Do You Think That My (Noise Induced) Tinnitus Will Go Away?

[realdougconnolly]

Hello folks,

My name is Doug and have been dealing with noise induced tinnitus for a little less than five months now. The initial circumstances that led to me developing tinnitus were a visit to a loud, high, decibel hip hop concert, without being adequately informed about the need to wear ear protection at such events. In the time that has elapsed since the concert, many positive changes have occurred in my tinnitus.

These factors are:

• My sound induced ear pain has disappeared after the first two months of the onset of my symptoms.
• The volume of my tinnitus has declined (Jet engine/Train whistle) 90-95% and I can just feel a final %10-5 (Annoying Loud Whisper) or so is hanging on.
• I am now at the stage where I can only hear my tinnitus in dead silent rooms in my house. (got there after about 2-4 weeks)
• I only hear my tinnitus in residential buildings, dorms, or hotels (places where you sleep), and never in offices, libraries, hospital, commercial, industrial, etc
• I am now at the stage where I can NEVER hear my tinnitus outside (I live a rural-like, suburban area that is very quiet)
• I am at the stage where I no longer fear walking into a bathroom without activating a shower fan (it is still unpleasant though)
• I generally experience a fall off in volume about every 1.5-2 weeks of about 5-10%
• I have been getting GOOD 7-9 hour sleeps each night for that last three months or so.
• I have been able to sleep SOME nights (not enjoyably or pleasantly) without the use of a white noise machine.
• I have been able to read 2 books cover to cover, and complete 4 word searches (again, not enjoyably or pleasantly) without using any white noise
• During the concert, I sat at the back, and left halfway through it
• During the concert, I left before any amount of hyperacusis could set in
• I am in very good health in all other areas of my life
• I am taking all my anti anxiety medications as prescribed by my physician(s)
• My ENT, audiologist, and a Physicians Assistant who worked closely with them all had experience dealing with noise induced T, and each of them gave me an optimistic prognosis (the three of them each expected it would fade out within a year)
• The hearing test that my audiologist gave me showed that I sustained ZERO permanent hearing damage
• Following my acoustic trauma, I immediately discontinued all earbud and headphone use.
• Back when I did use earbuds, I always kept the volume at fifty percent or lower (usually it was at around thirty or forty.
• I do not have a job (military personnel, construction, landscaping, musician) that requires me to be in the proximity of future loud noises. I also never plan on getting one for that matter.
• I have heard about some tinnitus sufferers healing up and then relapsing (it was another concert, another rave, another loud bar with a band). I can promise you that if/ when my first acoustic trauma resolves, I will NEVER have a second.

The factors that I am worried about are:

• This last 10-5% or so has hung on QUITE STUBBORNLY.
• My tinnitus switches ears, it is never in the same ear at the same time. (like a DJ, or a Dentist)
• In addition to tinnitus, I have an Autism spectrum diagnosis, Depression, Anxiety, and ADHD, all of which were pre-existing prior to the onset of my tinnitus. This means that recovering from tinnitus would be that much more challenging, (supposedly you are supposed to keep calm)
• I have a perfectionist nature about myself (due to my anxiety) and probably would not consider myself "healed" if this last little bit of tinnitus hung on forever
• I happen to love silence quite a bit (Ha ha, don't we all) and was initially considering building a career around it (Writer, Teacher, Librarian)
• If my tinnitus does not fade, then I'm not sure I have it in me (given the previously stated issues) to habituate
• I have been hospitalized before due to suicidal ideation rooting from the onset of my tinnitus symptoms

Neutral information:

• As the tinnitus has gotten quieter, it is harder to notice which ear it is coming out of. Sometimes I must put my index finger up to the side of my ear (not in it!) in order to figure it out.
• I am not taking any supplements; Ginkgo, Zinc, B12 (although I would be open to suggestions)
• I have been on many different medications throughout the course of my life (as per my other issues) and I have never experienced any tinnitus symptoms before until now.
• I am late 21 early 22 years old. This is a double edged sword, If my tinnitus goes away, it could be because I have the immunity of a young person. If it does not, this means I have many more tinnitus filled years ahead of me (oh groan)
• I have taken up all the following things, and was even doing some of them prior to the onset of my tinnitus : Yoga, Meditation, stretching, and long distance running (I am training for a half marathon)
• I am looking into acupuncture, and my research has lead me to a professional whom has had some success with tinnitus patients before.
• I know many people on this forum have it infinatly worse than me. Some people here have to deal with Tinnitus, Hyperacusis, Visual Snow, and bilateral hearing loss. Some have had to deal with these symptoms for decades or more. Even if I never recover fully, I understand that some people in the world would probably eat sh#t just to be me. However, this also goes to show that even the littlest amount of tinnitus is enough to destroy me psychologically.
• During the period of my life in which I have experienced my symptoms, I have not used any alcohol, caffeine, nicotine, or street drugs. That being said, I never used any of those things beforehand, and thus it might not make a difference.

My spikes:
I experience tinnitus spikes approximately once every 24-48 hours. My average spike lasts 2-3 seconds and my longest lasted about 2-3 minutes. My spikes are brought on by LITERALLY nothing at all. I know some people get their spikes by eating salty food or too much sweets. I have eaten holiday desserts at family reunions without getting jolted. Being in loud places doesn't do it for me either (ski lodge, shopping mall, GIANT university lecture hall, fairly noisy restaurant).
On the positive side, I can eat and travel and not get spikes. On the negative side, I also have no control over my spikes. If the spikes never go away, it is fine with me (remember, for me, that's 2-3 seconds on average).

What I will consider "recovered":
Last but not least, I must define what I will consider recovered. As we all know, dead silent ears 100% of the time is the kind of recovery that we all hope for (It's also the kind of recovery that some tinnitus sufferers, like my Uncle and my brother have gotten). I would consider myself lucky (as would we all) if I had a 99% recovery instead. If I get a hiss or a whine in my ears one a day a week or once a month, I would consider that recovered. Like I said earlier, if my tinnitus goes away, but my (2-3 second) spikes remain, I would also consider that recovered.

So then, what do you folks think? You, the tinnitus community are pretty much the experts on this subject. Based on past cases, similar to mine do you think I'll recover (not just habituate) from my noise induced tinnitus?

 

[MRItechssuck]

Given your age, I think there is a good chance it will go away within 2 years, just protect your hearing... remember any place you have to raise your voice to converse to someone next to you... is probably too loud.

Good Luck.

 

[Peter61]

Hi Doug,
The essential trick to deal with T is acceptance. You HAVE to accept that the state of your hearing has changed forever. It's about loss. You lose something and it'll never come back. Compare it to a soldier who returns from the battlefield having lost an arm or a leg. It's the same thing. That may sound dramatic, but actually once you've decided to accept that loss and accept your new situation, you can let it go and move on with your life. They say T is a life changing experience, and that's true. Make the best of your new situation, keep a positive state of mind, cherish your blessings, appreciate what you still got left. But again, accept your loss. Face it, let go and move on with your life. That's the only way to go if you want to survive. And it's possible. If I can do it, you can too.

 

[Michael Leigh]

Hi Doug,
The essential trick to deal with T is acceptance. You HAVE to accept that the state of your hearing has changed forever. It's about loss. You lose something and it'll never come back. Compare it to a soldier who returns from the battlefield having lost an arm or a leg. It's the same thing. That may sound dramatic, but actually once you've decided to accept that loss and accept your new situation, you can let it go and move on with your life. They say T is a life changing experience, and that's true. Make the best of your new situation, keep a positive state of mind, cherish your blessings, appreciate what you still got left. But again, accept your loss. Face it, let go and move on with your life. That's the only way to go if you want to survive. And it's possible. If I can do it, you can too.

HI @Peter61

You have given a first class explanation of how to cope and move on with noise induced tinnitus. It is all about acceptance and if necessary, seek professional help in order to achieve that. Unless a person accepts tinnitus they will never find peace.

Take care
Michael

 

[Bill Bauer]

Not many people report being over that "can hear it only in quiet rooms" stage. Then again, you got there within weeks (as opposed to months or years that most take to get there), and you are young, so hopefully you will get to hear silence again.

In any case, as it fades, it will get easier to habituate to it, so no matter what happens, in a year you probably won't be bothered by it.

 

[DanielJ]

Agree with Bill. I wouldn't expect it to go away fully, that seems very rare indeed.

Be thankful that you can only hear it in a deadly silent room while looking for it, that's what most people want to get to. Once the habituation sets in you will stop noticing it altogether and it will stop bothering you.

ENTs seem to suggest Tinnitus magically going away after an arbitrary amount of time to keep people happy, in truth its mostly lies.

 

[Peter61]

HI @Peter61

You have given a first class explanation of how to cope and move on with noise induced tinnitus. It is all about acceptance and if necessary, seek professional help in order to achieve that. Unless a person accepts tinnitus they will never find peace.

Take care
Michael

Thanx Michael. We're all in the same boat. Glad to give some advice to someone who struggles with T. If it can only make a tiny little difference, then it's worthwhile. After I got T, in 2012, I also needed advice from others. It could really mean a lot to me.

 

[Michael Leigh]

Thanx Michael. We're all in the same boat. Glad to give some advice to someone who struggles with T. If it can only make a tiny little difference, then it's worthwhile. After I got T, in 2012, I also needed advice from others. It could really mean a lot to me.

Your advice was spot on @Peter61 and it's good to see people reaching out and helping others. I was helped in the same way.

 

[realdougconnolly]

Hi folks,

I wrote a letter to myself regarding my quiet, yet stubbornly persistent tinnitus symptoms. I have sent this one to both of my parents. I will be sending it to my psychiatrist, psychologist, and possibly an ENT whom I have had recommended to me as well. I understand my case of tinnitus has gone from severe to mild in about five and a half months, and thus it has a chance of fading away entirely. When I have skimmed the success stories, I occasionally see people mentioning that their tinnitus just went away one day. I think checking the volume of it LESS often would be helpful. If anyone wants to say anything about this subject then they can. I promise that if my tinnitus goes away OR if I habituate, (OR if I just mask it and then move on with my life) then I will return to the forum and write a success story.

Anyway, here is the letter, you can read it if you'd like...

Dear Douglas,

Stop giving a fuck about it, stop paying any mind to it, then, sometime in the next 2-3 months, you will notice that it is gone. Focus on keeping happy rather than keeping track of the tinnitus or doing naked exposure therapy. Do what makes you happy and keeps your mind off it. Eventually, you will notice that it is gone. This is the only plan that will work. 85+% of symptoms are gone, the rest depends on You. Stop dreading each day and start enjoying it. It will go away, it will just happen in a moment where you don't notice it. This is what the 7-8 months thing you photographed said. This is why (my brother) Gavin healed (he had the drums to keep his mind off it). Start paying attention to stories and the conversations around you (like the Norwegian girl) and stop withdrawing from people in order to keep track of the tinnitus. The volume of your tinnitus has actually gone up in the last 24-48 hours because you have been checking on it so much. Remember the lady in New York, her's lasted a mere 1.5 months because she was so busy with her theatre tour. Remember the guy who left the music industry in the 1980s and came back as a studio player in 2005 (Sadly-I don't know why it went away). Distract yourself by doing what you would do if you did not have tinnitus. Use your own OCD to your advantage to get obsessed with something. I promise it will only be 2-3 more months. Make it something you are passionate about. This is the only plan that will work. Most importantly, forgive yourself so you will not keep dwelling on the past. Otherwise, you will have this forever! You know all of this information is true, but you were too scared to admit it. You have tried the old strategy and it did not work! It was too regimented MEASURING VOLUMES EVERY DAY, READING WITHOUT WHITE NOISE, WHILE ALSO NOT ENJOYING IT, REGIMENTED AND STRUCTURED MEDITATION SCHEDULE ETC. Discuss this with Mom and Dad when they are both home tonight. At first it was about stopping your anxiety and keeping calm. Now, it is about stopping your sadness and keeping happy. The drugs will work on the anxiety, getting rid of the sadness will be the final cure. I CANNOT IMAGINE THIS NEW PLAN NOT WORKING BY EARLY JUNE!

 

[Tybs]

Use your own OCD to your advantage to get obsessed with something.

Definitely recommend this part. I easily get obsessed with stuff as well, just like what happened when I got tinnitus. Luckily I realised quite soon that my obsessive nature works with pretty much anything I'm interested in. Once I started studying other topics or got engaged in personal projects again, I lost track of my tinnitus for hours in a row.

Make use of that ability, it will do you much good.

 

[Luman]

I can say, with some assurance, that not caring about mild to moderate tinnitus isn't something unique to any individual, virtually all of us have the ability to do this, and most will , sooner or later. As this begins to happen, the brain calms down, and focuses on other things. I have intermittent, or fluctuating, tinnitus, and there's very little noticeable difference, when the tinnitus is active, and when it's not. Until it happened to me, I doubted that it ever would, and this is a common reaction by newcomers to tinnitus. There are methods of speeding up the habituation process, which are not costly or impossible to learn, as well.

 

[LilSass]

Hi @Luman ! I also have intermittent t. What have you done to speed up the habituation process? I'm six months in and there has been no real change (one day loud - can be heard over tv), one day quieter and one day non-existent unless I really focus). Nothing seems to alter it.
Thanks for your insight!

 

[Angela Riffe]

@realdougconnolly

How are you? How is your tinnitus? How is your response to your tinnitus? Hope things are going well for you.