Tinnitus... Worried. :(

Hi guys. Been going through a lot mentally the past couple days. Ok i was takeig a frequency test online because i was curious of how my hearing was. I AM 20 and since i was about 11 i was addicted to using my ipod cause i barely had friends and it was an escape, but anywho while takeing the test someone mentioned tinnitus. Didnt know what it was soo i googled it when i read it and see what it was about i was shock, because it seemed like i had it, and what really made me shock was that ALL this time i thought hearing ringing 24/7 was normal :/ now i regret the day i read it cause i am super consciouse of it now....later today i am going to ENT and i am scared of what they have to say and hopefully it can clear up
I am in college so all the horror stories online is freaking me out especially the suicide ones

Words of encouragement plz.
How youll dealt with it?
!Do youll believe it will one day go away?

 

My advice would be to try to NOT think about this anymore. Otherwise you risk 'teaching' your brain to fear the tinnitus sound. I know it can be very hard, but do your best. Also calm down your body if it's in high stress state. I once wrote about my thoughts on this... https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/new-and-stressed-with-tinnitus-read-this-first.3978/

 

Thank you for replying and i wil try my best. Very informative threade you had. My past experience woth anxiety disorder taught me to accept my feelings and it worked.! So i will use what i learn in therapy for anxiety for my tinnitus as well. I SHALL right down your tips

 

Hi Leelo, you have had tinnitus for a long time and you said you thought that hearing ringing was normal,well for you it was normal and it never bothered you before, that tells me that you got on with your life and never gave any thought about the ringing that you could hear. You have now zoned in on it and let it cause you distress, go back to being the person that it never bothered, you didn't even know what it was, your brain perceives the sound to be normal until you told your brain that it was not ... as for horror stories we humans love a horror story why i don't know, but we read them and then we convince ourselves that this is what is going to happen to me!! you've proven that tinnitus did not have an impact on your life in the past so don't let it have an impact on your life now just because you found out what it was. I will say to you now that you know what it is, just protect your ears from any loud noise ie concerts, live bands, DIY tools any loud sounds that can make your tinnitus worse, other than that carry on as before, you're young and have a lot of living to do, so pay more attention to living your life rather than focusing in on the stupid sounds that you hear, as you said in your post ... you just thought it was normal, i hope this helps and good luck with your exams, let us know how you get on and ZONE OUT OF THE RINGING, just like you always did in the past. Best wishes Carol.

 

Thank you carol. for your response. Yes i will make sure protect my ear amd hopefully i can go back too how i felt b4. Today i was listening to the noise and i actually began to find it calming instead of being scared about it. The mind is a serious thing and as i get older i realize life is more of perception. If perception is positive life will be. I will keep youll updated after my ent today and i hope i do goood on exams
Future accountant
God bless carol