Nearly 5 Months In. Should I Give Up Hope of My Tinnitus Going Away?

[Chase G]

So back in December I had a concussion and the tinnitus set in a few days later. I've been to 2 ENTs, had my hearing checked and they said that it was in the normal range. I've never had a hearing test before this so it's hard to know if I have any hearing loss.

I'm nearly 5 months in now, and the tinnitus varies a lot. Right now it is very quiet, probably a 2 or 3. But sometimes it goes as high as a 5 or 6. Should I give up hope of it going away and just deal with it, or do I still have hope for it to fade completely?

 

[fishbone]

6 to 12 months can possibly give you a better picture than 5 months. At 5 months you are still very early in your tinnitus journey. Just protect your ears and keep your stress low. There is no telling how tinnitus will re-act and behave, just see how things go as time passes...

 

[Digital Doc]

I am about 7 months in, and I go from a 1-2 on a good day, up to a 4-5 on a bad day when I get no sleep, and get some incidental noise exposure. These days I am having more of these good days, which I am very thankful for.

I have not given up hope of my T going away, so why should anyone else?

 

[coffee_girl]

They say after 6 months you have a high chance of it being permanent. But don't panic, it can at least get quieter with each passing year.

 

[Bill Bauer]

They say after 6 months you have a high chance of it being permanent.

8. You might hear that if your T doesn't go away in 6 months, it is permanent. That is a myth. "Six months" is just a time interval that insurance companies use to classify a condition as being chronic. It has no medical basis.

Multiple sources seem to use "2 years" as their rule of thumb. See, for example
https://www.ncrar.research.va.gov/Education/Documents/TinnitusDocuments/01_HenryPTM-HB_1-10.pdf
"A general guideline is that tinnitus of at least 12 months duration has a high likelihood of being a permanent condition (Dobie, 2004b). However, it also has been suggested that a person must have experienced tinnitus for at least two years before it should be considered permanent (Vernon, 1996)."

If your T keeps fading but is still audible 2 years after onset, there is no reason to think that it will stop fading after 2 years.
It will most likely continue fading. A number of members of this forum had stated that the first time they got tinnitus, they eventually got to hear silence after 12-18 months. This is evidence contradicting the statement above from that Dobbie 2004 study.

What matters is the monthly trend. If your tinnitus is quieter now than it was three months ago, there is no reason why it shouldn't continue to fade, and eventually get to the "can hear it only in quiet rooms" stage.

 

[PureNoise]

What matters is the monthly trend. If your tinnitus is quieter now than it was three months ago, there is no reason why it shouldn't continue to fade, and eventually get to the "can hear it only in quiet rooms" stage.

I can pretty much only hear mine in quiet rooms at the moment 4 months in. But it's loud enough in quiet rooms that I need sound enrichment / masking because it's annoyingly disturbing. Hearing it in only quiet rooms at this level is a goal for most?

Like when you say that do you mean you hear it faintly in quiet rooms? Where you can almost easily ignore it? Because that's a good target.

 

[Bill Bauer]

Hearing it in only quiet rooms at this level is a goal for most?

Yes, normally people take 1-2 years to get there. If you got there this early, hopefully you will get to hear silence again. Alternatively, it might continue to soften and fade until it is a lot easier to ignore.

 

[PureNoise]

Yes, normally people take 1-2 years to get there. If you got there this early, hopefully you will get to hear silence again. Alternatively, it might continue to soften and fade until it is a lot easier to ignore.

I had severe T at onset. That's gone now.

I had a dramatic decrease over the past 6 weeks where before it was super loud. It stayed at that lower volume for a few weeks and then I heard almost silence in my apartment 5 days ago. That was huge. It was for like half a day 2x.

Then I got a hangover and used headphones on low volume for 6 hours <for a sound therapy I returned> and got a spike where it's now loud enough to bother me in a quiet room so I need continuous sound enrichment / masking to block it. I'm pretty sure this spike will go down.

Outside today I only heard it a bit quietly in an Uber car at a stop sign no radio on and in a quiet bathroom. After a regular coffee I started to hear it faintly in public in a quiet building waiting area with 2 people talking... so coffee definitely makes it louder for me.

It's pretty audibly loud to be annoying and effect concentration / my mood a lot in a quiet room now... I need to mask it. 4-5 days ago I was sitting in silence in a quiet room and barely heard it literally first time I had to search for it.

I'm hoping those 2 days of quieter where I had to search for tinnitus and barely heard it are a sign it might return to that.

I'm hoping to hear silence at 1 year, who knows. I'm avoiding all loud noises and places. Doubt it will be gone by 6 months though.

 

[Chase G]

Yes, normally people take 1-2 years to get there. If you got there this early, hopefully you will get to hear silence again. Alternatively, it might continue to soften and fade until it is a lot easier to ignore.

Why does tinnitus fluctuate so much for some? I have had entire weeks where it was barely audible but it seems to always come back. I'm walking around my dead quiet house right now and it's like a 2 and has been for about 3 days.

 

[Digital Doc]

Why does tinnitus fluctuate so much for some? I have had entire weeks where it was barely audible but it seems to always come back. I'm walking around my dead quiet house right now and it's like a 2 and has been for about 3 days.

Mine seems to fluctuate quite a bit during each day. In most cases nothing triggers this AFAIK. I have figured not to panic when it gets louder, as it will go down.

On bad days, I try to go to bed on time, and with my earplugs in at night, it always is reduced by morning. The other morning, it was so quiet I was not sure if it was still there or not when I first woke up, although it certainly was throughout the following day.

 

[Bill Bauer]

Why does tinnitus fluctuate so much for some? I have had entire weeks where it was barely audible but it seems to always come back.

Some people are sensitive to noise - they expose themselves to noises that used to be safe (e.g., the noise of a vacuum cleaner) and then get spikes. Otherwise, daily fluctuations are just very volatile. What this means is that one should ignore the daily fluctuations and focus on the monthly trend. How one feels from month to month is less variable than what happens on a daily basis. If one's T is quieter compared to how it was 3 months ago, chances are that it will continue fading.

Then I got a hangover and used headphones on low volume for 6 hours <for a sound therapy I returned> and got a spike where it's now loud enough to bother me in a quiet room

Learn from your mistake and be more careful next time. Your spike ought to go down, but we get only a limited number of second chances...

 

[PureNoise]

Learn from your mistake and be more careful next time. Your spike ought to go down, but we get only a limited number of second chances...

I noticed now that I wear ear muffs on the subway and near loud downtown noise exposures (loud unexpected construction gave me ear pain and I put them on immediately) my tinnitus is less piercing when I get home. At least a little less.

So I think I was getting mini spikes from the subway before when I didn't protect and from some loud noises downtown.

I've messed up with spikes so many times these first 4 months it's insane. Nothing like a concert but still. I'm starting to learn right now that my ears are compromised and I need to protect them in these situations to hopefully get to silence again one day.

 

[Bill Bauer]

I'm starting to learn right now that my ears are compromised and I need to protect them in these situations to hopefully get to silence again one day.

I had arrived at the same conclusion.

 

[coffee_girl]

Even after a few years my ears are still healing, there is always hope... =]

 

[PureNoise]

Even after a few years my ears are still healing, there is always hope... =]

We're you suffering like ready to pull your hair out in quiet rooms during the first 4-6 months? My tinnitus spiked recently and it's like a month of progress is gone and it's hellish again.

I can try to mask it or use sound enrichment but it just pierces through everything or gets added to the masking sound... it's loud in a quiet room and it's also the pitch it's hard to ignore it's so invasive.

I was able to sit in a silent room a week ago and for the first time ever barely heard it or it was ignored a lot easier. Then the spike and it's just constant in a quiet room and horrible. Don't hear it much outside, sometimes in a quiet car or after a coffee in a quiet building with a few people talking (but it's not perceived loud there).

 

[coffee_girl]

We're you suffering like ready to pull your hair out in quiet rooms during the first 4-6 months? My tinnitus spiked recently and it's like a month of progress is gone and it's hellish again.

I can try to mask it or use sound enrichment but it just pierces through everything or gets added to the masking sound... it's loud in a quiet room and it's also the pitch it's hard to ignore it's so invasive.

I was able to sit in a silent room a week ago and for the first time ever barely heard it or it was ignored a lot easier. Then the spike and it's just constant in a quiet room and horrible. Don't hear it much outside, sometimes in a quiet car or after a coffee in a quiet building with a few people talking (but it's not perceived loud there).

Yes I was devastated the first 6 months... everything was hell, I had extremely dark thoughts... and quality of life took a major dip. I didn't fully habituate until the 8 month mark. Honestly your tinnitus sounds shockingly similar to mine... like identical. I masked my tinnitus for one night and never did it again. My tinnitus sound is familiar to me now, and it never changes.

 

[PureNoise]

Yes I was devastated the first 6 months... everything was hell, i had extremely dark thoughts... and quality of life took a major dip. I didn't fully habituate until the 8 month mark. Honestly your tinnitus sounds shockingly similar to mine... like identical. I masked my tinnitus for one night and never did it again. My tinnitus sound is familiar to me now, and it never changes.

Quality of life currently destroyed. Sitting in silence in my apartment makes me anxious cause I hear it so loud and clearly. I try to always have cricket sounds or some rain app on, sounds I hate to hear but I hate tinnitus sounds more. How do I concentrate with this noise...

An ear doctor specialist told me to never sit in silence though always have a noise app on. I can never see myself habituating to the current loudness level in a quiet room. It was so much quieter a week ago... and the 2-3 weeks before that.

I think this spike is from a hangover and some headphone usage (never again). But it's lasted for 5 days now...

I just really hope it goes back down in volume and fades to close to where you are or where I had it a week ago. Can a hangover spike last for a while and be a lot lot louder than baseline?

Do you hear near silence in quiet rooms now and only really hear it before bed?

I hope by 8-12 months it will be A LOT better, quieter and that life will go back to normal. I highly doubt with this loudness at 4.5 months that it's going to go away and it's constant. And was very severe like extremely severe the first 2.5 months.

My idea of habituating is: I can hardly hear it in a quiet room and can ignore it and am not bothered by it and it doesn't effect my concentration/mood.

Thing is I can't ignore it when it's this loud... it's so high pitched at the moment it's shocking. It's like a machine is ringing from my ears/head. Had a beer and major spike. Even before that... loud. I sat in silence a week ago and sorta heard it only a bit could maybe even ignore it.

If it can return to where it was a week ago and keep fading... I might be able to live a good life while having tinnitus.

Yeah our tinnitus sounds similar. I hope for my sake I see similar results as you.

 

[coffee_girl]

Quality of life currently destroyed. Sitting in silence in my apartment makes me anxious cause I hear it so loud and clearly. I try to always have cricket sounds or some rain app on, sounds I hate to hear but I hate tinnitus sounds more. How do I concentrate with this noise...

Thing is I can't ignore it when it's this loud... it's so high pitched at the moment it's shocking. It's like a machine is ringing from my ears/head. Had a beer and major spike. Even before that... loud. I sat in silence a week ago and sorta heard it only a bit could maybe even ignore it.

If it can return to where it was a week ago and keep fading... I might be able to live a good life while having tinnitus.

Yeah our tinnitus sounds similar. I hope for my sake I see similar results as you.

You are probably having major anxiety when you are alone in a quiet room, this will magnify your tinnitus and make you perceive it to be louder than it is. Stress increases tinnitus volume, even when I get really stressed (usually only over tinnitus) I can hear my tinnitus and it is a 4/10... it is more shrill and high pitch as well.

Your doctor is probably correct, you should always have the masking sounds on to help with anxiety. It's normal to have setbacks, people underestimate the body's ability to recover... not all is lost. If I count on my hands how many times "accidental exposures" have happened to me... I should be deaf by now. And yes I can only hear my tinnitus in silent rooms, I don't hear it at night any more because my dog sleeps near me and her breathing masks it. I think you will be ok friend!

 

[Skynet5]

I got T onset just after labyrintitis.
Been 4-5 weeks of T, 7 weeks since the labyrintitis.

I get good days, but quite a few bad days. I also get a fullness in both ears.. That's more frustrating than the ringing for me.

 

[SteveShield]

T x5 months.... everyone has T for different reasons, not one is the same, from the eardrum to the inner and middle ear, cochlea, aud. nerve, midbrain, auditory cortex, thalmus, hypothalmus, hormones affecting nerve receptors, ... and YES, there is always hope, the body wants to heal, but in its good time!.... all you can do is do your best to take care of yourself, diet, exercise, keep stress down, THAT'S IT!!! ...Time will heal... no one has a crystal ball... don't get me wrong, If I had answers I'd be rich, cause this T just sucks!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[PaulBe]

Should I give up hope of it going away and just deal with it, or do I still have hope for it to fade completely?

You shouldn't give up all hope, but you should also plan for the reality that it most likely won't go away.

 

[PureNoise]

You are probably having major anxiety when you are alone in a quiet room, this will magnify your tinnitus and make you perceive it to be louder than it is. Stress increases tinnitus volume, even when I get really stressed (usually only over tinnitus) I can hear my tinnitus and it is a 4/10... it is more shrill and high pitch as well.

Your doctor is probably correct, you should always have the masking sounds on to help with anxiety. It's normal to have setbacks, people underestimate the body's ability to recover... not all is lost. If I count on my hands how many times "accidental exposures" have happened to me... I should be deaf by now. And yes I can only hear my tinnitus in silent rooms, I don't hear it at night any more because my dog sleeps near me and her breathing masks it. I think you will be ok friend!

Thanks for the feedback. Yeah til it gets quieter music or sounds on 24/7. Low volume on my phone.

I'm on an anti anxiety med daily and as soon as my Dr lowered the dose as of last night and boom tinnitus got louder. I'm really scared the second I get off it one day all progress will be gone and it will just get loud again. Back at usual dose and it's not as loud today. Maybe extreme anxiety can make the tinnitus MUCH louder?

I remember you saying yours was 9/10 for a few months. Was it still really loud at 6 months and about how loud was it at 8 months when you habituated? Like at 8 months how loud was it in quiet rooms?

I'm wondering when things just started getting so quiet that you barely heard it in a quiet room or it was very faint.

How loud was yours in quiet rooms at one year compared to now?

What you wrote in your success story was that it took a huge amount of suffering to get to where you were 1-2 years later. I'm doing what I can to get through the tough times.

 

[Bill Bauer]

It was so much quieter a week ago... and the 2-3 weeks before that.

I think this spike is from a hangover and some headphone usage (never again). But it's lasted for 5 days now...

Temporary spikes can last longer than three months. It should begin fading within the next month. Don't worry!

 

[PureNoise]

Temporary spikes can last longer than three months. It should begin fading within the next month. Don't worry!

Thanks Bill. This condition is horrible. My hope is that I wait it out and protect my ears and in 1-2 years I can only hear it faintly in quiet rooms. Because living 60+ years with moderately loud tinnitus seems impossible to me. This is such a huge spike in volume from where I was.

I'm gonna try taking NAC and see what it does for me

 

[Don Tinny]

My first tinnitus problem lasted 26 monts, more than 2 years. Only left a mild tinnitus level. It came back severe because I´m autodestructive / stupid.

 

[PureNoise]

My first tinnitus problem lasted 26 monts, more than 2 years. Only left a mild tinnitus level. It came back severe because I´m autodestructive / stupid.

And it never started to fade back down again to where it was before?

 

[Don Tinny]

And it never started to fade back down again to where it was before?

No. It only fluctuates in volume and pitch. But no real improvement.

 

[Mila9828]

You are probably having major anxiety when you are alone in a quiet room, this will magnify your tinnitus and make you perceive it to be louder than it is. Stress increases tinnitus volume, even when I get really stressed (usually only over tinnitus) I can hear my tinnitus and it is a 4/10... it is more shrill and high pitch as well.

Your doctor is probably correct, you should always have the masking sounds on to help with anxiety. It's normal to have setbacks, people underestimate the body's ability to recover... not all is lost. If I count on my hands how many times "accidental exposures" have happened to me... I should be deaf by now. And yes I can only hear my tinnitus in silent rooms, I don't hear it at night any more because my dog sleeps near me and her breathing masks it. I think you will be ok friend!

Do you think stress can cause your hearing to feel decreased as well?