Has Anyone Had CBT or TRT?

[Cor]

I am currently 2+ years into, what I perceive as, significant tinnitus, but im no longer seriously bothered by it. It's just a mild annoyance, and oftentimes I dont even notice it. This is without TRT. This is why im skeptical of TRT. I think any treatment that requires 1-2 years to work can be tainted by people simply adapting on their own. I did have CBT in the first 6 months, as I was a complete emotional wreck due to the tinnitus. That period is long over.

 

[Michael Leigh]

That will be my goal just having started with cbt. If that goal can be reached, I would be a happy man..

You have the right approach and are not looking for miracles. Life is problematic and very few people go through it without having problems. Tinnitus is just one of many medical conditions that at this time there is no cure; but with a positive attitude, time and patience a lot can be achieved.

 

[Michael Leigh]

TRT. I think any treatment that requires 1-2 years to work can be tainted by people simply adapting on their own.

With all due respect, you have made the classic mistake of thinking everyone else is experiencing the type of tinnitus that you have: "It's just a mild annoyance, and oftentimes I dont even notice it" Tinnitus comes in many forms and intensities and no two people experience is the same:

It can be: mild, moderate, severe or extremely severe. Believe me, if you ever have tinnitus to the extreme levels that I've had or others on this forum then you would think differently. Thankfully, yours isn't that intrusive and hope that it remains that way for you. Please do not underestimate this condition, it can be seriously debilitating and ruin peoples lives when it is loud and very intrusive.
Michael

 

[Cor]

With all due respect, you have made the classic mistake of assuming my T is any better or worse than you.

I've been there done that. You name the thing, I probably tried it, including experimental stuff that had the doctor stick a huge needle in my spine. My T brought me to psychologists, psychiatrists, had me suicidal (hence the psychiatrist). My T was certainly severe I can be in my car driving on the highway, and it is louder than that. Then try that in a quiet room.

But over time, I started to accept it, CBT helped a little, and now im to the point where when im distracted, it doesnt bother me. Unless of course, I focus on it. I think the word is, habituated. My point is, I dont think you can really differentiate the cause of habituation when a treatment takes 2 years. It's great when people habituate with TRT, but maybe they would have habituated without it?

 

[Michael Leigh]

@Cor lol-lol-lol Oh dear. Temper, temper. Seems I've struck a sensitive chord...lol

 

[gotyoubynuts]

It's great when people habituate with TRT, but maybe they would have habituated without it?

Exactly... @Michael Leigh has no way of knowing if TRT made a difference or not.......

 

[Michael Leigh]

has no way of knowing if TRT made a difference or not.......

Indeed, @gotyoubynuts. I can only speak from personal experience and say that TRT has helped me. However, that doesn't mean one shouldn't try it. Furthermore, there has been a lot of research into treating people with TRT and CBT and the success rates have been good. These treatments will not cure tinnitus but can help a person to cope better with the condition. Or would you rather someone in distress with their tinnitus, sign-up to your foolish idea of having a group suicide.hmm

 

[NotA2ndTime]

I tried CBT. Nice lady psychologist. I enjoyed talking with her. She said she thought I had a good grasp of CBT, and that I applied it well. I, however, found zero benefit from it in terms of it helping reduce my T. Like anything negative in life, it is not helpful to dwell on it. That is about the only lesson I can see some people benefiting from with CBT. If you constantly carry on a conversation in your head that essentially starts with "Woe is me" then woe will indeed be you. That sums ups CBT in my estimation. Hardly worth paying anyone for that info in my opinion.

 

[Tania2103]

As a social worker I fully agree that CBT can be very helpful for changing mood and outlook. But its the lack of sleep that kills me. It is just so loud I cannot sleep well and my brain cannot seem to habituate to it (it is over two years now) As with everything, it will help some and not others

 

[attheedgeofscience]

@Michael Leigh in this thread on TRT you have 13 posts alone...

...and you have used the word TRT in no fewer than 117 posts alone at this point:

Do you have a "hidden agenda"?

 

[Michael Leigh]

@attheedgeofscience lol you have made me smile. There is no hidden agenda, I guess I'll have to pull out the TRT plug! oops! Now that's 118 times I've mentioned TRT....And there I go again, seems I can't stop myself

 

[attheedgeofscience]

@attheedgeofscience lol you have made me smile. There is no hidden agenda, I guess I'll have to pull out the TRT plug! oops! Now that's 118 times I've mentioned TRT....And there I go again, seems I can't stop myself

No worries - I actually thought you wrote a fairly good account of a TRT-session the other day:

www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/what-happens-in-trt-sessions.18195

One that came in close proximity to the following news article (not that I am implying any link between the two):

www.independent.ie/life/health-wellbeing/tinnitus-is-no-longer-my-enemy-35131083.html

For those interested in TRT, there is a physician (researcher) affiliated with the largest hospital in Germany who can perhaps be of value:

https://tinnituszentrum.charite.de/en

 

[Michael Leigh]

@attheedgeofscience Thank you for your kind comments about my post they are much appreciated. Tinnitus talk needs more people like you that know how to have a bit of fun, because your post had me laughing and that's good. Tinnitus is such a serious condition when it is severe and mine is at times. For this reason I try and help others as I was once helped when I first got this condition many years ago and didn't know what to do.

The treatment I keep mentioning, is not a silver bullet nor is it a miracle cure. However, it can give a person hope for a better future when all one sees is confusion and despair.
Michael

PS: I know you didn't mean anything: All my posts and articles that I've written on tinnitus in this forum are my own words nothing has been copied from anywhere else.

 

[Zug]

I may do TRT in the future. I'm waiting to see if WC will pay for it. Like @Marlino I'm really skeptical and doubt it will help much for my loud unmaskable tinnitus, but I'm willing to give it a shot.

I do have a lot of resentment and anger with how I got tinnitus and the whole situation around that, so maybe some sort of therapy would help me let go of that.


@glynis How are you doing?
I'm curious, have you ever looked into Orthokine? It seems like it has the potential to help with Meniere's although it probabably wouldn't completely get rid of the ringing.

I was really skeptical about CBT. Being desperate helps you with that. By looking into the research, it looked like it would actually give me a shot at improving my situation, so I figured I might as well go ahead. I was afraid it was some kind of psychological mumbo jumbo. Maybe I would feel better on my own, who the hell knows? I don't regret my decision and feel it helped me. But I didn't believe in it at first.