- Nov 3, 2017
- 12
- Tinnitus Since
- May 2017
- Cause of Tinnitus
- unknown / maybe stress / maybe head cold
Hi, i've been reading several of your posts with interest for some time now, but this is my first, apologies that it is so long!
My tinnitus started in May this year so I'm in my six month. It is often coupled with eustachian tube dysfunction symptoms. At first an ENT said it was secondary to allergic rhinitis (though i didn't really feel like i had allergies at the time) and various doctors have said my ears look 'dull', but basically several appointments with ENTs and audiologist reviews and an MRI later and they are saying probably stress (I have had a busy stressful year.)
My tinnitus is mainly a one sided roar that can get so loud it feels like my head is vibrating or become quiet enough that i can almost forget about it. For the first 3 months it drove me mad, and culminated in some bad insomnia, but then i discovered a book which suggested that while tinnitus can be initially set off by several causes the continuation of the condition is linked to an overloaded central nervous system - basically a fight flight response that has been overly active too long. The suggested answer was to focus on wellness and calming activities. I have had a degree of success with this, several times thinking i was almost cured, and then bang, back to square one. There is usually a stress trigger to such setbacks e.g. sudden trip to hospital because my unwell father fell and banged his head. Also I've had varying degrees of success with the other suggestions such as cutting out sugar, caffeine, alcohol etc. so I have more work to do on this side of things (basically when my tinnitus was most terrible i cut all this but then when it would subside i'd go back to bad habits.)
The most striking thing i've found is that swimming calms it right down, in fact if i go swimming in the early evening and leave my partner to put the kids to bed it usually actually stops completely - or at least the roar goes away, i'm left with some residual ringing but not intense, and something i would call the 'sound of silence'. This is so blissful that i now go swimming every evening that i'm not busy doing other things. And while occasionally the relief will be short lived, the tinnitus will often stay away until some time the next day. Its bizarre. I've wondered whether its to do with water in my ears, or a kind of sound therapy in the pool, but on balance i think that its the meditative relaxing experience of the swim that does it. I also often have silence first thing when i wake up, but unless i've been for that swim the day before the roar will often come on before i've even got out of bed. Has anyone else had any similar experiences to this?
If you have read this far then wow, thank you!
Heather
My tinnitus started in May this year so I'm in my six month. It is often coupled with eustachian tube dysfunction symptoms. At first an ENT said it was secondary to allergic rhinitis (though i didn't really feel like i had allergies at the time) and various doctors have said my ears look 'dull', but basically several appointments with ENTs and audiologist reviews and an MRI later and they are saying probably stress (I have had a busy stressful year.)
My tinnitus is mainly a one sided roar that can get so loud it feels like my head is vibrating or become quiet enough that i can almost forget about it. For the first 3 months it drove me mad, and culminated in some bad insomnia, but then i discovered a book which suggested that while tinnitus can be initially set off by several causes the continuation of the condition is linked to an overloaded central nervous system - basically a fight flight response that has been overly active too long. The suggested answer was to focus on wellness and calming activities. I have had a degree of success with this, several times thinking i was almost cured, and then bang, back to square one. There is usually a stress trigger to such setbacks e.g. sudden trip to hospital because my unwell father fell and banged his head. Also I've had varying degrees of success with the other suggestions such as cutting out sugar, caffeine, alcohol etc. so I have more work to do on this side of things (basically when my tinnitus was most terrible i cut all this but then when it would subside i'd go back to bad habits.)
The most striking thing i've found is that swimming calms it right down, in fact if i go swimming in the early evening and leave my partner to put the kids to bed it usually actually stops completely - or at least the roar goes away, i'm left with some residual ringing but not intense, and something i would call the 'sound of silence'. This is so blissful that i now go swimming every evening that i'm not busy doing other things. And while occasionally the relief will be short lived, the tinnitus will often stay away until some time the next day. Its bizarre. I've wondered whether its to do with water in my ears, or a kind of sound therapy in the pool, but on balance i think that its the meditative relaxing experience of the swim that does it. I also often have silence first thing when i wake up, but unless i've been for that swim the day before the roar will often come on before i've even got out of bed. Has anyone else had any similar experiences to this?
If you have read this far then wow, thank you!
Heather
Member
