Tinnitus Talk Support Forum

Tinnitus can actually fade away to a much less volume, a less distressing sound, and some have even had the amazing opportunity for it to go away.

Habituation is, although tinnitus is still there, the brain no longer perceives it as important and to focus on it which comes from your ability to not emotionally react to it. Therefore the brain moves it to background more so.

@SarahMLFlemmer - yes t can lower in volume over time. It is possible and there are a number of case studies in the Success Stories to look through.
I habituated to moderate tinnitus for 45 years, and to me it means you can get on with your daily life without it interefering much. You can still hear it but it doesn't bother you too much when you do.

It can lower in volume. When my t started two years ago, it kept getting worse in volume to the point I was suicidal. It was so loud, I spent my days having anxiety attacks and crying. As time went by, the volume decreased greatly - not because I have habituated, but because it faded.

I still have tinnitus, multitonal in both ears, but it's fluctuating and not at all the volume it used to be. During the day, I can hardly hear it. In december, I even had a whole blessed week in pure silence, even at night.

Though evenings usually are louder and the tones become more intrusive, the volume is very low compared to the torture and hell it was when it all started. It's what I keep telling myself on bad days when I'm trying to sleep and listening to this mess - it got better, it got better.

It can get better.

Tinntius can and does fade for alot of people especially when you read a lot of the success stories on here. Over time it does become manageable. But it's a snails pace the fading and habituation. It's taken me a good 9 months the second time round to find myself in a calm enough hesdspace to except it. I still don't want it in my life but it is what it is.

@SarahMLFlemmer I've always found the word habiutation very mysterious and puzzling, as it seems people disagree about what it means, especially to how much impact it has on the T's literal existance. At first I thought it meant eradication of the T, since it's technically always there, but brain is supposed to filter it. Now I believe it's more about "not caring about it", which simply doesn't work for everyone.

I don't meditate, i have tried it, but some meditation literature is complex until you try it and experience it. This is the same, habituation language is more confusing. But basically is that the brain learns to defocus and not react to it, which then your brain learns to pay attention to other sounds, and it can become less intrusive, either in sound level or intrusiveness.

@Strawberryblonde Second time around?

Yeah a mixture of headphones, chronic stress, messed up hormones and antidepressants made mine louder and more head buzzy/hissy. My old T left my perception as it was that quiet, I really miss it :( @SarahMLFlemmer

@Strawberryblonde dang, I hope ours can fade down to a tolerable level. How did you get T the first time?

I assume headphones the first time. I also have issue with my jaw/sinuses so could be that too. Unfortunately I won't get a definite answer off anyone or the same answer lol hopefully these future treatments will work as I'd happily take a reduction in sound right now

Fade totally for my case .

Right now I have very high pitch T that is killing me, but I know in the past it has completely disappeared. And other noises as well, faded some much I would have to focus in silent room to hear them.

@Gabriel @Ondine how long did it take for the intrusiveness to go away for you?

@Gabriel How did you get T the first time and how did you get T the second time around? Also, same question as @tniuf, how long did it take for yours to finally settle?

Well after my onset it was a roller coaster... Took me exactly 6 months for things to settle, then it was 6 months more for habituation, with a relapse 14 months after that went away in 1 month (distortion).

After that I finally lived again and very good, good sleep, no distortion, sometimes even silent or just the usual ringing which doesn't bother me anymore.

How my T started is the weirdest. Basically I read on interner that drop for ears were ototoxic and a symptom was tinnitus, and I look everyday for tinnitus until I had a eee. Basically created it. Then other sound added .. I created the path to tinnitus myself in my brain.

Right now was after a depression episode, this high pitch came again, I took lexomyl but too late, and it didn't work this time. Instead of going in two days it has been there for 2 month already waking me up every night and changing in sounds which I guess is good because usually when it changes then it goes away totally.

Time will tell