Announcement Rounding Up 2021 with Some Good News

[Tinnitus Talk]

"Jingle bells, jingle bells…" Do you enjoy Christmas songs or hate them? Are you looking forward to a nice holiday with family or dreading it? Does your tinnitus or hyperacusis affect how you will be spending your holidays?

It's supposed to be a festive season, but we know not everyone feels that way. Fear not, we are here to try and lift your spirits as we approach the end of the year, with three (or four?) good news stories about tinnitus from 2021.

​

​

On behalf of the Tinnitus Talk team, we hope you will all have the best time possible, whatever your circumstances might be, and wish you nothing but good things for 2022!

 

[Starthrower]

Thank you @Hazel and @Markku.

The personal time you have spent over the past ten years for the tinnitus and hyperacusis community is awesome.

My husband listened to your message above and I explained all this is done without any profit whatsoever and you both spend time (along with the volunteers) to bring the information to and provide this Tinnitus Talk forum for everyone.

When opportunity and preparation cross paths the result is, success.

Wonderful positive message Hazel. My husband said "wow she is so pretty and young" and she does all this work?

Have a great holiday!

 

[Damocles]

"Jingle bells, jingle bells…" Do you enjoy Christmas songs or hate them?

Favourite Christmas Songs? | Tinnitus Talk Support Forum

Need I say more?

Are you looking forward to a nice holiday with family or dreading it?

Looking forward to. However I've got several mouth ulcers/canker sores (one of them on my tongue) at the moment; which are threatening to ruin my appreciation of my Mum's amazing cooking, and the hard work of chocolatiers and bakers throughout the country.

Does your tinnitus or hyperacusis affect how you will be spending your holidays?

Nah, not really. It makes me want to escape the larger parties with my extended family all the sooner, but the lower-key Christmases with my immediate family were always my favourites anyway.

So I guess all that's left for me to say is:

Merry Christmas everyone on the forum and all the team at Tinnitus Talk/Hub!

 

[star-affinity]

Thanks for the video @Hazel!

A thought I've been having is that I think it would be good to have a "new to tinnitus" section on the first page of tinnitustalk.com with some tips of what to do and don't do when being new to tinnitus.

I'm thinking many is finding the site in some kind of panic looking for support and in my case I'd be happy if someone would say to take it easy with masking the tinnitus with music and sound when sleeping. In my case, after five months of tinnitus that was annoying at times but barely a problem during the day, managed to get a new tinnitus sound and some hearing loss at that – this condition is much worse than my previous sounds.

It can be comforting listening to music when going to sleep with tinnitus, but it's not worth it if there's a risk of getting hearing damage and a new tinnitus sound. Set a timer. Let the ears rest. Even relatively low volume music and sounds can cause damage in the long term.

This I wish someone would have told me – there are almost only warnings of loud volume sounds. I now can fall asleep without any audio by my side except my tinnitus sounds.

Thanks to all att Tinnitus Talk for all your work and happy holidays and happy new 2022!

 

[Kevin Killion]

Hi! Thank you for the upbeat stories at Christmastime.

But I'm surprised you haven't included this story: I think one of the most exciting developments of this year, and indeed in decades, is the tremendous work being done by Dr. Mehrnaz Shoushtarian at the Bionics Institute in Melbourne. You interviewed her in February of this year. I find her progress to be nothing short of breathtaking. After 40 years of living with tinnitus, to learn of someone developing possibilities for objective measurement is stunning. It would be marvelous to really be able to see what treatments, meds or experiences can help tinnitus and which can worsen it, through objective and measurable techniques.

Just think of those long, long, long lists of possibly ototoxic meds, for example. The ATA's list is 18 pages, with some 80 meds on each page, so it's hard to find anything at all that is not on their list. Also, it gives no sense of whether a report of a tinnitus side effect occurs often or rarely, and if it is slight or severe. And since this damn stuff is so totally subjective (for now), how can we trust reports of tinnitus as a side effect from small numbers of people?

It's thrilling to imagine how the work by Dr. Shoushtarian and others may lead to objectively measuring whether some course of medication (or diet, or other treatment) affects tinnitus, for good or bad, and whether the effect is mild or severe, temporary or chronic. It would be a marvel to trim that ATA doorstop of a document down to medications that actually are of concern (or of promise). So, was it that new medication that worsened my tinnitus? Or what might actually help? Someday someone will be able to study that using techniques like this! And THAT is a BIG news story!

 

[Barry098]

Thank you @Hazel and @Markku.

In a world filled with people trying to take advantage and capitalize on other's grief, your true commitment to helping people who are suffering is a beacon of light.

Hope you both have a relaxing holiday.

 

[apple core]

Thank you for doing this as small as it may be. Positivity, positivity, positivity.

 

[AbeS]

I enjoyed the video. Thank you!

 

[Óscar PP]

Thank you Hazel and Markku. Merry Christmas everyone!

 

[Sugar_Boy]

OTO-313 is the most promising drug?

 

[Ddrhl]

I would like to know if there is a master list of reputable clinical trials by geographical location? I am in the Bay Area and would gladly volunteer. I nearly never have silence in my life (except for a few seconds with a tone generator) and would jump at the chance. Thanks