Hello from Ireland: In 2015, I Experienced a Loss of Hearing and the Onset of My Tinnitus

[Damien666]

I've been lurking in the background for a while now and finally plucked up the courage to introduce myself. My name is Damien.

In 2015 I experienced a loss of hearing so I made an appointment with my doctor. At the beginning of our meeting I also mentioned that I had also developed a low hissing sound in my right ear. She proceeded to examine both ears and sat back down on her chair.

"Do you want the good or the bad new first" she exclaimed. "Good" I replied. "The good news is, your left ear is full of wax". Before I could gather my thoughts she continued and said "the bad news is there is no build up of wax in your right ear". Somewhat perplexed I missed the bit where she told me that, in her opinion I had tinnitus.

I woke one morning in 2017 to discover the low hissing sound had now become a high pitched static noise. After a short time I began to get agitated. The buzzing became worse. It still does to this day. Every time I let it get the better of me it gets louder. Audiology and a hearing aid saved my life. But I still have tinnitus.

2020 was a terrible year for everyone. Aside from the pandemic my Dad passed away in July. He was in the advanced stages of dementia but the bit I'm finding difficult to deal with is the fact that he died from falling down the stairs of the nursing home I put him in.

My tinnitus got so bad I decided to take some time off work this year to sort myself out. I've been taking sleeping tablets for the last year or so but it was getting to the stage where I was taking one every night. While they did the trick I had become over reliant on them.

I am at the end of my first week off. The tinnitus is still there but I feel a lot more relaxed.

Thanks for listening.

Best

Damien

 

[glynis]

@Damien666,

Nice to see you plucked up courage to post and hope you are resting up.

You have had a bereavement in your life and maybe feeling the blame from the death of your dad but definitely not your fault. It's down to the care home.

Your emotions can play a big part of having tinnitus due to stress and as you go through the stages of bereavement, in time you will work through it and remember the good times and are less stressed.

Try not focus on your tinnitus or search for it. It could fade away but it does take time.

Keep on posting for support.

love Glynis

 

[Damien666]

Thanks Glynis.

Just have to keep on, keeping on!

 

[Elmer B Fuddled]

Hi @Damien666.

Welcome, from Ireland myself, like glynis said try to ignore that noise, and stress will make the noise come on worse. Sorry for your loss, I lost my mom to cancer and heart disease and during that time my tinnitus got bad. But now I've learned to ignore it, and hearing aids with a white noise app has truly helped. Stay strong, be safe.

Elmer

 

[Damien666]

Hey Elmer,

Thanks for the kind words. The hearing aid helped me but reading some of the comments it doesn't seem to work for everyone. Then again I tried hypnotherapy, acupuncture, meditation, tai chi, mindfulness and a host of other things and nothing seemed to work. While everyone's tinnitus is different stress is a factor that unites us all. These days its impossible to avoid. Taking time out of work has cost me but I feel a lot more relaxed. I have immersed myself in the things I enjoy doing.

2015 was a good and bad year for me. Just before the onset of my tinnitus I discovered I had a natural ability to write screenplays. The first two things I wrote were produced, which kind of makes me a freak in the screenwriting world. There is a link below to the latest one. In these trying times it might give you a laugh.

The writing has given me an outlet and something to think about other than that ringing in my ear. I think that's the secret. Find something you love doing, something to take the stress out of everyday life, and jump right in. Mindfulness didn't work for me, same as acupuncture or tai chi but it did for others. It's different for everyone. The thing is to find what works for YOU!

Best

Damien