New Here (3 Weeks In)

Hello,

I got tinnitus from sitting next to a speaker at a festival, the music was very loud, it was so loud that I took breaks in between because my ear started to hurt. Even before this festival I would listen to my ipod with volume beyond the half mark. I think the festival was literally what broke the camel's' back. On September 23 (Saturday) of this year I have developed this "curse" which altered my life in ways I have never imagined. That day and Sunday were the worst for me! I couldn't sleep from this loud static (electrical) noise that was in my left ear. I had to sleep with a clock for two nights so it can mask this horrible sound. The next few days that followed the tinnitus has lowered, but it is still very present. I was able to sleep but I made sure not to expose myself to any loud noise. I refrained from going outside or doing anything that could possibly raise the tone.

The beginning of the second week was GOOD as I was able to sleep but that came to abrupt end.
During mid of second week my home phone rang and it was loud, but I had my earplug in my left ear as I make sure always to be protected against "surprising and sudden" noises. From that moment on my tinnitus has increased in volume and I had problems sleeping once again. It went from a 3/4 in first week to a 6 a few days ago. I am hoping that it returns to normal once again.

This definitely took a toll on my life and well being! I really miss my old life where I was able to listen to music, go to the movies, festivals, etc. I am worried at times because I just graduated college and I am wondering how I will be able to function @ a job . I hope this goes away or at least that it fades to a level where it’s a mere annoyance.


I will keep all of you updated on this painful journey!

 

Hi @dpdx ,

I am sorry to hear of the difficulties you are having. There may be some good news for you. @Bill Bauer wrote the following post discussing studies that show a fairly high recovery rate from tinnitus ( https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/spontaneous-recovery-stats-over-70-recover-3-studies.21441/ ). Hopefully, you tinnitus will fall into the lucky group that resolves itself. Your tinnitus is still very new, so do not give up hope.

Even if it does not go away, you can get your life back.

@Michael Leigh has written some excellent posts on tinnitus, I would suggest reading the following to get you started and give you some information on tinnitus itself and on habituation. https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/tinnitus-a-personal-view.18668/


It is also important to remain positive. @billie48 wrote his success story demonstrating how positivity helped him habituate.
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/thread...w-i-recovered-from-tinnitus-hyperacusis.3148/

And Michael Leigh wrote the following, excellent post on the importance of positivity:
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/is-positivity-important.23150/
and the following on negativity and tinnitus
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/tinnitus-and-the-negative-mindset.23705/

I hope these help you and I wish you well.

 

Thank you! This gives me hope.

 

I have just replied to your PM. I can pretty much relate to all you've posted here. It is such a shitty condition. I am still trying to fight with it, not admitting that it will stay the same like now. Have you seen some doctor because of the stupid thing called T?

 

It is awful! This week has been alright I guess, but it still rings like hek. I hope that it improves to a level where it is just bothersome but not crippling. I doubt that it will ever go away..

 

Don't say that! Don't Think that...

 

some hope still lingers that it will completely fade

 

I notice when I talk that my head hurts or vibrates, what could this be?

 

I am really scared

 

@dpdx i have been exactly where you have been. Usually the first few weeks are the absolute worst times when it comes to your tinnitus. I assume you also have sound sensitivity right?

The first thing that you need to do is to make sure you go ASAP to the doctor and get a course of prednisone. This is a steroid that has been proven to help in some cases for acute hearing damage. If you can’t see your GP or ent within a few days, go to the ER to get them. This is very important as the sooner you take it, the better chance you will have to mitigate the damage.

Going forward I really need you to understand something very clearly. If you are one of the lucky ones and it disappears for you, don’t think that you are in the clear. I had it once for a week. It went away but due to stupid actions on my part (listening to music too loud and going to a loud bar, it came back).

Be aware that your ears are massively damaged now. That means that you need to protect it going forward from additional sound damage (no headphones anymore or loud clubs, bars or concerts). Be aware of flying and driving a car (wear some good ear protection, peltor X5). Be careful of the dentist (especially sonic teeth cleanings, just don’t). Do not get wax sucked out at the ENT. Have them do it manually instead. And be careful of ototoxic medications as they are know to cause the most damage for people after they get tinnitus.

I would like to say this. 3 months after I got tinnitus I was on vacation and barely noticed it anymore although it was still there. I then got callous and dident give my tinnitus the proper respect and it got so much worse now. Please do not make my mistakes. Unfortunately you will have to live like an old person now until they find a treatment of cure, but you can bet your ass it’s worth it to make sure it does not get any worse.

I wish you all the best.

 

I didn't have the vibration before. This happened today, it was fine a few days/weeks ago. I am really scared...

 

Did you ever get a course of prednisone? Did anything happen to cause the vibration?

 

No, I been to the doctor and he sent me to an audiologist a week ago. Hearing came back normal, but I have damaged some ear cells. I didn't have this event where my brain vibrates when I speak a few days ago/weeks ago. It started to occur yesterday and today it is pretty prominent.

 

I am not sure it just started. I noticed loud sounds can now be painful, for example when dishes clatter.

 

It could be that you are just very tired and stressed About this. I would just give it a few days as I have had strange things happen to my hearing and then disappear a few days later. Try and sleep and get as much rest as you can.

 

I didn't sleep well for the past 3-4 nights. I am still thinking about how good life was before all this. I truly wish nobody goes through this.

 

Hey man, I also have sensitive hearing in my ears, washing my dishes can be pretty rough on my ear if I'm not super careful. I wear headphones now just to block out a lot of the noise.

@jer which doctor should I go to, to get the prednisone? I feel like none of my doctors are prescribing me anything.

 

Yeah I had that too for a while. It did eventually disappear for me, So that is good news. Try and protect your hearing but not to overprotect it also. This I heard from and ENT that that could cause even more problems.

Prednisone, I got it the last time from my ENT to help with sudden hearing loss. I guess you could also get it from your GP or the emergency room if you can’t get an appointment fast enough. I have read that the earlier you take it after noise trauma the better. Again, this is all anecdotal so do not take what I say in lieu off actual medical professionals advice. The people who have studied many years for this. I Am not a doctor.

 

I hope the sensitivity goes away.

 

I overprotected my ears and thus I have H now. It is not severe but loud sounds like talking loudly, objects clattering, etc causes discomfort. I had this for about 2-3 days now, hoping that it goes away. Right now H is the most bothersome for me. I am getting used to T (it has lowered in volume somewhat) and remains like that during the day. H is awful...

 

I keep telling people the overuse of earplugs and ear protection can make the auditory system more sensitive if a person has hyperacusis. Hyperacusis needs sound enrichment to desensitise the auditory system. The overuse of earplugs will lower the loudness threashold of the auditory system: make it more sensitive to sound.

Michael

 

Thank you for the reply. I am going to read your article on how to deal with this. Life has become much harder now.

 

Life throws challenges at us and part of life if dealing with problems. If everything was easy in this world and problem free. We would never develop and mature to take on tough problems when they come our way.
Michael

 

it is not fair i have so much to experience, i have been deprived of happiness forever. nobody deserves this..nobody

 

@dpdx I feel your pain as I have had T & H since the middle of May of this year. It was absolutely horrible the first few months due to depression, stress, and anxiety. I truly thought I would never get better. I lost 20 pounds, I wasn't eating or sleeping, my stress and anxiety was through the roof. You are so right! It's not fair and nobody deserves this! My Dr. put me on Xanax and sleeping pills but I didn't like taking any of it, so I stopped. I have always been a very happy, smiling person and this really messed with my head, but I am doing so much better now. I have tried very hard to keep a positive attitude...I feel that this is very important. It's difficult to do when you are feeling hopeless and down, but it's important to keep your spirits up! I have come a long way since this started. My tinnitus is mild most of the time, but does spike here and there depending on what I eat or drink, etc. So night time is the worst for me as that is when it usually spikes. Mine started from a loud concert and I believe became worse due to clenching my teeth from stress and anxiety. I have been wearing a splint for a few weeks now and I believe it is improving slowly. I will never give up hope and will remain positive as I feel this is very important. I believe it will continue to improve over time. My T is very quiet in the mornings, but after I get up it gets worse as the day goes on. I am noticing a hiss sound more lately than the ringing sound which I am hoping is an improvement. The best advice I can give you is to remain positive and try to always keep busy. Play music when you are in a quiet environment. Keep ear plugs with you always for loud events...just in case. It can get better with time! Even though my audiologist told me not to, I have researched a lot! I read success stories all of the time as I feel this has helped me immensely! Be sure you see an ENT and an audiologist. Find out as much as you can about this. I saw my GP, two ENT's, Chiropractor, Massage Therapist, etc. It's important not to give up hope! What works for some may not work for others. Massage has worked wonders for me along with my TMJ splint. The ENT's didn't help me at all as they told me I will need to just live with this, however, they may be able to help you depending on what is wrong. Tinnitus can start from loud noise for instance, but can continue to get worse due to TMJ as in my case. There are so many causes. Don't give up, stay positive, and read success stories! When I found out I had TMJ, I researched a lot about the correlation between TMJ and Tinnitus. I took it upon my self to find a TMJ specialist I could afford and now I am doing better. I wish you the best and I hope you improve over time!!

 

You are right about it not being fair, and about you having much to experience yet, however, this does not have to deprive you of happiness forever.
If we can just hold out long enough for a cure, things will work out, somehow.

In the meantime, we should try to rush the developments of such cures as much as we can.
Raise awareness, talk to your friends and family about tinnitus and let no one think that it is a minor ailment you're dealing with.

May you find strength to persevere.

 

thank you all for this tremendous support, it truly means a lot to me

 

While thanks is always appreciated @dpdx don't forget Christmas is coming and a present speaks a thousands words. Oh, I mustn't forget to tell you that I have expensive tastes so try not to buy me anything cheap....

 

hehehehe

 

I hope one day I write a success story on here