Just Got What I Believe to Be Tinnitus... What Should I Do Immediately to Help?

[gjhello]

Thank you in advance!

 

[Dr. Nagler]

Just got what I believe to be tinnitus... What should I do immediately to help?
Thank you in advance!

Great question. The problem is that if you ask ten knowledgeable individuals, you will get ten different very good answers.

So with that said, I will give you my own honest but admittedly biased answer.

I have had tinnitus since 1994 and taking into consideration all that I have learned since (as a tinnitus sufferer, as a tinnitus clinician, and as an educator of tinnitus clinicians), my number one recommendation to those who have just developed tinnitus would be to stay away from sites like this one - especially early on. Don't get me wrong: there is good information to be had here. But there is also a tremendous amount of bad information to be had here. And since it all makes sense - especially to a tinnitus newbie - more often than not you will be led astray by what you read. Why? Because support sites are predominately populated by people who are not doing well with their tinnitus (or they would not be on support sites in the first place) - so you wind up getting information about what to do and what not to do from just about the worst source imaginable. Moreover, you cannot help but believe that not doing well is par for the course since most everybody around you on the board is still looking for support and answers themselves ... when in fact the vast majority of people with tinnitus do quite well indeed.

Let me conclude by telling you that a lot of very good people devote a staggering amount of time to this site. It starts with @Markku, @Steve, and the rest of the Staff - and it also includes many many Team members and regular members (like me!) Tinnitus Talk is an extraordinary undertaking and a valuable source of support. But I believe to my core that it is just about the worst possible place that a tinnitus newbie can land. And when you write, "Just got what I believe to be tinnitus... What should I do immediately to help?" that's exactly what you are: a tinnitus newbie.

Now I realize that my response above may not be well-received by some. In fact, no doubt some here will vehemently disagree. Since the Doctors' Corner does not allow for discussion, I have started a thread on the same topic at

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/just-got-what-i-believe-to-be-tinnitus.10033/

I hope it will generate some valuable suggestions in terms of what people who are new to tinnitus can do to make things easier for themselves.

Best to all.

Dr. Stephen Nagler