Please Somebody... Crying Hysterically... My Hyperacusis Seems to Have Gotten Worse

I'm at my wits end......crying hysterically right now

My hyperacusis seems to have gotten worse, for example...even the turning of a page in a magazine hurts my ears a bit now.

I'm so scared......beyond belief! I feel like I am doomed and that I am dying and I feel totally defeated and unable to do anything about it.

I won't survive 2 years of this... I can't.... Don't even feel like being social anymore, because I feel like a burden telling people to lower their voice or turn down the music.

 

Many of us have experienced this Sandra and it isn't easy. Try and take comfort in knowing you have made improvement although, when you're having a bad day it doesn't feel like that. This moment will pass so try and keep strong.

 

I know how that feels. I've also felt like a burden asking people if they could lower their voices, turn down the music etc. You have a medical condition that you can't control so you're not a burden! It's okay to feel afraid. You're very new to all of this, so you don't know what to expect. Tell yourself this: "I'm not dying. I'm not in any danger. I'm afraid, but I'm not in any danger. I'm safe." Hyperacusis doesn't last forever. It eventually gets better over time, so one day normal sounds won't be painful anymore and you'll be able to participate in all of the things you want. If you say you can't survive two years, how about one year? Try to hold on for that time at least. If you feel like you can't get through another year, at least try to get through this day. If you got through yesterday feeling like this, you can get through today too, and you don't know what's waiting for you tomorrow. Things can get better. Tinnitus is hard, and it can really make you feel discouraged in life, but don't give up hope. Just try to get through this day. You can get through this, and things will get easier! Just try to hold on.

 

I try but when my hyperacusis suddenly gets worse out of nowhere i naturally become scared. Like i said it feels like i am dying and that a knife is being held to my throat. I basically feel my life threatened and that is beyond scaring.

I send an email to my hearing therapist yesterday but unfortunately i think she is on summer vacation right now...

 

It's good you're in contact with your hearing therapist. Is there any one else you talk to for now? A relative, a friend, a psychotherapist? It can help to talk about your fears and how you feel.

 

I have stopped crying now......will be off to bed soon, it is 40 min. past midnight here and i am tired now. Hopefully i will get a good nights sleep and tomorrow will be at least a bit better.

 

Thank your for your kind words (u2 michael)

Right at this moment i dont have anyone to talk to, everyone is probably asleep and so will i be soon.

And the only people i really wanna talk with are people who can relate or have experience/knowledge about T and H.....thats why i have come here cause i can always count on getting support in here.

 

Huge hugs, @TheDanishGirl. Page turning drives my ear crazy. Always makes the ringing louder. I was driving with my kids and the car noise didn't bother me, but I cringed every time they turned pages in their books. And don't even get me started about plastic bags . . . my ear rings so loud that I can't hear anything else.

But, I try not to think about it. I read on my tablet. I use cloth, reusable bags at stores. I try to think of the positive: I'm being more environmentally friendly.

Definitely try to take it one day at a time. Sometimes just take it an hour at a time.

 

I know how you feel. In my experience, it helps to have a therapist who has tinnitus. They're more understanding and they know what's it like. If you can find a therapist like that, it could help. We're always here for you.

 

My hearing therapist has tinnitus herself. Think she said she has had it for 7 years, on one ear.....she described hers as the sound of a fridge. It was very nice to talk in person with someone who has T and could fully understand my concerns.

And thanks again, it great that one can always come here to get support.

 

It's great you found a hearing therapist who also has tinnitus! I agree, doctors/medical professionals with tinnitus are usually much more understanding regarding tinnitus and offer helpful advice.

 

According to many posts on this forum, this is what happens when one doesn't adequately protect one's ears. My advice is to ensure that you are not exposed to even moderate noise. In a couple of months you ought to see an improvement. Otherwise, there is a risk that it will just continue getting worse.

 

Moderate noise? Protecting against moderate, safe volumes of noise is likely to increase hyperacusis. Turning pages in a magazine is not going to damage her ears.

 

It won't. It is also not "moderate noise".

She is attending places where she has to ask people to turn down the music. She is getting worse. I am not certain that there is a connection, but there Might be a connection.

 

True, but even quiet noises can seem loud with hyperacusis. Sometimes with hyperacusis you can think people are talking too loud, when really they are not talking at a level that could damage your hearing.

 

Read the posts on this forum. You will see that many people get permanent and temporary spikes as a result of noises that clearly can't damage one's hearing. Our ears are more vulnerable now- they can be hurt by noises that are not loud enough to damage hearing, but are loud enough to cause a spike in T or H.

 

And an even greater number of people with hearing damage and tinnitus do not get spikes from safe levels of noise. They just don't post here to announce every time they hear a door close or plates clink together yet their tinnitus and hyperacusis stayed the same. It makes me wonder if anxiety is a contributing factor.

There are members on this forum who have overcome hyperacusis. I wonder if they wore earplugs/earmuffs for everyday noises.

 

A loud party (and a music festival she plans to go to) are NOT everyday noises.
I said the fact that she is getting worse Might be related to the fact that she is not protecting her ears. This is consistent with the fact that some people being able to handle moderate noises with no problems. The fact that she is getting worse points to a lower chance that she is part of that group, but she might definitely be in that group.

https://www.livescience.com/3093-smoking-myths-examined.html
"Surprisingly, fewer than 10 percent of lifelong smokers will get lung cancer. Fewer yet will contract the long list of other cancers, such as throat or mouth cancers. In the game of risk, you're more likely to have a condom break than to get cancer from smoking."

Using your logic, since a large fraction of smokers don't get any health problems, it is ok to smoke. I believe that logic is wrong.

 

I missed where she said she had been to a loud party, and she did not mention the festival in her post. Yes, she should use ear protect against very loud noises but your caution was against moderate sounds.

Honestly, what she should do is ask her hearing therapist. As she said, they have seven years of experience and can advise her on when to use hearing protection.

@TheDanishGirl I think you've had a rough, anxious-filled day and that can most definetly impact tinnitus. I also think you've recently had better days and you've posted some very uplifting and positive thoughts that have given me comfort. I loved your post on how we never truly hear silence, even without tinnitus. I kept forgetting to comment on it! I hope you get a great rest tonight, and when you wake tomorrow, try to take it one day at a time.

 

I was talking about music played at parties (at a volume that can't cause hearing damage to someone with healthy ears, which also happens to be the volume that might cause a spike).

Those people know nothing about tinnitus. They will just repeat the well known facts about the volume that can damage hearing. We happen to know that volumes below the level that can damage hearing are unsafe for many of us.

 

Well yes, but I do not consider party music to be moderate. Of course it probably depends on the party! I've been to anniversary parties with very soft music and fraternity parties with music blaring so loud you could hear it down the street.

So people with tinnitus know nothing about tinnitus? Her hearing therapist has had tinnitus for seven years. I am pretty sure she knows about tinnitus.

 

I must have missed the information above. Still, unless someone interacts with many T sufferers or reads the posts on T forums, one has no way of knowing about what sounds are too loud for people like us.

 

But this forum isn't exactly a good representative sample of the large number of people worldwide living with tinnitus. I'm sure having personally dealt with the condition every day for many years, learning about it from an academic perspective to get her degree, and interacting and treating patients who have it makes her well qualified. People like us? She is people like us, only I'm guessing without all the anxiety.

 

Feeling as depressed as ever today. The feeling that im about to die is strong today....i cant get my mind off.

Just feel absolutely awful. Want the pain to stop.

 

Hugs again, @TheDanishGirl. Yesterday you mentioned reading about people who were suicudal. Even without tinnitus, I think that would upset anyone with anxiety or depression.

This may sound crazy, but I have noticed a very direct link between my mood/depression and hormones. Being aware of that has really helped me when I hit those lows.

Does your hearing therapist have a colleague you can talk to?

 

My H kicked in about 1 or 2 months after onset...better now, don't indulge it x

 

@TheDanishGirl Is there anything you can do to take your mind off this ?

I too know it's tough dealing with Hyperacusis and what your anxiety levels can get like but you have to try and do something ?
Can you get to a quiet park wearing ear protection and just try to get yourself into a nature environment ? Once there try not wearing plugs for 10 minutes, then put them back in.

Hyperacusis is frightening at times but you must fight it. I find it desperately hard to get going in the morning but find if I can attempt to do something like a short walk then it can help. My ears feel rotten at times but I still try to push on and find ways to get on with life.

You must stop thinking about being 'doomed'. It will just make your anxiety levels worse and put you in an even worse place mentally.

 

Im gonna talk with my contact person from the psych ward later. She will visit me in my home.

Im gonna take a long bath, and go for a walk. Hopefully i will feel a little better. I remind myself that i have gone trough even worse days then this, so i can get trough this one to.

Gotta take one day at a time....one day at a time....

 

When you are feeling down and having a bad day, it's mostly because of the stress/anxiety/depression I would say. When these 3 things are eliminated, you'll notice that you feel a lot better and you approach your T a lot better too. I have for the last 30 days lived like a normal guy again, I rarely hear my T if it's even there. But now the last 2 days I've been down again and I notice its mostly because of these 3 elements. Sure the T brings them forward...but if u can control them u can control your T.

 

But T and especially my H is the absolute reason for my depression, anxiety and stress. Im hoping it will be better in time. Right now i just feel like isolating myself mainly because of the H and it just feeds my depression