Hi all,
I started experiencing tinnitus back in 2019 when I was 25, likely due to attending lots of concerts without hearing protection. I am still convinced it was one specific concert with three heavy metal bands (damn Slayer!) that triggered it. My ears were so bad for two days afterward, not just ringing but also muffled. A couple of months later, I noticed the persistent ringing.
At the time, I was a pretty resilient person. Although it bothered me and I was concerned, I managed to cope. I dealt with it by sleeping with earphones and playing music at a low volume. This is something I had been doing since my early teens because I am a huge music fan. Back then, I only noticed the ringing in a quiet bedroom or after long drives in a noisy car.
Fast forward to 2020. When the pandemic started, I was already dealing with anxiety from other factors. One night, I had my first really bad panic attack while trying to sleep, as my housemate was being noisy. At that point, I kind of forgot about the tinnitus because I was so focused on the noise from my housemate and worrying about my anxiety and panic attacks at night. I even went to a couple of concerts before the pandemic without hearing protection because it was not bothering me much.
For the past four to five years, I have enjoyed sleeping in silence. I eventually moved house, but unfortunately, we have noisy neighbors who constantly play music with heavy bass. I have been managing my anxiety, though I still have the occasional panic attack. I have not been the same since 2020, but I have worn hearing protection at every concert and, while aware of the ringing, it has not really bothered me.
I had a pretty good year in 2024, though I had a bad panic attack in September that left me feeling depressed most evenings. Then, in October 2024, I mentioned the ringing in my ears to a colleague. Coincidentally, that evening, I noticed a high-pitched sound in my left ear, which has persisted every day since. I developed insomnia and depression, and things got really bad in December. I became hyper-fixated on the tinnitus, constantly questioning what caused it to worsen. Was it a change of bed? A new pillow? Winter?
I went to doctors and ENTs and had hearing tests, but my hearing and pressure are normal. I started noticing occasional pressure changes and a high-pitched ringing in my left ear, which made me worried something was medically wrong. However, the doctors found nothing.
Now for some positives. I was so fixated and obsessed with the ringing that it consumed my thoughts daily. I started sleeping with a fan on 24/7, and while it masked the sound, it did not help much. Recently, I had a breakthrough. One night, feeling frustrated and unable to sleep, I turned the fan off completely and was in total silence, and it actually helped. I think I had been craving silence so much that I finally found comfort in it. Interestingly, when I wake up in the morning after sleeping in silence, I do not notice the ringing at all. When I slept with the fan, it was worse in the mornings. This feels like the first step back to habituation.
The tinnitus still bothers me sometimes, especially when I notice it competing for attention with other noises, like while watching TV or having a conversation. I have read that this could be reactive tinnitus.
I still struggle with sleep and stress, but I am confident things will improve with time, especially as the days get brighter. If anyone has tips or similar experiences, I would love to hear them. Thank you!
I started experiencing tinnitus back in 2019 when I was 25, likely due to attending lots of concerts without hearing protection. I am still convinced it was one specific concert with three heavy metal bands (damn Slayer!) that triggered it. My ears were so bad for two days afterward, not just ringing but also muffled. A couple of months later, I noticed the persistent ringing.
At the time, I was a pretty resilient person. Although it bothered me and I was concerned, I managed to cope. I dealt with it by sleeping with earphones and playing music at a low volume. This is something I had been doing since my early teens because I am a huge music fan. Back then, I only noticed the ringing in a quiet bedroom or after long drives in a noisy car.
Fast forward to 2020. When the pandemic started, I was already dealing with anxiety from other factors. One night, I had my first really bad panic attack while trying to sleep, as my housemate was being noisy. At that point, I kind of forgot about the tinnitus because I was so focused on the noise from my housemate and worrying about my anxiety and panic attacks at night. I even went to a couple of concerts before the pandemic without hearing protection because it was not bothering me much.
For the past four to five years, I have enjoyed sleeping in silence. I eventually moved house, but unfortunately, we have noisy neighbors who constantly play music with heavy bass. I have been managing my anxiety, though I still have the occasional panic attack. I have not been the same since 2020, but I have worn hearing protection at every concert and, while aware of the ringing, it has not really bothered me.
I had a pretty good year in 2024, though I had a bad panic attack in September that left me feeling depressed most evenings. Then, in October 2024, I mentioned the ringing in my ears to a colleague. Coincidentally, that evening, I noticed a high-pitched sound in my left ear, which has persisted every day since. I developed insomnia and depression, and things got really bad in December. I became hyper-fixated on the tinnitus, constantly questioning what caused it to worsen. Was it a change of bed? A new pillow? Winter?
I went to doctors and ENTs and had hearing tests, but my hearing and pressure are normal. I started noticing occasional pressure changes and a high-pitched ringing in my left ear, which made me worried something was medically wrong. However, the doctors found nothing.
Now for some positives. I was so fixated and obsessed with the ringing that it consumed my thoughts daily. I started sleeping with a fan on 24/7, and while it masked the sound, it did not help much. Recently, I had a breakthrough. One night, feeling frustrated and unable to sleep, I turned the fan off completely and was in total silence, and it actually helped. I think I had been craving silence so much that I finally found comfort in it. Interestingly, when I wake up in the morning after sleeping in silence, I do not notice the ringing at all. When I slept with the fan, it was worse in the mornings. This feels like the first step back to habituation.
The tinnitus still bothers me sometimes, especially when I notice it competing for attention with other noises, like while watching TV or having a conversation. I have read that this could be reactive tinnitus.
I still struggle with sleep and stress, but I am confident things will improve with time, especially as the days get brighter. If anyone has tips or similar experiences, I would love to hear them. Thank you!
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