I Was Coping Well... And Then I Was Stupid Again.

Hi fellow T survivors,

I'm 28, married with a 1 1/2 yo son. My tinnitus started around April of 2014, stupid me I used an electric saw without ear protection. Only a quick job ~3 minutes (total on and off) was enough to take out my left ear, and so the ringing begins. At first it really irritated me, I looked into heaps of online material, saw a doctor etc.. I eventually managed to cope with it and was able to continue life with it without really affecting me much. Then, just last Thursday a friend asked me to help him referee a couple of games of dodgeball. I didn’t think too much of it at the time but now I realize how idiotic of me to use a whistle without earplugs! Now the tinnitus is so loud I can’t even wear headphones with or without music on. Compared to the ringing I had prior this, I feel as if I didn't even have Tinnitus! I'm struggling to come to terms with this newly exacerbated condition.. for the first time it also kept me up last night.

Sorry for throwing in the neg mood... I hope the T will at least come back down to the previous manageable level .

I'm also very grateful to have come across this community here.

Alfred.

 

I hear ya, I've done things like that before too and paid the price. the first few times though it pretty much always came back down. Lately though it's been stickin around at a higher level. Since this is your first major spike I'd try and stay calm, give it a couple weeks to settle back down. Not much other advice I can give but I hope it goes down for you as well.

 

It will probably calm down. I've had same experiences. Hang in there!

 

Thanks for the support, Bertman! It hasn't really changed for the past week. I'm staying hoping it will subside in another week or so, I appreciate the advise you've given.

 

Thanks for your words of support, Sound Wave. Could you share how long it took for the T to go down in your experience?

 

Hey @Alfred: My experience has been the same as mentioned above. I have had spikes of varying duration, but I always have returned to baseline at some point. Try not to dwell on the fact you are having a spike and wondering when it will ease, just makes it worse. Listen to masking noise if needed. Always helps me during a spike.

 

Hang in their. I'm 28 with 2 kids, a loving wife and tinnitus in my right ear only. I'm having a little spike right now but I'm staying calm and ignoring it. The more you focus on T the louder it gets (easier said then done). Only thing that keeps me going is my family and kids. Stay strong my friend. Who knows, in a few years we could be laughing at T because a cure could be out. I bet if they even found something that made T 1/10 for everyone it would be good enough for me as a cure

 

It varied. Sometimes a day. A couple of times a few weeks. For me also neck and shoulder issues can increase T, which then lasts longer.

 

Hang in there Alfred--I'm also guessing your spike will settle down over some time. I'm going through I guess a bit of a mini-spike after going to band practice and apparently not putting my earplugs in as well as I could have--the biggest sensation was muffled hearing in my tinnitus ear which has subsided about halfway since Monday. How close were you to the whistle at Dodgeball? I'm going to the Vikings-Seahawks game tomorrow and I've already planned on earplugs + headband tight around my ears to protect my hearing (go Vikings!)

I also agree with @Sound Wave on head/neck issues exacerbating a T spike--I find that at the end of a work day if I've been hunching or straining a lot my T is worse by the end of the day. Usually settles back down when I wake up the next morning. Obviously everyone's T is different.

Your kid is super cute btw. I'm awake now because my 2 year old has figured out how to get out of his room and come to our room and he woke us up asking to watch Sesame Street... I sent him back to his room and told him he could read until it got light out... we'll see how long this lasts. The baby in my avatar is our second kid--somehow my T has been at an all-time low since she's been born, which is a nice change (although when she really lets out major cries cries I put on earmuffs and that makes the ears feel better.)

 

Thanks for the words of support and comfort everyone!! You guys are awesome - truly!

FYI, today I begun a course of Serc 16mg (betahistine). I wasn't going to start on it as from my research it doesn't seem to be very effective for what I have (acoustic trauma, NOT meniere's disease) but my wife kept insisting that I at least try something and be positive that the meds will help. I know almost for certain she's playing the placebo card. Just her way of helping me haha. Two doctors recommended I give it a go still, so I'm just going to oblige. I'm taking in everyone's advice and experiences here so have been trying to ignore it and keep myself busy, hopeful in due time the T will subside.

Absolutely agree with you, @Arthur Czerniak . We'll stay strong for our family! .
I'm hopefully something will be on the market if not few years, eventually. I'd definitely be happy if the T goes back to my previous level - Now I have something to compare it to, I'd say the previous level was a 1/10..

Thanks, @marqualler. Well, I was the one using the whistle so you can imagine how close that was to my ears. Didn't help that it was a 'Fox 40 whistle' either, cause those things are loud (now I know)! Smart thinking about the ear plugs and headband! I'm going to be a lot more prepared for noisy events from now on too. Your son in your avatar looks and sounds very cute too! I think my son's at his cutest age right now (18 months), I'll be honest, I have moments where I watch my son play around the jungle gym and I get a little emotional inside. I find it hard to imagine that he could get any cuter haha.

 

Thanks for your very encouraging sharing and advice, LadyDi. Would you by chance know of any good masking noise apps on Android that you could recommend?