I'm New Here, Just Looking for Some Answers from Anyone Who May Have Experienced My Symptoms

Hello and sorry for the horrendously long thread.

My journey with tinnitus started 2 months ago.

This all started with the worst viral throat infection I think I have ever ensued. Overall it lasted a week in total from a Monday through to the Sunday. On the Wednesday, I was sat watching a film (can't remember which one lol) when I noticed a discreet but very annoying high pitched sound in both my ears. At first this got me into a small panic, however it slowly subsided shortly after, around two hours or so. From this moment onwards, I would hear the same sound around once a day. On the Thursday I was watching a film (The Revenant), when I noticed the high pitched sound again. This time I thought it was the film and maybe some effect, and wondered who would ever put that sound in because it was just so annoying. Again, this passed, or it was so quiet that I couldn't hear it and I continued my day. The following week on the 11th October, my brothers birthday, I had woke up after a fairly heavy night out. I had not been around many loud environments, just men shouting around as they do when drinking with a little bit of music in the background. I got home and noticed the ringing was back, but was much louder and very annoying. I noticed it wouldn't stop, and so I proceeded (yes, stupidly) to look up my symptom on google, and whilst hangover, this is where the hell started.

I had the panic, anxiety and fear of this sound and how it would never fade. I already suffer with extreme anxiety and depression etc which does not help. The sound didn't go, but after two weeks and after my doctor telling me it was due to my infection etc, I started to habituate and the sound would even disappear for time on end. Two weeks later, I went out again, but not as heavy as the last, and this whole process happened again. The sound came back louder, but again I habituated and it went down etc and I got used to it. I then decided to have a month break from everything bad. I have been exercising daily, eating everything possible that is healthy. I have been trying supplements such as magnesium and ashwaghandha and again, I habituated. I quit drinking, quit smoking and everything in between. Last week however, I felt a sinus infection coming on, where the front of my face hurt and felt achy, and I felt dizzy quite often. I have still had a cold since the first viral infection started, and my sinuses have not cleared still and as I write this I still feel clogged up, and as if I have a head cold etc. When the sinus infection (mild) came on last week, I noticed an increase in volume, and various different sounds; a spike. This I had come to terms with, until I went out for my birthday on Saturday night. I had some drinks, and stayed out late and since then the pitch and volume has been quite loud, similar to when the sinus infection started. However, I have this fullness in my ears and feel like I am going to go deaf, which is my biggest fear with this whole thing. I definitely know that the alcohol and hangovers make the reaction to the sound much harder to tolerate, and make it much harder to manage, and since getting over the hangover on Sunday, I have felt a lot better. During the hangover I went full suicidal, I told my mum I was going to kill myself because I could not deal with this sound, and I felt like my life was ruined, which is why I have now decided to quit drinking and smoking completely. These whole two months I've been trying to stick to a low salt diet, no chocolate etc because I find that makes it worse. Also, I have not touched caffeine since this started either.

I am writing this in order to seek advice, as to whether this spike of 3 days has a good chance of going down, and whether anyone has experienced anything similar, with regard to the 'head cold' symptoms. I really want my life back, and can't believe that I was ever depressed before this tinnitus started. I can only imagine how happy I would be if this was to ever disappear or to at least fade. Hopefully someone can provide some logical answer, and please please please keep negative posts to yourself. No one needs to see them and it only makes matters worse, not only for me but for everyone who sees this thread.

Thanks.

 

Things will improve. You have to find the things that affect your tinnitus the most. Everyone is different. Some people have no issues with coffee, alcohol, smoking etc and some do. It looks like you are on the right track using the process of elimination to see what helps you the most. What I can tell you that helps me the most is a lot of sleep and reduced stress. If you are not getting good sleep, seek to improve it asap. I also use sound therapy during sleep. I listen to ACRN with my headphones during sleep. It has seemed to help with keeping my tinnitus in check.

I too went through the same thing you are. When it first happened, I changed my diet, ate low salt, exercised regularly etc and nothing really helped. In fact, things got worse. It's known that when you have damage to the ear's hair cells. They may actually still function but will eventually die over a period of a year or so and lose connection with the nerve endings completely. This may cause your tinnitus to actually increase and you may develop hyperacusis or other strange things as well which was the case for me. However, after the second year things are more or less normal for me now. The hyperacusis is completely gone and I have days where I can't hear any tinnitus and days where my tinnitus is a 7 or 8. Whenever it's loud, it's almost always due to lack of sleep or stress. I pop a sleeping pill for that night and 90% of the time the tinnitus is almost gone the next morning. I can still hear it from time to time but it no longer bothers me.

Time fixes everything and ear issues take A LOT of time to resolve. Give it time and stay positive. I also suggest you don't go crazy on your lifestyle changes because those changes themselves will remind you of the tinnitus as it did for me.