Hi all. Just developed tinnitus ~1 week ago, sort of. Several weeks back I had problems with my sinuses and such, which included a mild ringing in my ears like static. Well, the doctor said it was just allergies and gave me the usual medications... then I went on a trip to a much more humid climate, and that cleared everything up. (I live in Phoenix, which is usually painfully dry.) So everything seemed fine.
Well, cut to this time last week, and suddenly the sinus pain is back, along with a tinnitus that's a much more distinct high-pitched ringing sound. I figured it was the allergies again... honestly, though, now I'm not so sure. I've tried flonase and such, antihistamines, decongestants, and they all either do nothing or make the tinnitus worse. The only things that seem to have any positive effect at all are a humidifier and saline spray (I *think* the saline spray might be helping, at least...??). At this point I have no idea if the sinus issues are causing the tinnitus or if they're both a symptom of some other problem.
It's now going back and forth between the high-pitched ringing and static sounds. Normal levels of noise often just make it worse, even if I just listen to music for five minutes. I THINK overall it's (very) slowly getting better, but hard to tell for sure because it varies so much.
Hopefully I'll be able to get in to see a doctor soon, but for now I have no idea if/when the tinnitus is going to clear up, so until I can see someone I'm trying to figure out how to cope with it. I'm trying to learn to ignore it and let it fade into the background, but it's difficult. The tricky thing here is, it's about 98% certain I have Asperger's, which in my case means I have sensory issues relating to noise sensitivity as it is. It's very hard for me to cope with a non-silent environment even in normal circumstances. I've basically spent the past few days going back and forth between "okay I think I can deal with this" and severe anxiety attacks.
Any advice or tips anyone has would be appreciated. This has taken over my life for the past week, and I'm trying to figure out what's causing this and how to live with it so I can get back to normal activities like working or watching TV with my family.
Well, cut to this time last week, and suddenly the sinus pain is back, along with a tinnitus that's a much more distinct high-pitched ringing sound. I figured it was the allergies again... honestly, though, now I'm not so sure. I've tried flonase and such, antihistamines, decongestants, and they all either do nothing or make the tinnitus worse. The only things that seem to have any positive effect at all are a humidifier and saline spray (I *think* the saline spray might be helping, at least...??). At this point I have no idea if the sinus issues are causing the tinnitus or if they're both a symptom of some other problem.
It's now going back and forth between the high-pitched ringing and static sounds. Normal levels of noise often just make it worse, even if I just listen to music for five minutes. I THINK overall it's (very) slowly getting better, but hard to tell for sure because it varies so much.
Hopefully I'll be able to get in to see a doctor soon, but for now I have no idea if/when the tinnitus is going to clear up, so until I can see someone I'm trying to figure out how to cope with it. I'm trying to learn to ignore it and let it fade into the background, but it's difficult. The tricky thing here is, it's about 98% certain I have Asperger's, which in my case means I have sensory issues relating to noise sensitivity as it is. It's very hard for me to cope with a non-silent environment even in normal circumstances. I've basically spent the past few days going back and forth between "okay I think I can deal with this" and severe anxiety attacks.
Any advice or tips anyone has would be appreciated. This has taken over my life for the past week, and I'm trying to figure out what's causing this and how to live with it so I can get back to normal activities like working or watching TV with my family.
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