Poll: Does Focusing on Your Tinnitus Make It Louder (or at Least Seem to)?

[JasonP]

Do you think focusing on your tinnitus makes it louder? Please answer this question based on your personal experiences.

 

[dpdx]

God, I hate this damn question. My audiologist said the same thing..the answer is NO. He said stress and anxiety make it worse. NOT TRUE!
When I had MIld T back in December I paid attention to it daily and listened for it, did it increase it? NOPE. I also had immense stress and anxiety back then and didnt sleep some nights. Did my massive stress and anxiety increase tinnitus? NOPE When I did the caloric/vemp test tinnitus sky rocketed from 2/1o to 8/10 back in January and stayed since. Afterwards I did an audiogram where my hearing dropped from 5db to 25db on 4khz, this drop in hearing was not attributed to the tests but to stress according to my audiologist.

 

[sirhand]

My perceived T level is tied to my mood. If I get annoyed, frustrated or angry all of a sudden I hear my T. If I focus on my T I get annoyed, frustrated and angry. So focusing doesn't directly make it worse, but indirectly it does. I must stay zen.

 

[TuneOut]

He said stress and anxiety make it worse. NOT TRUE!

It's true. It took me a long time to accept this myself. I didn't want to believe it.

 

[David077]

Does not make it louder, but more noticeable.