Anxiety from Tinnitus: How Have You Managed?

[KaiT81]

Of course! It definitely was gradual for me. I remember last summer, I was getting back into Skyrim, and I could hardly focus on the game because of how much I was actively listening to and checking on my tinnitus. The stretches of time where I wouldn't think about it or "hear it" were very small at first, but they did gradually increase. It wasn't linear, though; I had many setbacks while I was habituating, which is normal (but upsetting). If you can forget about it for a minute, 5 minutes, 10, then that shows your brain is capable of tuning it out to some degree and that eventually you will be able to go even longer stretches of time. That's what I would try to tell myself when I was really anxious and caught myself monitoring it.

I cannot stress enough how much of it really is just the passage of time and kind of a waiting game. It's slow, and it's painful. As I mentioned, I had many setbacks during my first year because my tinnitus would worsen/add new ones every three months. Every time I thought it couldn't get worse, it did. But now I'm relatively okay with my tinnitus. I still have my moments - I'm listening to the orchestra of sounds and distortions as I type this. I'm a bit anxious about it. But I know in a little while, I will stop actively listening to it again and be okay. I didn't think I would ever get to this point. I have autism, OCD, and a large collection of other disorders. I thought I could never adapt to life with tinnitus, not because I think my tinnitus is worse than everyone else's, but because of how my brain functions (and/or doesn't function). Tinnitus is a sensory nightmare, and my autism and OCD have had a field day with it. But I have adapted to it with time. I still think about it sometimes and hear it periodically throughout the day, but 90% of the time, I don't. I try to take that as a win!

I hope that habituation won't be the best option in the near future. I hope we can have a cure for tinnitus, or at least a way to significantly reduce the sound levels and suffering that come with it.

But for now, hang in there and stick with it! Distract yourself, play some soothing sounds to help you sleep, and do things you enjoy despite having tinnitus. If I can do it with my extremely disordered brain, I believe you can

Thanks for your words! I am very happy that you achieved such a far-reaching habituation. I hope this will happen to me, too. Not having to think about and hear my tinnitus for 90% of the day would be a VERY big relief compared to how I feel today. I would be VERY happy with it.

What I can say, however, is that I have days (and more and more often?) when the noise doesn't bother me as much, seems less intrusive, and is more easily overshadowed by ambient noise, so I don't hear it.

 

[KaiT81]

But I know in a little while, I will stop actively listening to it again and be okay. I didn't think I would ever get to this point.

Yes, I feel the same (as you once did). And it's really hard for me not to lose faith and confidence that sooner or later I'll be able to experience this, that my brain can tune out this noise and turn to so many other, much more beautiful things.

 

[Bob3382]

Hey fellow TTers,

I'm about 3.5 months into moderate to severe reactive tinnitus and TTTS. While I can confidently say I am dealing with it better, I have a base level of anxiety that never really goes away.

I feel guilty when it saps my attention. I'll be working and it just grabs me like a hand from the heavens. When it gets louder, I fear that it is my new normal. When I get comfortable with one tone, it changes. Even before sleep it will grip at me. I am always fearful it will worsen. Anxious that I will always have this condition forever and my soon-to-be second daughter will never know her father as the outgoing and generally fun man he was prior to tinnitus, and just a carapace who is all consumed by tinnitus.

Medication likely caused mine and while the anxiety sucks, it isn't bad enough to overcome my fear of medications worsening it. My therapist I'm seeing is at her wits' end with me because I can't just CBT my way out of tinnitus unfortunately. I want to exercise but I'm so exhausted by day's end that I just need to vegetate.

I understand some are fortunate enough to not be as affected, but for those who were/are — what changes do you think made a difference, and how long did it take for your tinnitus not to rule you?

It took me almost five months to make any headway at all. About two to three weeks later, I started exercising and found that it helped me sleep better. I pushed myself harder and harder. I listened to talks and sometimes music while I exercised. It made just a little difference. When I started masking during the day, it helped me keep my mind off the constant sound. After I found a website where I could adjust masking sounds to my tinnitus frequency, I started sleeping a little better.

After about four months, I bought an elastic headband with integrated Bluetooth speakers. And if I woke up at night, I would use them to play white noise. It didn't get me back to sleep immediately, but it did help. I also had one person tell me that making yourself get outside and do the things you love helps, as it gets your mind off tinnitus. I have been pushing myself to get out of the house and ride my bike, play Pickleball, go for walks, etc.

My tinnitus has not changed, but my mind is changing.

 

[KaiT81]

I think the distraction helped me a lot. I started playing video games again about 5-6 months after my tinnitus onset. At first, I was constantly aware of my tinnitus - thinking about it and checking on it frequently as I played. As the weeks and months went by, I slowly began having periods where I wouldn't be monitoring it as often; short periods at first and then longer.

Of course! It definitely was gradual for me. I remember last summer, I was getting back into Skyrim, and I could hardly focus on the game because of how much I was actively listening to and checking on my tinnitus. The stretches of time where I wouldn't think about it or "hear it" were very small at first, but they did gradually increase. It wasn't linear, though; I had many setbacks while I was habituating, which is normal (but upsetting). If you can forget about it for a minute, 5 minutes, 10, then that shows your brain is capable of tuning it out to some degree and that eventually you will be able to go even longer stretches of time. That's what I would try to tell myself when I was really anxious and caught myself monitoring it.

I cannot stress enough how much of it really is just the passage of time and kind of a waiting game. It's slow, and it's painful. As I mentioned, I had many setbacks during my first year because my tinnitus would worsen/add new ones every three months. Every time I thought it couldn't get worse, it did. But now I'm relatively okay with my tinnitus. I still have my moments - I'm listening to the orchestra of sounds and distortions as I type this. I'm a bit anxious about it. But I know in a little while, I will stop actively listening to it again and be okay. I didn't think I would ever get to this point. I have autism, OCD, and a large collection of other disorders. I thought I could never adapt to life with tinnitus, not because I think my tinnitus is worse than everyone else's, but because of how my brain functions (and/or doesn't function). Tinnitus is a sensory nightmare, and my autism and OCD have had a field day with it. But I have adapted to it with time. I still think about it sometimes and hear it periodically throughout the day, but 90% of the time, I don't. I try to take that as a win!

Hello, @PennyCat, it's me again. Can I ask you another question?

As you said, last summer, you were still hearing your tinnitus over everything or focusing on it a lot, for example, when you were playing Skyrim. At this point, you were in for more than half a year - right?

At some point after that, you began to no longer consciously notice your tinnitus, first for short moments and then more and more often. Do you remember when that started and when you could tune out that noise 90% of the time?

You've already written something about this in one of your previous replies, but could you explain it in more detail?