I'm Worried I Might Lose My Job/Work/Hobby

I went in calling sick today, again, because one day of work was enough to make my tinnitus worse and I don't like taking chances.

I don't know what noises cause it. I work in IT, so was it the background music, despite being soft?
Loud crowd talking during lunch? Driving my car? Fan noise from the laptop? EMR (Electromagnetic radiation)?

 

Can you work with headphones (peltor construction ones) on? That should block out a lot of noise.

 

Anxiety can also cause spiked in tinnitus. You may also consider earplugs. Less obvious than construction headphones and can provide good amount of protection.

Also, I would schedule an appointment with an Doctor as soon as possible. While one would hope that companies would be more sympathetic if an employee is suffering, their main goal is profit, and everyday you call in sick (which I understand why you need to do that) is more money paid out and less being made.

 

My ENT was convinced the severity of my tinnitus was caused by the stress of my line of work and despite the fact that I doubted his assessment, I eventually left work and retired. While I'm glad I retired, it turns out it wasn't the job at all. It's tinnitus and tinnitus is unpredictable.

 

You are correct, tinnitus is unpredictable. But, your ENT is not entirely wrong. Many people on this forum have expressed that their tinnitus can be aggravated by stress. So, while incorrect in your particular case, s/he was not incorrect for the general population of tinnitus suffers.