Some Hope

A word of hope

Hi all I am writing this because I developed tinnitus over three months ago. I woke up one morning and there it was ringing as loud as anything right in my head from both ears.

I don´t want to relive it all suffice to say that I was badly hit by this and could not believe what was happening. In my downward spiral which was at its worst at night, I was not sleeping for more than a couple of hours …and I was prescribed relaxants to help me sleep. My anxiety was so high that I was staying awake through the sleeping tablets I had been first given.

I was told about this tinnitus forum by friends who also suffer from it and when I started reading about some of the experiences that people were going through it was utterly harrowing for me. To be a new tinnitus sufferer it was horribly frightening reading that this is likely to be forever and that my life could suddenly, overnight have completely altered. I lost my confidence, and fear totally overtook my life. I am married with a young family and I single handedly destroyed my summer holidays with my kids and my wife …through my obsession with my tinnitus, my complete fear of it, especially when night time descended

I am writing this because one time when I was on this forum someone asked why is it that people who recover or control their tinnitus don´t come back more often on the forum to share their hope

Today, I am back to the person I was before my tinnitus, especially n the last couple of week …and I have stopped taking the anti stress prescription medication and just take some infusion teas at night to try and help me get a good sleep. I have always been an insomniac so sleep issues were there before the tinnitus started

I have no idea what caused my tinnitus and to be honest I have no idea why it is so reduced now. I don´t have it during the day and at night yes I hear it but it is like a distant sound and I am comfortable with it.

If someone needs a reason all I can say is that I one day I suddenly lost my fear of my tinnitus..I had a good day and I just felt pleased to have that one good day…It got back at me at night loudly and I was taking my medication, but I kept thinking I had a whole good day…..and that was it just that one day boosted my confidence and it helped me overcome my fear.. Once I realised my fear had gone I knew I had won the hardest battle. I knew that no matter how much it came back or how loudly, there was another side to it and there was going to be a day when I would not hear it. I did not anticipate or hope for that day …and If I woke up with the high pitch tone, I just gritted my teeth and said…ok not today….. and not the next day…and not now the day after…but then the fourth day was a good one so I tried to build on that getting more confident and less afraid


Today? Yep its still there it´s evening time as I write and its pinging in my ears at a very low level…but my four year old is also draped right over my shoulders and he is playing with a game that makes a horribly loud “boing” sound….And I could not be happier….

In terms of treatment and help…well Two ENT´s said nothing for it and it will hopefully just go away…(I think they said that to just make me go away!) One ENT said my hearing was down and that was the cause, I went for a second opinion and the second test said my hearing was normal… so who knows…?

I took Sercs for a month they did not help and I even bought a product called Antinitus which I never used as I was not sure I wanted to mess around with patches behind my ear that sends out tones etc etc ….

For myself I started to drink more water as I always felt that I do not drink enough and I read about potassium and magnesium are good for helping with hearing so I eat a banana everyday. I also started having shiatsu massages not for tinnitus though…it was a recommendation by a friend who is a doctor as a means to help for relaxation.

And that is it nothing else. I have no idea if tomorrow I will wake up with a horrible noise like in the early days when I first got it…but I am addressing this post to sufferers who may have just developed tinnitus…just to say that maybe there is a way out…and while mine is not a 100% gone …It has reduced to the point where I am not bothered by it

So please keep some hope and if you are dealing with tinnitus in the early days, maybe this can be a post that can help you be positive …

Finally, I hope this is not sounding glib for sufferers of tinnitus who have had it for years. And/or who have it very loud. My intention is not to ignore that ..but it is precisely because it can make our lives so miserable that I was keen to send a positive post. I also realise that a couple of weeks is not necessarily much time, that who knows this could be a lull in a horrible storm lurking round the corner for me….but as I feel good about things at the moment, it felt right and important to relay that message as I know how horribly dark it is when you first get tinnitus…and the hope of my message is that if you have just got it …there can be some comfort and that there are solutions that can help you…for me starting with addressing my own emotional state has so far been my best cure

 

You super lucky. I would kill to be in your shoes. Enjoy life.

 

Happy for you! I love to hear when someone gets better! Thanx for coming back and letting us know. Be blessed.

 

Hi @summeroftin - Thanks for posting your good news and here's wishing you a healthy and happy future!

Best wishes,
Barbara

 

Keep us updated please..

 

So happy for you, here’s hoping a continued improvement. Enjoy this gift that is life.