I Managed to Habituate Before — A Few Days Ago I Noticed My Tinnitus Has Become Significantly Louder

Hello,

I really appreciate it if you took the time to read this post, sorry it's so long! I’m Natalie. I posted on this site a couple of years ago when I was going through a really tough time after being diagnosed with tinnitus.

After about half a year, I managed to habituate and I was so proud of myself because my mental state was so much better and I got to the point of being so unaffected by my tinnitus, it was amazing and such a relief.

However, a few days ago I randomly noticed that the ringing in my ear had increased in volume quite a bit. After having not noticed my tinnitus for years, it made me feel very anxious and panicky because it had such a huge affect on my life and I had finally managed to get to a good place with it.

I went to the doctors and they told me my ears were full of wax but after having them cleaned, it unfortunately made no difference. I have also had a really stressful couple of months recently with my family but that's finally over now, so I know it isn’t stress induced as during this time my tinnitus remained the same.

I’m starting to feel very lost again and I don’t want to slip into a bad place. I was looking forward to my future but its hard to be optimistic when its gotten so bad again. I’ve been searching online about tinnitus spikes but I am confused about why they can randomly happen and how long they tend to last for. I didn’t know where else to come so I logged onto here again and some comforting words would really be highly appreciated.

I’m going on holiday on Monday and its been booked for ages, I want to relax and have a nice time but its hard to stay positive at the moment. I’m also going into my final year of study at university and I’m worried about this, it had been okay for so long and I’m so frustrated that its bothering me once again.

Thank you so much if you read this all, I’m really sorry its so long!! Hope everyone is having a great day

 

Hope all is well, I've been having tinnitus for 7 month now, mine started low and now it’s louder. I hope it gets better with time. If you were able to habituate once, I’m pretty sure you will do it again. Stay positive!!

 

Are we sure this tinnitus spike is random? Recent noise exposure with a delayed spike is a possibility to be considered. Any new medications recently?

 

HI @Natalie18

Sorry to know that the tinnitus has returned. Although the tinnitus wasn't giving you any problems when you were having a stressful time with your family a couple months ago, it is still not unusual to be affected by it. When you were occupied with so much going on around you there probably wasn't time to focus on the "stressful events" that came upon you. Now there's calm after the storm, the stress can be released and could be the reason for the increase in tinnitus. A similar thing has happened to me in the passed. If you haven't been using headphones even at low volume, or going to places where loud music is played, or been around overly loud sound, then it's unlikely the increase in tinnitus is caused by exposure to loud noise.

Try going back to basics using low level sound enrichment at night and during the day whenever possible. Please click on the links below and read my posts, that you might find helpful.

Hope you start to feel better soon.
Michael

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/new-to-tinnitus-what-to-do.12558/

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/tinnitus-a-personal-view.18668/

 

Temporary spikes can last for over three months, but if a spike is temporary, one normally begins to notice some degree of fading less than about a month after the onset. Have you been exposed to loud noises like that of a vacuum cleaner, hair dryer or lawn mower?

 

Hi, I posted on here a few weeks ago because I am suffering with a tinnitus spike. I started out quite hopeful that it would disappear but as the days go on and it remains the same, I’m really struggling. Some hopeful, kind words would really be appreciated right now.

I had habituated to my previous tinnitus and I’m terrified that this is impacting my life again, I’m worried for the future as I go back to university in a couple of months.

I feel so sick at the thought of going through all of this again. I’m just really having a negative day and I know my mood influences the tinnitus and distracting myself is essential but I’m struggling at the moment.

Thanks guys for reading, I really appreciate it

 

Hello Natalie, this is 100% stress, that is my personal impression. Relax, focus on your life, resolving issues, look for positive things, and this will subside. I had a spike for 5 months! And it faded away. Stress is a big factor for tinnitus --- 100% proven.

Things will get better!

 

May I ask if your tinnitus began from irrigation/flushing to remove ear wax?

 

Positivity Story:
I very recently met with a Napropath (a muscle massage therapist) who is highly regarded to the extent that he is frequently sought after by tinnitus patients (and unlike Julian Cowan Hill, he is forthright enough to reply that his methods usually render frankly negligible results).
However, he described how one middle aged woman had this in a varying high-pitched form for years, and one moment it simply stopped suddenly, completely and permanently (her exact words were "My God, the bell actually, finally broke").
She had CBD'ed and counselled herself for so long about habituation that she had to painstakingly reorient herself to her former life of silence.
She had no idea why this occurred; there were no perceptible or identifiable changes in her habits, diet, stress level, supplement intake, etc.
This is the third credible instance of a complete cessation I have encountered, for reasons that are totally unknown. Perhaps the brain can eventually develop such a natural noise-eliminating capability (which time-wise may vary considerably for each of us).

 

I know how you feel. I had perfectly habituated too but due to noise i thought wasnt harmful ive got louder T and worse H for weeks now. I thought T wasn't affected really at first but i was probably in denial. It's affecting my sleeping a lot.

Just like you im going back back to uni in a couple of months and i feel pretty depressed right now. I hope yours will get better or you habituate to it. It's only a matter of time it will stop bothering you again. It sucks but you just have to try to be positive, even if its hard.

 

The exact situation I am in since june. I feel the same as you. I am again in cbt, mindfulness, white mask generators, sleep pills, antidepresives, xanax, suplementals.

 

Same here. I got tinnitus 2 years ago and somehow I managed to habituate reaching the point where I basically had to focus really hard for hearing it. And I was super happy and proud of myself, being able to sleep at night without masking sounds (and believe me I was the kind of person that needed silence in order to sleep properly... you can imagine how much that affected my life).

Last week I was exposed again to loud noises and in the beginning it was like nothing had happened, then I started to notice my tinnitus more than before. And honestly I don't know it that is due to an actual spike or to my anxiety that is dragging me back to where I was 2 years ago, sleepless and worry.

And considering that in less than 2 weeks I'll move to another country for starting a new job is not helping me in the least, thinking I might not manage to cope with all this. So yes, I understand your struggle.

The only thing that might help is try to stay as calm as possible (hard task I know) and as you managed to habituate the first time, you will this time as well. That's what I hope for myself as well.

Take care.