I'm Not Committing Suicide. I'm Being Murdered by Merciless Tinnitus.

[DebInAustralia]

As I edge ever closer to the end of the road I've come to the conclusion that I will not be committing suicide. This just is not the truth of of what's happening here. I loved my life. I had so much to live for. But tinnitus has systematically taken away my enjoyment of all the things I loved and more importantly robbed me of a basic human essential..... hope. It's basically slowly murdering me and a life of AD's and benzo's etc to zombify myself to the misery of living like a shell of a person is just not for me.

I'm sorry for the negativity but my life now is no longer worth living. My tinnitus is off the scale bad. Unmaskable high pitched hell. Like having a sheet metal factory in my head 24/7. And yes I've tried everything. Over 10 grand of therapists and treatments, including Levo. Now I'm down to good old fashioned drinking to numb the hell until I pluck up the courage to punch my ticket.

I've seen arguments on here that severe tinnitus isn't as bad as cancer, the loss of a loved one etc etc blah blah blah. Well sorry from my experience it's not even close to the horror of 24/7 ear splitting incurable tinnitus hell. Sorry, different level. I watched my father die in a car crash before my very eyes when I was a teenager and the grief that created was not even close to the sadness I wake up with every single morning for the last 7 months as I watch my entire existence washed away in a void of hopelessness in this nightmare version of Groundhog Day. Pure misery day after day on a monotonous loop. As I said to a therapist. It's like being raped and then being forced to live with the person that raped you every single day for the rest of your life as they taunt you day and night, spend all your money and go through your phone destroying every single one of your relationships.

I know there's a lot of well meaning folks on here but sadly it's become very apparent to me that despite the outpourings of genuine desperation and suffering on this site people who don't have tinnitus just think everyone one here is either a weirdo attention seeker, a troll or a hypochondriac with mental problems. This is despite my being a high functioning, zero mental health problems, 'normal' person before all this. This sadly is why all the 'awareness' we are creating is a total waste of time and those of us with genuinely torturous levels of this affliction live in a miserable island of painful isolation where death seems like the only viable way out.

For all you severe veterans I have come to the conclusion that you are either
A) hardcore as hell and deserve to be knighted, given a large haul of medals and a castle.
B) scared shitless of suicide
C) lying about how bad your tinnitus is... or ...
D) a weirdo attention seeker, troll, hypochondriac with mental problems

Zero offence intended and I wish you all peace and silence....however unattainable.

I met my tinnitus 5 years ago. It was a little hard not to make acquaintance, since it was what I regarded as severe. Then came the spikes, and the hyperacusis. I was devastated and thought my life was over.

Over the years, I threw just about everything I could think of at it, that might give me hope of some respite.

Nothing worked.

I believe I owe these 2 things to my current relationship with tinnitus now.

-CBT, Mindfulness (I've stopped catastrophising - your message is full of this)

AND

-Stem cells (one of my noises has disappeared, my spikes have greatly improved as has my hyperacusis)

My mindset was similar to yours at the start, and for quite some time after ..

Until I realised that I wasn't hearing my tinnitus 'all of the time', that I was slowly rebuilding my life again; including getting back to work, socialising etc. Soon enough, whilst my life looked a bit different, it was almost back to 'normal'.

I can hear my tinnitus as I write. Does it bother me now? Not in the slightest. Even if I try to mount a negative response to it, I would find it difficult. I no longer give it the amount of attention that I used to, I have accepted that it is part of me, and I just get on with living.

Do I want tinnitus? No, of course not. Is it going to stop me from living my life? I think you know the answer to that.

Whenever 'veterans' would describe their habituation, I couldn't imagine this being the case for me.

I want to point out that you have failed to acknowledge that many of us have habituated; not because we are 'hard core', but because that is what our brain wants to do. I flirted with suicidal ideations in the beginning, but decided not to give into what was a condition that my brain learnt to ignore down the track. I am confident that none of us who have habituated are 'lying' or minimising our experience with tinnitus. The brain can and does change. It has to be able to in order for adaptation to take place. (Read the brain that changes itself - Norman Doidge). Whilst I suffer with anxiety and severe ocd, I don't consider myself a weirdo - thanks. (those who know me might say otherwise)

I know first hand how devastating tinnitus and hyperacusis and hearing loss can be. I also know there is a life to be had beyond. I am glad I didn't throw in the towel.

Consider CBT? At the very least, the CBT for helps me manage my anxiety around having tinnitus and other health conditions.

Sure, my life looks a little different than it did previously (more conscious of hearing protection and ototoxicity). However, I am not living everyday in dread of my tinnitus. I have reached a point of indifference. Contrary to advise here, I don't mask nor do I rarely need to, I sleep just fine, can sit in a room for hours and read and study etc. If you can get there, you will move forward, I believe.

 

[Wolfears]

This mega thread should be a mandatory read in all med schools (especially ENT's)

It should be also known to anyone participating in Tinnitus research...there is more truth and reality inside this single thread, than any of the medical information on the topic of Tinnitus (heavily laced with habituation propaganda) out there combined.

 

[Bam]

(I've stopped catastrophising - your message is full of this)

Sorry Deb. My message is not full of 'catastrophising' .......it's full of fact.

Before T came in to my life and completely f***ed me over I was a happy successful company director with a long term relationship, lots of friends who I went out with regularly, two beautiful homes and plenty of money. I didn't have a care in the world.

Now I flit between various rented flats, caravans and even spent 3 months sleeping in a tent this summer after my stay in a mental hospital.

I'm basically homeless. I've lost my company. I've lost my partner, family, friends. I work long tiring days as a cycle courier scraping by making 50 quid a day when I used to make £1000 a day. It's the only job that I can do that tires me out enough to sleep and allows me to move around like a gypsy to wherever I can find that's cheapest. Right now I'm 500 miles from my home in a shit hole northern town where I know nobody. The isolation, fear and loneliness is like a constant pain in my chest. My only real companionship comes from my dog. I have zero stability.

You talk about habituation but you totally disregard the fact that some of us have lost so much to this and have been thrust in to such a dark pit of hell that the very concept is like a sick joke.

I think when you look at what's happened to my life you might see that I'm not 'catastrophising'.

 

[Lex]

I think and hope I'm not committing suicide soon but it's definitely on the table. The pain I feel now is tolerable, but the pain I felt last year was pure torture. Since getting tinnitus and hyperacusis in mid-2016, I've been feeling suicidal, but it was only post-setback in mid-2017 that I actually made an attempt. There's a big line between wanting to die and trying to kill myself, and it was intense physical pain that made me cross that line. There's also a big line between trying to kill myself and successfully doing it, and I believe that long-term suffering from said physical pain can make me cross that line. I wouldn't be here anymore if the intensity and duration of my post-setback pain stayed on the same level for more than six months.

It's not catastrophisizing if it's a catastrophe to begin with.

 

[Steve G]

Sorry Deb. My message is not full of 'catastrophising' .......it's full of fact.

Before T came in to my life and completely f***ed me over I was a happy successful company director with a long term relationship, lots of friends who I went out with regularly, two beautiful homes and plenty of money. I didn't have a care in the world.

Now I flit between various rented flats, caravans and even spent 3 months sleeping in a tent this summer after my stay in a mental hospital.

I'm basically homeless. I've lost my company. I've lost my partner, family, friends. I work long tiring days as a cycle courier scraping by making 50 quid a day when I used to make £1000 a day. It's the only job that I can do that tires me out enough to sleep and allows me to move around like a gypsy to wherever I can find that's cheapest. Right now I'm 500 miles from my home in a shit hole northern town where I know nobody. The isolation, fear and loneliness is like a constant pain in my chest. My only real companionship comes from my dog. I have zero stability.

You talk about habituation but you totally disregard the fact that some of us have lost so much to this and have been thrust in to such a dark pit of hell that the very concept is like a sick joke.

I think when you look at what's happened to my life you might see that I'm not 'catastrophising'.

Bam, Your story is heart breaking. You have lost so much so quick, Or are you just running from everything that was once meaningful? You have to try and get yourself back on track. You sound very smart. Don't let it win.

 

[Basshell]

I, with my ghastly 30 years of accumulated tinnitus experience and with a most recent low pitch addition throwing me into a meltdown can confirm and verify that for some people this is not catastrophising. The fact is they always talk about loudness and type of tinnitus and how reaction is key but sometimes it is so huge it is unmanageable. I'm convinced of that as I am a test cae for it myself.

 

[jay777]

@Bam You seem to be crawling out of the pit,keep going

 

[Nanny chocolate]

That's a harsh reality Bam, devastation of everything was normal.
There are no words to make it better for you
but sending heartfelt warmth your way.
Eve xx
@Bam

 

[Jazzer]

And the total incomprehension of how dreadful tinnitus is by those never afflicted by constant never ending noise in their own head, only adds more fuel to the frustration and misery.

Bam - Sylv I went out for a Sunday lunch at a local golf club restaurant with a very pleasant couple that we have known for perhaps thirty years.
Let me first establish that they are nice people.
The guy was asking me about my tinnitus, so I tried to describe just some aspects of the endless torture that people like us suffer - awfully loud head noise, constantly and non-stop.
He then said to me, "But how are you now ??"

(Jesus Christ- spare me from fools !!!)

So I had to repeat my previous line!
He looked sympathetic and sincere.
Had he finally got the message perhaps ??
Well what do you think?

One week later he sent me this cartoon, saying,
"Obviously I realise that having Tinnitus is no fun
- ( no fun !!! ) - but I thought, with your wonderful sense of humour Dave,
(oh please stick your platitudes right up your arse) you might appreciate this little cartoon."

My main point is - this chap is a nice guy, not a bastard, but I could obviously not get through to him at all the severity of what we cope with,
millisecond by 'fucking' millisecond.
They will never ever have a single clue.

We are the 'walking wounded' folks,
and the wounds could not be more severe.
My friends on TT here are the most genuine people I know.
Thank goodness we have each other.
Dave x

 

[Jazzer]

 

[jay777]

Had he finally got the message perhaps ??
Well what do you think?

next time you see him, bring a bluetooth speaker with a closest match to your tinnitus and play it at 80 dB, and when he complains tell him you do not hear anything.

 

[Agrajag364]

Sorry Deb. My message is not full of 'catastrophising' .......it's full of fact.

Before T came in to my life and completely f***ed me over I was a happy successful company director with a long term relationship, lots of friends who I went out with regularly, two beautiful homes and plenty of money. I didn't have a care in the world.

Now I flit between various rented flats, caravans and even spent 3 months sleeping in a tent this summer after my stay in a mental hospital.

I'm basically homeless. I've lost my company. I've lost my partner, family, friends. I work long tiring days as a cycle courier scraping by making 50 quid a day when I used to make £1000 a day. It's the only job that I can do that tires me out enough to sleep and allows me to move around like a gypsy to wherever I can find that's cheapest. Right now I'm 500 miles from my home in a shit hole northern town where I know nobody. The isolation, fear and loneliness is like a constant pain in my chest. My only real companionship comes from my dog. I have zero stability.

You talk about habituation but you totally disregard the fact that some of us have lost so much to this and have been thrust in to such a dark pit of hell that the very concept is like a sick joke.

I think when you look at what's happened to my life you might see that I'm not 'catastrophising'.

Bloody hell Bam that's awful. I lost my job as well as a result of getting this but it was only because it was the last in a long line of physical health problems and I was already being treated like shit at work because of those. What did you do before and why does the tinnitus stop you doing it? I appreciate that yours is very loud

 

[Bam]

Bloody hell Bam that's awful. I lost my job as well as a result of getting this but it was only because it was the last in a long line of physical health problems and I was already being treated like shit at work because of those. What did you do before and why does the tinnitus stop you doing it? I appreciate that yours is very loud

Can't be too specific but I had a media job that was very incompatible with having severe T.

A bit like @Jazzer, who is aware of my previous job, the minute it started I knew I was done. And that realisation that all I had worked for was lost, sent me spiralling into hell immediately.

I've said it before but for some of us T is the worst possible thing that could happen.....and it happened.

This is what people who post condescending bullshit about habituation don't get.......We don't have three or four years to 'get used to it'.

We've built lives based on having peace and silence which is hardly playing fast and loose.

Those lives require us to be able to sleep well, to be on the ball at work, to be bright and upbeat. Dare I say to be charismatic and inspiring.

In short we need to be at our very best to maintain the lives and relationships we've built.

We need to be able to go to a doctor and be told we'll be back to normal in a set time frame and there is a cure. Simple as that......This shit is way too serious and debilitating for anything else.

 

[Jazzer]

For me the big question is:
can anything we do - any practice - any therapy - anything at all - help to lessen the severity - the impact on our lives?
We are in the realms of salvage....
We cannot stay where we are.......

 

[Bam]

@Bam You seem to be crawling out of the pit,keep going

Thanks Jay. I'm still alive. I will not be separated from my dog. I suffer for him.

If I 'habituate' or they find a cure before he dies I have a chance. If not I'm going when he does.

I have nothing to offer anyone else. How can I provide a future or a stable, happy life to another human living under these torturous conditions?

 

[Ed209]

This is what people who post condescending bullshit about habituation don't get.......We don't have three or four years to 'get used to it'.

I never aim to be condescending, ever. I was in a very similar position to you; I certainly didn't have years to get used to it either. I went from having some of the most lucrative gigs lined up, with some great musical connections, to waking up with a screaming noise in my head that instantly sent me into a downward spiral. The panic made me throw up quite frequently and I didn't leave my bedroom for a week. I stopped going out and had to make the dreaded call to my band mates. You have to factor in that at this point everything was on the up 'bigtime' in terms of my music.

The last gig I did, I did it for a children's hospital. I figured I might as well go out by helping some sick kids. I put over £600 of my own money into it covering the room, sound engineering, ticket, and food costs. After that, my live work was over.

I still remember the phone calls coming in asking how my ears were and if I was healthy enough to come back. It used to tear me up more than words can express because there was always big gigs and great opportunities involved. This started a deep depression where I despised everything and I hated life. Anytime someone would text saying so and so is playing at the Jam House, you've gotta come, I would decline and sit in misery instead, desperately wishing I was there.

This went on and on until I figured my life is either over or I reboot myself because something had to give. Billie48 gave me some great advice, as well as a few others on here, and so I left TT to make some fundamental changes to my life. All I can say is that I came through the other end of the tunnel. I returned here because I figured my story might give hope to others who find themselves in a similar position, but sometimes my message is taken out of context. I've also tried to help by fundraising and by raising awareness on social media and in real life.

If you see it as condescending bullshit, that's your prerogative. We are all unique and experience the world in our own way, but relentlessy catastrophising will not help you.

 

[Wolfears]

I met my tinnitus 5 years ago. It was a little hard not to make acquaintance, since it was what I regarded as severe. Then came the spikes, and the hyperacusis. I was devastated and thought my life was over.

Over the years, I threw just about everything I could think of at it, that might give me hope of some respite.

Nothing worked.

I believe I owe these 2 things to my current relationship with tinnitus now.

-CBT, Mindfulness (I've stopped catastrophising - your message is full of this)

AND

-Stem cells (one of my noises has disappeared, my spikes have greatly improved as has my hyperacusis)

My mindset was similar to yours at the start, and for quite some time after ..

Until I realised that I wasn't hearing my tinnitus 'all of the time', that I was slowly rebuilding my life again; including getting back to work, socialising etc. Soon enough, whilst my life looked a bit different, it was almost back to 'normal'.

I can hear my tinnitus as I write. Does it bother me now? Not in the slightest. Even if I try to mount a negative response to it, I would find it difficult. I no longer give it the amount of attention that I used to, I have accepted that it is part of me, and I just get on with living.

Do I want tinnitus? No, of course not. Is it going to stop me from living my life? I think you know the answer to that.

Whenever 'veterans' would describe their habituation, I couldn't imagine this being the case for me.

I want to point out that you have failed to acknowledge that many of us have habituated; not because we are 'hard core', but because that is what our brain wants to do. I flirted with suicidal ideations in the beginning, but decided not to give into what was a condition that my brain learnt to ignore down the track. I am confident that none of us who have habituated are 'lying' or minimising our experience with tinnitus. The brain can and does change. It has to be able to in order for adaptation to take place. (Read the brain that changes itself - Norman Doidge). Whilst I suffer with anxiety and severe ocd, I don't consider myself a weirdo - thanks. (those who know me might say otherwise)

I know first hand how devastating tinnitus and hyperacusis and hearing loss can be. I also know there is a life to be had beyond. I am glad I didn't throw in the towel.

Consider CBT? At the very least, the CBT for helps me manage my anxiety around having tinnitus and other health conditions.

Sure, my life looks a little different than it did previously (more conscious of hearing protection and ototoxicity). However, I am not living everyday in dread of my tinnitus. I have reached a point of indifference. Contrary to advise here, I don't mask nor do I rarely need to, I sleep just fine, can sit in a room for hours and read and study etc. If you can get there, you will move forward, I believe.

Few things to consider here.

First off, I'm glad that you were able to conquer YOUR Tinnitus, but do not make the mistake of assuming that other peoples Tinnitus must be the same...there is NO limit to how bad it can get.

Remember that different people have different brain chemistry, genetic make up, different tolerance levels and are wired slightly differently as well.
If you are trying to draw any parallels, you are now comparing apples to tennis balls.

Second...you were obviously bothered by Tinnitus enough to drop a big chunk of money on stem cells...good for you, but not everyone out there has that option.
You should be counting your blessings that your Tinnitus was still manageable enough to achieve habituation, instead of belittling those who weren't as fortunate by using words such as "catastrophising".

There are people out there who are simply beyond any habituation scheme currently available.

As a matter of fact, there is a lady here on this board @valeri, also from Australia whom is a very long time sufferer...ask her how habituation is working for her.

You need to accept the fact that there are people who suffer much more than you once did and may not be able to recover the way you did.

 

[jay777]

I have nothing to offer anyone else.

Well you help me, I have not got the ability to write, but what you write is in my head, thank you for that

 

[Ed209]

First off, I'm glad that you were able to conquer YOUR Tinnitus, but do not make the mistake of assuming that other peoples Tinnitus must be the same...there is NO limit to how bad it can get.

I think we're all aware of that, but the odd positive story here and there can really help some people. Would you rather the positive stories be censored?

Personally, I don't think anything should be censored and believe people should be as open and as honest as possible. We need to say how we feel, good or bad. A united community is stronger than a fragmented one, and if we all want to see improvements then that's what needs to happen.

Unfortunately, all too often it turns into a pissing contest.

 

[Ed209]

As a matter of fact, there is a lady here on this board @valeri, also from Australia whom is a very long time sufferer...ask her how habituation is working for her.

She knows Val.

 

[Wolfears]

I think we're all aware of that, but the odd positive story here and there can really help some people. Would you rather the positive stories be censored?

Personally, I don't think anything should be censored and believe people should be as open and as honest as possible. We need to say how we feel, good or bad. A united community is stronger than a fragmented one, and if we all want to see improvements then that's what needs to happen.

Unfortunately, all too often it turns into a pissing contest.

I'm not calling for censorship..I'm calling for some common sense.

There is nothing wrong with trying to inject some positivity into a dark place, but I would imagine it could be done in ways that don't involve calling other sufferers drama queens...yes using the word "catastrophising" is of course much more diplomatic, but in this context it essentially boils down to the same thing.

Those who were lucky to pull through should stop pounding their chests for the reasons I stated above...

 

[Wolfears]

She knows Val.

Then I would imagine she should know better.

 

[Bam]

If you see it as condescending bullshit, that's your prerogative.

Certainly not directed at you Ed. It was directed at the post that accused me of 'catastrophising'. Like all this was just some mental failure on my part in not seeing the positive of this dreadful situation.

Also as @Wolfears pointed out. Who is this person to say that they're circumstances are somehow the same and imply that they're just more resourceful and mentally tougher. Even though they admit in the same post that they're anxious and OCD.

Has it occurred to this person that maybe they have really mild T and their mental state is actually the problem?

If that pisses her off then maybe she should pause before accusing others of catastrophising.

 

[david c]

Sorry Deb. My message is not full of 'catastrophising' .......it's full of fact.

Before T came in to my life and completely f***ed me over I was a happy successful company director with a long term relationship, lots of friends who I went out with regularly, two beautiful homes and plenty of money. I didn't have a care in the world.

Now I flit between various rented flats, caravans and even spent 3 months sleeping in a tent this summer after my stay in a mental hospital.

I'm basically homeless. I've lost my company. I've lost my partner, family, friends. I work long tiring days as a cycle courier scraping by making 50 quid a day when I used to make £1000 a day. It's the only job that I can do that tires me out enough to sleep and allows me to move around like a gypsy to wherever I can find that's cheapest. Right now I'm 500 miles from my home in a shit hole northern town where I know nobody. The isolation, fear and loneliness is like a constant pain in my chest. My only real companionship comes from my dog. I have zero stability.

You talk about habituation but you totally disregard the fact that some of us have lost so much to this and have been thrust in to such a dark pit of hell that the very concept is like a sick joke.

I think when you look at what's happened to my life you might see that I'm not 'catastrophising'.

I completely understand where you are coming from on this @Bam. The severe impact of tinnitus on the lives of many is something we need to be campaigning on. I feel that the current message being put forward by the ATA and BTA that for the great majority of sufferers tinnitus has no impact at all on their lives is (a) not true and (b) not helpful to our cause.

As someone who has habituated to tinnitus I don't feel that CBT terminology such as "catastrophising" is helpful. Many CBT counsellors have little or no understanding of the impact of tinnitus and haven't got the capacity for empathy. Would they use terms such as ""catastrophising" to someone recently diagnosed with a condition such as MS, Parkinsons or Cancer I wonder? Yet using it to a tinnitus sufferer is somehow OK because in their eyes tinnitus is "only a mild condition". I feel for these reasons that CBT is as likely to hurt as many - if not more - tinnitus sufferers than it helps.

All I can say is that slowly things will improve - but we all need to find our own ways to habituation. We don't need to be told the right way by so-called "experts".

 

[Ed209]

I'm not calling for censorship..I'm calling for some common sense.

There is nothing wrong with trying to inject some positivity into a dark place, but I would imagine it could be done in ways that don't involve calling other sufferers drama queens...yes using the word "catastrophising" is of course much more diplomatic, but in this context it essentially boils down to the same thing.

Those who were lucky to pull through should stop pounding their chests for the reasons I stated above...

You are calling for censorship because it's clear you'd rather not see me post. I've never called anyone a drama queen; you're just making stuff up now. Most people have catastrophic thoughts with severe T, it comes with the territory. I'm just highlighting this to try and help anyone who finds themselves in this position. Our thoughts directly affect how we feel by releasing hormones that influence almost every cell in our body. The link between catastrophic thoughts and feeling suicidal is not a trivial one; it's based on how our body functions.

These hormones not only affect our mood, but can also change our metabolism, the function of our organs, and can even affect cell renewal. It's for this reason that CBT was invented. We are what we think, so if your brain inadvertently gets stuck in a cycle of bad thoughts it can be incredibly hard to escape and it can lead to severe depression. This is where tinnitus can be linked to our limbic system and how we physiologically react.

I am never pounding my chest. There's a difference between wanting to help others (when you live with the condition yourself) by telling a positive story and pounding one's chest. If that's how you all see it then I give up.

 

[Ed209]

Would they use terms such as ""catastrophising" to someone recently diagnosed with a condition such as MS, Parkinsons or Cancer I wonder?

You can use the term for any chronic condition. It purely relates to ones coping mechanisms.

http://www.mdsabstracts.com/abstract.asp?MeetingID=802&id=112964

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.practicalpainmanagement.com/amp/15009

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3573569/

https://academic.oup.com/painmedicine/article/17/11/2026/2449727

https://bodyinmind.org/pain-catastrophizing-brain/

 

[Wolfears]

You are calling for censorship because it's clear you'd rather not see me post. I've never called anyone a drama queen; you're just making stuff up now. Most people have catastrophic thoughts with severe T, it comes with the territory. I'm just highlighting this to try and help anyone who finds themselves in this position. Our thoughts directly affect how we feel by releasing hormones that influence almost every cell in our body. The link between catastrophic thoughts and feeling suicidal is not a trivial one; it's based on how our body functions.

These hormones not only affect our mood, but can also change our metabolism, the function of our organs, and can even affect cell renewal. It's for this reason that CBT was invented. We are what we think, so if your brain inadvertently gets stuck in a cycle of bad thoughts it can be incredibly hard to escape and it can lead to severe depression. This is where tinnitus can be linked to our limbic system and how we physiologically react.

I am never pounding my chest. There's a difference between wanting to help others (when you live with the condition yourself) by telling a positive story and pounding one's chest. If that's how you all see it then I give up.

Do not put words in my mouth.

I was talking about another poster...not you...and NO I'm not calling for censorship...

Read or re-read my posts above again if you have to.

I'm not sure how you figured I don't want you to post here.

There is nothing wrong with your posts, they are usually informative and well put together.

Again you are drawing some rather big assumptions here.

 

[fishbone]

What is done is done. Are you ever going to move forward? My ears are ringing like hell and the hearing is pure garbage, but I have moved forward. I hate the fact that I don't have a gf and being lonely sucks bad, I have met a new gal and I am going to take her out possibly. I am moving forward. This is VERY hard to do and I honestly have no energy for this at all.

Hey man, you keep this mentality, it will hold you back for a LONG time. I am just being honest, here. You have been afflicted it, i get it. If you do not move forward and actually help yourself, then you will continue being like this. Tinnitus is horrible it is, but if WE LET IT, we can possibly have habituation, we can cope and we can for sure move forward and live our lives.

The choice is yours and I'm sure i'll not get a reply to my post as usual too.........

 

[Autumnly]

If 10% of the world population has chronic tinnitus and only 1% of them have severe, debilitating cases, then that's still 7.6 million people. Do you (not directed at anyone specifically) know how many people globally are estimated to have multiple sclerosis? 2.3 million, which is not to say that MS isn't a severe condition, a dear friend of mine has it, but this idea that only a few handfuls of people are suffering from severe tinnitus is simply wrong. You oftentimes hear '99% habituates", but that doesn't actually mean that much when it comes to a condition as common as tinnitus.

Also, oftentimes acute tinnitus and chronic tinnitus are being lumped together. Perhaps it gets better for most people during the first year but for how many people with chronic tinnitus does it get worse again within, e.g. ten years?

But I still hope Bam's situation and other members' situations will improve. I have a five year plan but I don't know what will come afterwards if nothing is being found for tinnitus during that time. Yes, I'm still alive and I'm trying my best to move forward (if you want to call it that), but that doesn't mean my life isn't heavily limited or that I'm living well. It is what it is, but it fades in comparions to what it could have been without these health issues.

 

[Ed209]

Do not put words in my mouth.

I was talking about another poster...not you...and NO I'm not calling for censorship...

Read or re-read my posts above again if you have to.

I'm not sure how you figured I don't want you to post here.

There is nothing wrong with your posts, they are usually informative and well put together.

Again you are drawing some rather big assumptions here.

Your reply directly to me spoke about calling people drama queens and beating my chest. Anyway, I give up. I've got other major stuff going on in my life and it seems the tinnitus community just don't want to help themselves, and I can't see this changing anytime soon. There just aren't enough people helping the cause.