Hello Kelly I too am new to tinnitus, one month in. I am glad you found this forum as it gave me the hope and the support I needed from a lot of different people who are united by one element, tinnitus. From what I have read and experienced, the first couple of months are very stressful. You find yourself asking what is this, why me, what is next? As I am new to the world of T. I can only give you insight into the stuff I had to learn right at the start. There are others on this forum who can speak with much greater knowledge about hearing and tinnitus, and answer your questions about how your T. started, and your future. I would suggest that you add another post describing whether your T. fluctuates, stays the same, is it in both ears and is it the same volume/tone, as this is useful information. Mine can get so loud I hear it over a car engine on the highway, I hear it when I wake up, and then it goes down to next to nothing, it is in one ear, then the other. What gets me through all this is the support and wisdom I have received on this forum telling me, after patiently listening to me, as to what was happening to me and what to expect. For me it was that I had some hopeful signs. So far, their advice has been pretty good, and what I needed.
Everyone knows what you are going through, and you are not alone, you have support at this site. There are others who regularly read, support and answer your questions. Just realize that this site is a world wide site, so if people do not respond right away, it is because they may be on another continent.
As I suspect, you have already been reading the post in the Introduce Yourself and Support sections. These sections may help you gain some insight to issues and aspects of tinnitus. What follows is the answers to my own questions re. 'How do I function?', I hope this helps you navigate the next little while. From what I have started to learn is that the first couple of months are the hardest, loud noise = bad (so at the start listen to your music at a lower volume and movies can be loud so be wary and keep the volume down), head phones = bad, ear protection = good (ear plugs, if you use foam make sure you know how to insert them, I got moulded, and/or ear muffs), being aware and not letting your guard down, e.g., going into a loud restaurant or coffee shop without ear protection and thinking it will be ok = not good, when outside and your tinnitus fluctuates realize it can be a result of normal fluctuations, so don't panic, but definitely avoid loud noises as this can affect your tinnitus. Over protecting your ears can also have consequences. It is an interesting balancing act. When you go to bed have some music playing in the background. I have found on the internet Tinnitus Sound Therapy music, and for me it helped. I listened to different music, some spoke to me, some didn't. I have it on during the day, and at night I take my laptop into by bedroom and play it overnight (some of the sites go for 8 to 10 hours). From what I have learned, it is good to play it just below the level of your T.
This is the harder one, but is very important. Hope is a good thing and realizing that you can oversome this is, while hard to see, is very real. It is important, and I know it is much easier to say than do, but learning to focus your attention from the screeming in your ear is possible. As I am writing this, my left ear is louder, and my right has been angry for the past 2 hours, while it was quiet all morning. I am dealing with it by not focusing on it by looking past it and directing my attention on the tv for ex. and reminding myself that it will go down. It does take time to get to this point. One approach, of many, could be to shift your focus and try to think of something you enjoy, or makes you feel good. I remember one post where she watched Star Trek for a month, becuase it is filled with hope. Meditation and mindfulness and yoga have appeared in a number of posts from people sharing that this helped. If you don't meditate and are willing, there are guided meditation web sites, or look for a meditation class in your area. Tell the orgainzer why you are exploring meditation, and she, or he, can actually run a class that may help you deal with your T. Focusing constantly on your T. = not good, and actually gives your T. power over you, when it is exactly the opposite, you have the power over it. Unfortunately it does take time to adjust, so give yourself time, and some understanding.
From what I have learned in a number of cases it does get better, but that is where others can share their greater wisdon on this. As I said I am new myself so I focus on the importance of support and hope at this important entry time to the world of T. as I call it. Coffee Girl, Bill B., Fishbone, Micheal L., Glnyis, Greg among others who have a lot of good ideas, and more expereience than I do.
Best of luck, I hope this helps.
John CC
Member
