Going Insane

[Going insane]

I had sinus lavage surgery 2 weeks ago. Was given antibiotics and pain medication. 1 week after surgery pressure started building in ears and ringing along with some pain and not able to clear the eustachain tubes. Dr. Put me on Dexamethasone for inflammation and Alkalol to help with mucus and keep the nasal passages moist. Dr. says it will get better. It's getting worse. They told me before the surgery it was a 2 to 3 day recovery. Not working out that way.

 

[billie48]

I am not doctor, but if your problem is caused by ETD, then when the tube is unblocked, perhaps your T will go back to normal or fade. Perhaps others can give your advise on that. While T is causing us lots of mental suffering, try to stay calm and positive that your condition has a medical cause and so hopefully when the cause is fixed, then the ringing will subside. Stress and anxiety are bad for T, so it is best to not get into too much stress.

 

[Going insane]

Thanks billie48, The hardest part is the night time. I've probably only slept 8 hours all week. And lost 15 lbs. I don't know how to keep calm or control my stress or anxiety. Most say a blocked eustachain tube or tubes can take months and for some years.

 

[billie48]

I know what you mean by the lack of sleep. Most new sufferers go through this phase of suffering causing insomnia and often weight loss. I lost easily 20lbs over that span of time. So there are many of us on TT who understand what you are going through.

You may have Eustachian Tube Disfunction or ETD when the tube is blocked or swollen due to inflammation. The symptoms are ear pain, ear fullness or pressure, dull hearing, etc. It usually will improve after the tube is back to normal after some time. So don't worry. Here is a good site to read up on it to see if your symptoms fit the description of ETD:

http://patient.info/health/eustachian-tube-dysfunction

For night time, you may want to use bed time masking, such as using a sound machine or sound pillow. If you have PC speakers, you may want to try these masking options:

TT's own excellent masking sounds:
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/audioplayer/

If you need more masking sounds, here is free 'aire freshener':
http://www.peterhirschberg.com/mysoftware.html

Rain sounds are soothing indeed. You can mix your own rain ounds with this rain generator:
http://mynoise.net/NoiseMachines/rainNoiseGenerator.php

Search youtube with 'masking sounds' and you will also get lots of different nature sounds, such as rain, waves, waterfalls, running brooks, insect sounds, even shower & faucet etc.

For sleep problem, not sure if you are taking any meds. If you haven't and if you don't want the doctor's prescribed meds, then perhaps you can try some natural supplements for sleep, such as melatonin, chamomile tea, hops, valerian tablets etc.

 

[Going insane]

@billie48 Thank you. I saw theses links that you posted on my thread, on someone else's thread yesterday and I downloaded the mynoise app for on my Ipad and let it play all night. Took a melatonin pill and slept most of the night. So I'm very grateful that you posted these links. I hope your right about the ETD. It's been about 10 days of this ringing. I know this is nothing compared to those who have spent months and years like this. I couldn't imagine. I don't know how they or you do it. You've Been very helpful and encouraging. I appreciate it very much. Thank you!