, I was just wondering if anyone else has experienced anything like this. I'm going to spend most of August working remotely from rural Montana, and will be interested to see how this plays out given a somewhat longer time frame.

 

[linearb]

Haha, just for comparison -- in my apartment, with everything off, the average dB spl is usually around 35-39. I'm sitting outside here with all these natural sounds around me, and I'm looking at an average of about 14.4. That's crazy, yes, I am definitely moving out into the country this year come hell or high water.

 

[dboy]

To some extent I think you answer your own question - low pitched sounds vs. higher. But natural sounds and surroundings are also great for improving general relaxation / wellbeing.

I've lived in a quiet little village in the countryside for nearly three years now. In my case there has been no lessening of my tinnitus, although maybe I cope better than I would have done if I still lived in the city.

Running water... a stream or waves... make fantastic masking, much better than artificial simulations or recordings seem to. Make the move, try to get a house in hearing range of a stream or the sea if you can. But make the move, I really doubt you will regret it, especially recalling other posts of yours where you talk about how nature affects you.

 

[linearb]

Running water... a stream or waves... make fantastic masking, much better than artificial simulations or recordings seem to. Make the move, try to get a house in hearing range of a stream or the sea if you can. But make the move, I really doubt you will regret it, especially recalling other posts of yours where you talk about how nature affects you.

Yea, I agree. I don't expect moving out into the country to be a magic thing that makes my tinnitus go away. But, if it drives my overall stress level down and my overall happiness up, then that makes life better any way you slice it.

 

[Street Spirit]

I feel the best in the country/woods/lakeside.....even pre t and h.

 

[jimH]

@linearb ...if you're serious about relocating to the country, consider where I live, the White Mountains of New Hampshire. It's very peaceful and beautiful up here!

Check out some of the pics of the area:

http://www.bing.com/images/search?q...es+of+white+mountains+new+hampshire&FORM=IGRE

 

[linearb]

@linearb ...if you're serious about relocating to the country, consider where I live, the White Mountains of New Hampshire. It's very peaceful and beautiful up here!

I'm pretty set on the Burlington area for a few reasons -- my wife and I both have family in upstate NY, and we don't want to be further from them than we are in DC (Burlington is marginally closer). The company I work for already has remote workers in VT, so the paperwork for that is all set, and thus no hassle there. Finally, I'm terribly addicted to a nerdy card game called Magic: The Gathering, and I've already checked out the Magic scene in Burlington and know that it meets my needs

New Hampshire is super beautiful, too, though! I have a very aged great aunt who lives in an amazing wooden house there. Maybe we can meet up for a beer sometime.

 

[jimH]

@linearb ...I hope that things work out really well for you there!

My daughter lives about 1/2 hour south of Stowe. She really loves it there. She lives in the Green Mountains (VT) while I live in the White Mountains (NH)....

 

[SoulStation]

My parents have a house in Stowe. I love it up there. There is so much beauty and a different pace of life. I will be there the first week of August.

 

[Telis]

I loved the noise of the city prior to T. I always thought the country life to be boring, now I would choose it over living in a trendy inner city area. I can't believe how much extra I paid to live in the noise! A ranch seems like the obvious choice now. I guess we all change with T and H.

Hearing sirens at night and the background hum of the city was music to my ears prior to T, now it's just a lot of extra noise on top of my head sounds. Maybe time to move, I don't know.

 

[jimH]

My parents have a house in Stowe. I love it up there. There is so much beauty and a different pace of life. I will be there the first week of August.

I'm hoping that you'll have really great weather up there for that week!...

 

[SoulStation]

I'm hoping that you'll have really great weather up there for that week!...

Me too!

 

[jimH]

New Hampshire is super beautiful, too, though! I have a very aged great aunt who lives in an amazing wooden house there. Maybe we can meet up for a beer sometime.

Yeah, I really like it here. This is main street in my quiet little town, last Winter: