I'm not sure, but I'd guess my tinnitus has remained pretty steady the last 4-6 weeks. Manageable, but not any easily noticeable decreases in volume.
I think what has me most troubled is that question - those who had it go away did it obviously lessen month by month until gone, or did it plane out - and get steady before one day it was gone.
Tinnitus improvement is certainly not linear. It is more like the stock market that goes in a general direction, with lots of bumps and ups and downs along the way.
My tinnitus has certainly improved, and I am now 11 mos into this. The things that have helped me include:
- Getting a good night's sleep. Easier said than done, but Melatonin helped when the tinnitus was intrusive.
- Sleeping with earplugs. I view it as some hours of acoustic rest to let the ears fully go to rest, and heal.
- Daily Omega-3, about 500 mg. This is an anti-inflammatory agent, and it is suggested in some review articles, but no definitive trial to support use. Still low risk, and may have helped.
- Green tea. Another anti-inflammatory agent.
- Aloe Vera. Yet another anti-inflammatory agent. Goes into the Green tea.
- Vigilant protection from further noises. I still mow the lawn, but now use both foam earplugs and ear muffs to make it safe. I don't go to any rock concerts, bars, or movies. I use protection for using the vacuum, walking alongside traffic on the street, using a hammer, the paper shredder, a hair dryer, getting a hair cut, and the electric shaver. Yes, this takes some work, but otherwise I was having my ears crackle, and then spiking again a day later. I do not protect for walking in the parking lot, going into a store, or driving the car.
- I did not take any steroids. I also did not take any magnesium, but cook with fresh garlic frequently at home that may have played into this as well.
This regimen developed over time. My tinnitus went from an 8/10 last October that was intrusive into my sleep, and I wondered if it would ever improve, and had some setbacks from an alarm clock too close, and the air horn from a semi truck in a parking lot. These days, my tinnitus is mostly a 1/10, and not spiking from brief noise exposures, like a truck passing by.
With the improvement I have seen, I wanted to share it with others so they can take the parts that make sense to them, and hope they will get their tinnitus better as well.
