Hey Guys, I'm Michelle

[michellej]

Nice to meet you all!

I'm 24 years old from New York and developed my Tinnitus while on a month long trip to Europe in December 2016. I had contracted a horrible sinus infection the day I landed in London and was severely ill my entire trip - the infection traveled from ear to ear every few days. Nothing could shake this infection.

It left me with tinnitus in both ears ever since my ears unclogged - although, I still don't feel as if they are completely unclogged and free from all of the congestion that had built up.

It's 24/7, extremely high pitched and extremely loud, especially when I'm trying to fall asleep or in a quiet environment. I feel as if I haven't slept in moths because of this - probably because I haven't.

I feel like it gets worse every day. I've seen an ENT who put me on steroids which did nothing but give me heart palpitations and just recently saw an audiologist who told me my only option for a cure was a $5,000 device for sound therapy. At this point, I'm going absolutely insane with my tinnitus. I'm willing to pay for and wear the device but I haven't seen much about the success rate of them. I just want something that works

Maybe some of you guys can help me out - I look forward to talking with you

Michelle

 

[Raphael7713]

I'm not a doctor but if your tinnitus is caused by a cold/sinus infection or something along the way, I'm pretty sure you will be okay with time and cured. I have a tinnitus that comes and goes, and my guess is that it's also caused by some sinus infection or something similar. Could still be a hearing loss in my case, but I doubt it.

Like I said i'm not a doctor and I don't want to give false hopes and so on. But if your problem is caused by anything else than a hearing loss, I think it'll go away with time.

 

[Paul10]

Michelle welcome, please, think very hard before spending 5K on this. If your T is extremely high pitched (over 10,000 Hz) and the treatment is what I'm thinking it is, then it's not recommended for T like yours (and mine - one of mine is ultra-high frequency, like 14K). ENT's I'm sure do a great job otherwise but I've not heard one person say they had a helpful meeting with an ENT. They're just clinical and get a glazed look on their face once you mention T. Please be careful what you read online - a lot of it is not applicable to your T and a lot of it is simply incorrect. Your attitude seems great which is half the battle. I'm not sure how the American system works but see if there is a T specialist at your local hospital and discuss it with them. There is a whole host of causes and reasons why T comes on; you just have to find what works for you. I know how difficult it is. You'll get better in time. Good luck and God bless!

 

[Raphael7713]

I wouldn't also spend that kind of money on that kind of "treatment". I know in the beginning everything feels hopeless and you want to get rid of it at all cost. But be patient, you will slowly start to feel better (its a fact!) and your T might even disapear.

 

[michellej]

Thank you both for your kind replies - it is greatly appreciated!

Paul, I'm not sure how high pitched mine is but the audiologist did say the average tinnitus level ranges from 10-15 and mine is currently at 65. I'm not too sure how that relates to the Hz but what I'm hearing is both intensely loud and high pitched.

I was thinking of getting a second opinion about this, I just don't know what to look for. It seems like the only options on the T specialists' websites near me are all devices. I don't know of any other treatment that could help. Maybe someone can explain this to me.

Thank you again

 

[Raphael7713]

IF you are certain that your tinnitus is caused by sinus issues, buy a nasaline and clear your nose..for me personally it feels as if it can help.

 

[Hopeful1]

Trust you have good chance of getting better as yours is due to infection.....AM101 worked for T suffers with infection...but is evil think 100 times before you opt for it...as it can make it worse

 

[Jenni8619]

Welcome to tt @michellej and thank you for sharing your t story! I agree with everyone, with time your t situation will get better, you just have to find what works for you! I'm still coping with my t & h, I still have bad days but I'm grateful for the good days!

Do you have ear fullness? Aches? Sensitive to noises?

Hugs,

Jenni

 

[Nikkipudin]

Hi Michelle I totally understand your desperation for a fix to the T. I have had it for 7 months now since getting a clip round the ear which resulted in a perforated eardrum. The first few months were hell I was climbing the walls searching the internet for a cure etc you know what I mean it's were I found this forum thankgod reading the positive stories helped loads. My T is now much better I can watch tv take a shower and not be bothered by it. I did see a very good ENT in Harley street had an audiology test done and I have only slight hearing loss at 2%,he told me most cases of T get better and stay away from the web he told me to download a sound app on my phone that I used to listen to at night it helped loads also to try not to think about it, I know easier said than done I was near sucidal in the beginning it was awful. But now it's so much better trust it does get better, check out understanding tinnitus Adam gives some great advice. Also you can read more of my story at pudin co uk. Don't waste your money it's so tempting when you can't sleep and your totally stressed out by it I have tried sleeping tablets temporary fix but gets you to sleep in the early stages now I don't need anything I exercise do yoga and meditation and eat well keeping clear of all caffeine and fizzy drinks that seem to make it worst. I hope this helps wishing u the best you will get through this xxx

 

[Paulmanlike]

What was the 5k treatment Michelle and was this is New York?

On a brighter note you are early in and haven't had chance to see if it goes away and you haven't had the time to Habituate - where you are no longer arsed by it. X

 

[michellej]

Hi everyone,

Thank you all so much for all of your replies, kind words and reassurance

A few of you mentioned that because it was caused by an infection that it will go away on it's own. While I'm hopeful that it will, how do you guys know? I guess I just don't know how to start with managing the tinnitus, I've just been letting it drive me crazy lately. I'm in desperate need some relief

@Paulmanlike yes, the treatment was here in NY - it was a "sound therapy device" for both ears

@Jenni8619 my ears are definitely more sensitive to noise and I definitely have ear fullness - my ears pop and crack every time I swallow. They do occasionally ache out of nowhere

 

[Helen Louise]

Hey @michellej Feels we have Tinnitus from common stems! I had a flu/throat infection and all of a sudden the noise came out of no where It's so tough at first, getting used to the idea that's incurable is really heartbreaking and hard to deal with.

I made a video on how I've learnt to deal with it over the year - I hope it help x