Do Ears Heal?

[dpdx]

I feel like ears do not heal, just like eyes, or the brain. Once you damage them that is it..game over!! I understand a broken bone, bruise, cut, surgery of some sort, etc etc..but I feel like once you mess up the Ears you are pretty much screwed.

I think the severity of tinnitus depends on the extent of damage caused. I have loud intrusive tinnitus with mild hearing loss (obtained by caloric test/vemp) and severe hyperacusis on right ear which I didn't have before (not sure how I got this maybe TMJ or vemp) since late January and saw 0 improvement. What I am trying to say is once your ears are damaged, they are damaged permanently and can easily get worse.. I don't feel like the ears heal, some people on this forum had Hyperacusis for a year or two and loud/intrusive tinnitus as well, if ears did heal then that would not be the case, their tinnitus and hyperacusis would have reduced.

What are your thoughts?

 

[Nice]

I think it's an individual experience. I hope they do heal. Try reading some of the success stories. They gave me some hope.

 

[dpdx]

I think it's an individual experience. I hope they do heal. Try reading some of the success stories. They gave me some hope.

I kind of lost all my hope by now. In 2 weeks its July and its almost Sep ( 1 year anniversary for me and still suffering more then ever).

 

[Nice]

This is some depressing stuff but reaching out and getting help is a positive move. I start therapy next week to help me cope with my depression .

 

[dpdx]

This is some depressing stuff but reaching out and getting help is a positive move. I start therapy next week to help me cope with my depression .

I hope you feel better.

 

[Contrast]

i read some paper somewhere about natural recovery of damaged hair cells and synapses but can't find it.
nothing super big but it's evident in me since my hearing is no longer as shit as it was 6 months ago.

 

[dpdx]

i read some paper somewhere about natural recovery of damaged hair cells and synapses but can't find it.
nothing super big but it's evident in me since my hearing is no longer as shit as it was 6 months ago.

I read an article that hearing loss is linked to dementia.
I am super skeptical about ears healing. I would have healed already hahaha

 

[Jiri]

I was told by an ENT that they do have some capability of recovery till one year after injury.

 

[Michael Leigh]

I feel like ears do not heal, just like eyes, or the brain. Once you damage them that is it..game over!!

I don't feel like the ears heal, some people on this forum had Hyperacusis for a year or two and loud/intrusive tinnitus as well, if ears did heal then that would not be the case, their tinnitus and hyperacusis would have reduced.

Tinnitus comes in many forms and intensities and no two people experience it the same. It all depends what you mean by heal? I prefer to use the term habituate to tinnitus. My tinnitus fluctuates from: complete silence, mild, moderate, severe and very severe. It only becomes a problem when it is severe for more that a couple of days then usually, I take clonazepam for one to two days which will normally reduce the tinnitus to a more manageable level. Many people do habituate to tinnitus and are able to carry on with their life doing everything that they want to. Hyperacusis can be healed and many people notice a reduction in noise sensitivity over time. I once had very severe hyperacusis and it has been completely healed for 20 years.

Some people do have difficulty habituating to tinnitus and if hyperacusis is present it can make the situation more problematic and specialist treatment may be needed. In a lot of cases people that have difficultly habituating to tinnitus, it is usually the result of a negative "mindset" or a person accepting nothing less than a complete cure.
Unfortunately, once these beliefs start to take hold, it can become very difficult to respond to treatment, because a person has convinced themselves there is no hope of recovery or improvement as you have stated in the opening lines of your post.

Michael

 

[Bill Bauer]

Some people do have difficulty habituating to tinnitus and if hyperacusis is present it can make the situation more problematic and specialist treatment may be needed. In a lot of cases people that have difficultly habituating to tinnitus, it is usually the result of a negative "mindset" or a person accepting nothing less than a complete cure.

So can't we cure most chronic medical conditions this way? Chronic pain, schizophrenia, hormone imbalance, fungus nail infection, etc.: Get used to it. Habituate. The problem is not your condition, the problem is your nasty attitude - accept that this is your life now and move on. Cry-baby.

 

[Contrast]

So can't we cure most chronic medical conditions this way? Chronic pain, schizophrenia, hormone imbalance, fungus nail infection, etc.: Get used to it. Habituate. The problem is not your condition, the problem is your nasty attitude - accept that this is your life now and move on. Cry-baby.

are you insulting his view or do you actually believe this?

 

[Bill Bauer]

are you insulting his view or do you actually believe this?

I was being sarcastic.

 

[GregCA]

I read an article that hearing loss is linked to dementia.

What did you understand from that article?
I think I read something about that, but the explanation was the trigger for fewer social interactions, which then brought a higher risk of dementia. It wasn't hearing loss on its own from a biological standpoint, IIRC.

 

[Bill Bauer]

the trigger for fewer social interactions, which then brought a higher risk of dementia

Of course unhealthy people (and people with unhealthy habits)(e.g., drug addicts, homeless, people already suffering from dementia, etc.) being both more likely to get a dementia diagnosis and less likely to have social interactions makes as much sense as (if not a lot more sense than) the explanation above.

 

[Michael Leigh]

are you insulting his view or do you actually believe this?

Thank you for your intervention @Contrast and your clarification @Bill Bauer Please note the following. I regard sarcasm as the lowest form of wit and the highest form of vulgarity. Therefore, I will not reply to your quote. If you attempt to use this form of communication with me in future, when I am addressing a serious issue about tinnitus then I will not answer you at all. I have had tinnitus for many years. According to my consultant who is an Audiovestibular physician, and my Hearing Therapist, I have a rare form of tinnitus which I have described above. I have helped and counselled a lot of people with tinnitus. I also know it is a condition that comes in many forms and intensities. Some people have real difficulty coping with it and this may not always be down to having a negative mindset. However, negative thinking and the belief that no form of treatment will help or aid a person to have a better quality of life with tinnitus, can make it become a seriously debilitating condition. It is for this reason positive thinking is so vitally important in managing tinnitus. Where necessary, a person should seek help with a Hearing Therapist or Audiologist that is trained in tinnitus and hyperacusis management.

Michael

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/is-positivity-important.23150/

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/tinnitus-and-the-negative-mindset.23705/

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/acquiring-a-positive-mindset.23969/

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/tinnitus-and-negative-counselling.26669/

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/the-complexities-of-tinnitus-and-hyperacusis.25733/

 

[Bill Bauer]

I regard sarcasm as the lowest form of wit and the highest form of vulgarity.

Too bad.

If you attempt to use this form of communication with me in future, when I am addressing a serious issue about tinnitus then I will not answer you at all.

I wasn't addressing my post necessarily to you.

negative thinking and the belief that no form of treatment will help or aid a person to have a better quality of life with tinnitus, can make it become a seriously debilitating condition.

This reasoning could be used for all of the other chronic conditions.

Now that I think of it, the poor can use this logic too. Let's just pretend that we are financially independent. Let's get used to/habituate to the poverty. Believing that having more money is the only way to not be poor is negative thinking.

 

[Alex Prime]

It depends, they respond to treatment for infection. T might be problem of the brain and the nervous system. Some religious people even think that it is sign that an evil spirit is around and YES, prayer helps me with it, although I am not sure about the demon theory. But I agree that negative thinking could be a problem because you create something like negative placebo. I was like that with insomnia seven years ago and neither melatonin, not valeriana, not even trazodone helped, so I needed to take an antipsychotic :/ Unrealistic hope is not good either, but it is best if a person is cautious, but optimistic.

 

[Jcb]

Some people have an extremely high opinion of themselves on this forum, it's actually laughable. They must get dizzy on that old high horse of theirs....... it's almost like they have invented an online persona for themselves, it's sad really.

 

[BobDigi]

My personal view is that if things persist past a few months, things aren't likely to improve. Depressing I know.
But after some basic research, personal experience and time on this forum, this is the conclusion I've come too.
Of course I could be wrong. Like I say, it's just my view!

 

[kelpiemsp]

What did you understand from that article?
I think I read something about that, but the explanation was the trigger for fewer social interactions, which then brought a higher risk of dementia. It wasn't hearing loss on its own from a biological standpoint, IIRC.

This is the answer you seek. The causal pathway does not suggest that tinnitus is a predictor of dementia. Only that it can produce behaviors which are known predictors of dementia. The takeaway is not to let tinnitus take over your life, or dictate how you interact with others or behave!

 

[Wolfears]

. My tinnitus fluctuates from: complete silence, mild, moderate, severe and very severe.

Has anyone offered you any theories about these wild fluctuations and could they possibly correlate with weather patterns?

 

[john paul]

I think the best form of treatment comes from within and it starts like this - If you think your tinnitus is quiet then it is quiet. If you think your Tinnitus is loud, it is loud.

 

[Wolfears]

I think the best form of treatment comes from within and it starts like this - If you think your tinnitus is quiet then it is quiet. If you think your Tinnitus is loud, it is loud.

What if you think that your tinnitus is quiet and then it gets loud..should you just ignore the reality?

 

[Tempest]

What I've understood that hearing can somewhat recover up to one year, but then again, we know so little that nobody knows.

 

[Michael Leigh]

Has anyone offered you any theories about these wild fluctuations and could they possibly correlate with weather patterns?

My Hearing Therapist and Consultant have no idea why I have such large fluctuations in my tinnitus. They have told me they haven't met patients with my type of tinnitus. It changed in 2008 to this, which I suspect was due to a 2nd noise trauma. I have learnt to live with it. As I type my tinnitus is completely silent. I mean there is absolutely "no noise at all". I could wake up tomorrow and it will be so loud it's impossible to habituate at that level. When it is mild or moderate I can carry on with my daily affairs without any problems. When it is severe or develops into extremely severe, I need to take my clonazepam which usually calms it down over a few hours or a couple of days.

Weather, alcohol and food has no effect on the tinnitus. It is completely random in how it reacts. I am thankful for there was a time my tinnitus was unbearable every day. I have had tinnitus 22 years but in 2008 it changed. You might find my story interesting from 2008 to present.: https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/my-experience-with-tinnitus.12076/

All the best
Michael

 

[Bill Bauer]

It changed in 2008 to this

What was your tinnitus like before the change, Michael?

 

[Wolfears]

My Hearing Therapist and Consultant have no idea why I have such large fluctuations in my tinnitus. They have told me they haven't met patients with my type of tinnitus. It changed in 2008 to this, which I suspect was due to a 2nd noise trauma. I have learnt to live with it. As I type my tinnitus is completely silent. I mean there is absolutely "no noise at all". I could wake up tomorrow and it will be so loud it's impossible to habituate at that level. When it is mild or moderate I can carry on with my daily affairs without any problems. When it is severe or develops into extremely severe, I need to take my clonazepam which usually calms it down over a few hours or a couple of days.

Weather, alcohol and food has no effect on the tinnitus. It is completely random in how it reacts. I am thankful for there was a time my tinnitus was unbearable every day. I have had tinnitus 22 years but in 2008 it changed. You might find my story interesting from 2008 to present.: https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/my-experience-with-tinnitus.12076/

All the best
Michael

That is quite the story..
I find this very fascinating, because one of the main complaints of most T sufferers is the complete randomnes and unpredictability.
You basically have that, but at much more pronounced level.
I bet that the main mechanism of tinnitus acts the same in everyone, so this brings me to my next question:
Have you ever considered lending yourself to tinnitus research?
If they could figure out why you are experiencing these wild fluctuations, it could probably advance our understanding of tinnitus mechanism by about 10 years.

Looks like you had tinnitus for a long time..
I'm pretty sure that over the years you had tried very hard to figure this one out, including some "Groundhog Day" techniques, where you would basically try to re-create your day in exactly the same way, by eating the same foods, drinking the same amounts of water at exactly the same time, doing the same activities etc...
My point is, that you and individuals with similar tinnitus such as yours could possibly hold the key to tinnitus cure, because the chances of somehow figuring out these fluctuations are probably higher when they are more intense and pronounced.

 

[Michael Leigh]

What was your tinnitus like before the change, Michael?

It was so low at times I completely forgot about it. That is the danger when someone habituates to tinnitus and it becomes so low they hardly hear it. They return to using headphones if the tinnitus was originally caused by "noise trauma" or going to places where loud music is played. Concerts, clubs etc without using hearing protection or visiting such venues too often. Hearing protection is no guarantee a person is safe. Sound can be transferred to the inner ear by bone conduction.

I never returned to using headphones. One evening I was listening to music on my HI-FI. A Haydn Symphony. It wasn't the "Surprise symphony" no-94 Yes, I've heard all the jokes from people when I've told this story. I was listening to his Symphony no-104 a beautiful piece of work. I turned up the volume and everything seemed fine. The next morning my tinnitus returned with a vengeance and got louder over the following days and weeks. I am not one hundred percent sure if it was that caused it as my hyperacusis did not return and has remained silent till this day.

Michael

 

[Bill Bauer]

It was so low at times I completely forgot about it.

Has it always been low, or has it been loud initially only to fade?

 

[dm222]

I think mine fluctuates according to weather.
Around 37 degrees today and yesterday and it's bothering me today for the first time in two months.