Newbie — 20-Year-Old with Tinnitus

Hi guys, new to this forum as I have been struggling to cope with noticeable tinnitus for around 8 months. Have been reading through some of the comments and people have really given me some hope.

I believe my T is caused by loud noise exposure. I always listened to loud music through headphones as a teenager, and this behaviour was only amplified by concurrent depression which i experienced from about 13-19 years of age and which caused me to turn to music to cope (but that's another story). I also really enjoy clubbing and I never wore earplugs. My tinnitus became noticeable in January time after a holiday where my friends and I did a lot of partying. Since then my depression has surged back at times and I have been close to panicking alot. Through all this I still have been managing to do well in medical school. This is my one last pride that I have and I have been so terrified that tinnitus, hyperacusis and (potential) hearing loss, coupled with anxiety and depression will make my life a misery and my career impossible. I'm supposed to be caring for patients, not becoming one! Advice with respect to dealing with thoughts about the future would be great

As for listening to music and clubbing, I have essentially stopped listening to music through my prized headphones which I paid a lot of money for. I still sometimes play music through my speakers but I don't enjoy it as much. I still (occasionally) go clubbing and I now use earplugs, but I often wonder if it is too little too late.

Sorry if this seems depressing but I like getting it off my chest. Doctors have been unable to help at all, simply telling me that it can't be treated and failing to give me helpful advice. But I'm hoping you guys on here can be an inspiration. I feel like I'm far too young to have tinnitus and my friends fail to understand the burden that it is having on my life.

Thanks

 

I don't think anyone with tinnitus will think you sound depressing. You're just explaining it how it is. Best of luck with your medical career. Keep focused on that and it should be a good distraction from the noise.

I don't think there is any telling if the action you take is too late, but it definitely can never be too early.

 

Welcome @awilson008. Tinnitus is something which affect people of all ages. Young people are not exempt from this ailment, not with todays's loud music and amplied sounds. We are more vulnerable to T as a generation as the earbuds and headphones are blasting loud music to those young ears day in and day out. Young people do get better and write their success stories. If you read the success stories enough, you will find many young people there. They get better even faster due to their younger body to adapt & to heal. You won't have the same perception about T in a few years. That is what the young people show us. Here are some sample of young people and their success stories:

success story of 17 years old Zach:

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/fake-it-until-you-make-it.7590/

success story of Jari with T since 12 years old:

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/new.7670/

College age AnneG success story:

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/came-back-to-say-it-really-does-get-better.6166/

Lena to hell & back story:

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/i-finally-get-out-of-hell.7576/\