I Think It's a Mistake to Bank on a Cure

Thanks for the reply, appreciate that! Yeah, I also don't think there's a hidden epidemic. I wonder if the number is higher than we currently know, perhaps even to a shocking degree, but we know that the majority of people with tinnitus doesn't commit suicide because of it. A minority of tinnitus sufferers can still make up an enormous number of people but like you said the data doesn't support the idea of a tinnitus suicide epidemic.

Completely agree. Sometimes it feels surreal that even though we know how many people are suffering, it's insanely difficult to raise more awareness.

 

I suspect (the mostly silent) majority agree with you completely. Tinnitus sucks, but thinking about it sucking makes it worse. It sure seems to be linked with stress/anxiety. I have a happy life with really loud tinnitus. I wouldn't call it habituated, I just don't whine about it (still, I wish I didn't have it).

 

@Mattv

If you post regularly on this forum or other social media platforms. If you work, or at University, read, and not taking any medication to help with your tinnitus, or under the care of a Hearing Therapist/Audiologist? In my opinion you have habituated. Your tinnitus is maybe troublesome and give you stress at times, but be in no doubt you have habituated. Please read my post: the habituation process, below.

All the best
Michael

The habituation process.

Habituation is frequently talked about in tinnitus forums and probably comes in at second place to the popular question: when will a cure be found? It seems some people have become quite taken with this word and believe it is the most important thing to strive for when dealing with this condition. Everyone wants to habituate as soon as possible and carry on living their life doing everything that they want to and putting tinnitus firmly behind them.

I can honestly say that I see nothing wrong with that, but wanting something in the speed that we would like it isn’t always achievable, especially with something like tinnitus. A few people that have had tinnitus for a while, have contacted me to discuss just that. They have concerns about the length of time it’s taking to habituate. Similarly, I have heard from those new to this condition that want the habitation process to start as quickly as possible. Both groups tell me they are doing all the right things but it seems patience is giving way to despondency and despair and some are starting to believe habituation might never happen for them.

It is of little comfort to these people when they hear family and friends say, tinnitus is just a minor irritant and something that can easily be ignored. Occasionally, it might be intrusive but this is never more than temporary and they are still able to carry on with their life unperturbed. I often sense the frustration a person is under when they are relaying this to me. Whether I’m talking to them on the telephone, private messenger or answering an email. It is then that I’m often asked: why is it that the habituation process doesn’t seem to be happening for them?

Answering such a question isn’t easy because there is no single answer that I can provide but I will say this. Tinnitus is a common condition that comes in many forms and intensities and no two people experience it the same. It can be very troublesome especially in the early stages of onset, but gradually this gives way and the condition settles down and in time many manage to cope with it when it’s mild or moderate. Sometimes this may involve treatment via a hearing therapist or a person achieves this naturally without being referred to a clinic.

It should be noted that tinnitus can be a complex condition, depending on how loud and intrusive it is for the individual? So what I’ve just outlined won’t apply to everyone. There are other factors that also come into play. A person’s make-up or rather their outlook on life. Whether they are positive or negative thinking can help or delay the habitation process. In addition to this, stress and anxiety are often associated with tinnitus and a person might be taking medication such as an antidepressant to help cope with it. There are a myriad of scenarios that I could relay to you on how tinnitus can affect someone’s quality of life, their well-being and the habituation process. For now I will say this:

When a person habituates to tinnitus it means they are able cope with it but this doesn’t mean they will never hear it. Although some people habituate to a level where the tinnitus is rarely heard or stays at a very low level. Whether the tinnitus is silent for periods of time or remains low, mild, moderate or is occasionally intrusive, it doesn’t really matter, because it all means the same thing. When habituation is reached a person will know, because whatever the level it will not bother you. However, like everything there are exceptions and tinnitus is no different. I believe there are some limitations to habituation. As I have previously said the condition comes in many forms and intensities. Some people have variable tinnitus that can fluctuate from silent, mild, moderate and severe. When it is loud and intrusive (severe) and this level is sustained for long periods it can become very debilitating and a person might have to take medication to cope with it, which is usually supplied by their doctor. This level of sustained intrusiveness shouldn’t be confused with a tinnitus spike, which usually returns to baseline within a short period of time.

I want to say that I believe habituation is achievable for most people with time. In some instances a person might need the professional help of a Hearing Therapist or Audiologist, as there are a variety of treatment options available to help one in the habituation process. One should also try to be realistic. There are some people that will accept nothing less than a complete cure from their tinnitus and this is unfortunate, because they could waste a lot of time being miserable.

I have corresponded with people that have said, their tinnitus is very low and is only heard occasionally or in a quiet room, at night for instance. Yet these people are not satisfied because they want a complete cure and will deliberately seek out quiet surroundings to monitor their tinnitus, checking to see if it has increased or not. It’s as if they have become obsessed with this condition and to the point where is starts to affect their relationship with those that are close to them, and I don’t think this is healthy.

In summing up I want to say one last thing. Those that are having treatment with a Hearing Therapist, Audiologist, or finding that their tinnitus is becoming less intrusive and they are in the habituation process. Try not to read negative posts or associate with negative thinking people who are not in the same place that you are, as their beliefs can prevent your advancement, if you are not careful.

 

@Michael Leigh

Well, okay, I guess it's just semantics to me. I stressed out for about two weeks, them I just carried on more or less normally. I wouldn't call it a process, I just have had worse stuff in my life that tinnitus seems trivial. ( But someone please cure it!)

 

Sorry @linearb I used to print off off things to remind me that other people did get through this horror and this is where I got this information from about your tinnitus onset, maybe I misread what you were saying I copy it below.

 

@Star64 haha, wow. Okay, I definitely said it, so that's probably what I was thinking at the time I wrote it!

Looking back at the time of my life when I had my onset, directly leading up to the onset, in this order, I had:
* years of antidepressant and accutane use
* some recreational drug use
* two car accidents, one of which deployed airbags
* benzo use
* contracted the oral HSV virus
* attended concerts for the first times in my life, without any hearing protection because I was dumb and 17/18 and no one even mentioned them

so, that's kinda a punchlist of "things that could cause tinnitus", you pick. Looking at the whole list, at this point in time in 2019, I am less suspicious of the benzos than other things -- especially since I had been benzo free for several years at the time of my worsening in 2010, which was definitely trauma induced. But, it's really hard to say, and if I had to guess what I was thinking when I wrote my original post -- it was probably "err on the side of caution and sort of implictly discourage benzo use". But, I really don't know, that was five whole months ago which is a long time when your brain is swiss cheese from keeping track of a small child, changing jobs, and yes of course being on benzos which as we know do wonderful things to your short term.... wait, what were we talking about??

 

Just checking I am making progress LOL, my benzo brain is lifting thanks for clarifying, maybe there is hope my tinnitus will improve. Once again thanks for reaching out to me, I do hope everything keeps going well for you, I appreciate the faith you have in me strength wise...This benzo withdrawal is not for the faint hearted

 

The new tone you acquired by taking Zoloft, disappeared when you stopped taking the med? How is that new tone? High pitched?

Thank you in advance.

 

Mostly high tones, but it varies. I now have hearing aids that help with general paranoia, but with the actual tinnitus itself doesn't do much.

Approaching steadily 1 full year with tinnitus. Around 50 days remain

 

I notice that there are many people obsessed with a total cure. If your tinnitus is only heard in very quiet places, it is almost like being cured. Any treatment that achieves that will stop this from being a problem. I mean ... a lot of people have a tone in their heads. The problem is to have it at the volume that we have, audible on the street, in restaurants, etc.

When I was a child I covered my ears with my fingers and felt that tone, I thought it was normal. Stupidly I made it grow and gain volume throughout my life.

 

Not for me. That's pretty much where I'm at but I want silence back.

 

I understand. For super long time "ringing guys" like me mild tinnitus it's nothing. It's life. Maybe it's different when you experience T for first time in adult life.

 

This post is illogical, to say it politely.

Yes, it needs years of clinical trials and it can take a decade or more for a cure to be found. But research on tinnitus didn't start yesterday.

If a drug needs 10 years to get on the market, but the research has begun 9 and a half years ago, then there is only 6 months to wait.
And there are already multiple research projects going on, some already in phase 2 of human trials.

That is for the first part.

For the second part, you are clearly lacking in knowledge on tinnitus.
You might habituate if it is a pure tone tinnitus with a low dB. Because it is a constant sound at low volume, your brain might habituate easily.

But when it's a non constant, totally random ringing with no pattern, and another sound that is moving up and down in frequencies, again randomly with no pattern, you simply CAN'T habituate, because you can't habituate to something that varies.

Sorry, but not sorry, this post is really bull****.

 

To be fair, he did qualify this with "I think".