What Kind of Normal Bumps Should I Expect on the Road to Habituation?

[Jogger1]

Hi Dr Nagler. Before I ask my question, I want to say Thank You for everything you have done for the tinnitus community.

I have had tinnitus now for 10 months. I'm 58 years old, and have run the gamut of medical tests and all came back normal. I'm in good physical shape except for a tad high cholesterol that I am taking a statin for.

I have done CBT and mindfulness meditation and all have helped calm my mind. Things are way better now than at the beginning. For 70-80% of the time, my tinnitus is only noticeable when I think about it. But occasionally, I get a spike and it intrudes on my conscious. Is this typical? I'm hoping that as time passes, I will achieve 95+%. Is this a reasonable expectation?
Sleep is a big factor. If I don't sleep well, there's a good chance I will have a spike. It's not a 100% correlation, but pretty close.

And finally, are there any issues with statins and tinnitus? I just started taking Rosuvastatin.

I hope you have a good Christmas.

Thank you very much.

 

[Dr. Nagler]

Hello @Jogger1 -

Thank you for the kind words and for your interesting question.

You ask about bumps along the "road to habituation" - but as I have come to see it, there is no road to habituation. In order for there to be a road to habituation, habituation has to be a place. But habituation is not a place at all; habituation is a process. Habituation is ongoing. Habituation is never-ending. When I speak about my own habituation, I would say that I have largely habituated. I never think in terms of myself as having habituated - because I haven't! When you view habituation as a process, the answer to your question becomes clear. We are human - so of course there are bumps. There are small bumps and large ones as well. And everybody's bumps are different. That's the way things are with processes involving humans. So for me, instead of being concerned about the bumps, I expect them. Indeed, I view the bumps as a sign of progress.

So in that vein, I would not think in terms of achieving 95+%. What I would be thinking about if I were you is what can you do to make a difference in the life of somebody less fortunate than you. Now that is something worth thinking about. But as far as your tinnitus goes, I wouldn't give it the time of day - because it doesn't deserve it!

As far as statins go, to the best of my knowledge they do not cause auditory damage. Along with a gazillion other drugs, they have been reported to very occasionally and temporarily aggravate tinnitus in some cases. So if you find that your tinnitus gets significantly louder on a statin, discuss it with your doctor and change drugs. If your tinnitus does not settle back down, then likely the drug was not the culprit in the first place.

Hope this helps.

Stephen M. Nagler, M.D.