Tinnitus from Conjunctivitis

[Lane]

I did also take two Benadryls last night

Hi @AnonymousHamster -- Just to mention, Benadryl can cause or exacerbate tinnitus. I suspect it's fairly rare, but wanted to at least mention it--just in case...

 

[Joe Cuber]

Hey @AnonymousHamster, you've given me a couple of ideas that I've been meaning to try out, thanks.

I've been meaning to try out using a humidifier during the day. I read a post by someone who said that they took a trip to South America, and they said their tinnitus went away while down there and they couldn't figure it out why. I suspected it was the change in humidity. Also, a friend of mine who has variable tinnitus went on a trip to Sweden, and he said that his tinnitus went away while there and came back when he returned. It turns out that Mucinex helps him reduce his tinnitus a lot. Do, again, I'm suspecting a change in humidity, perhaps affecting his sinuses or his Eustachian tubes.

Another thing I've been meaning to try is Sudafed. I used to take Sudafed when I had allergy attacks, but I haven't taken any since my tinnitus onset. But I had it in the back of my mind to try it on one of my loud days to see if it has an effect (and try Mucinex too, because why not )

Anyway, thanks for the ideas, I'll give them a shot.

Staying positive has been a struggle. But I'm doing my best!

Keep it up, progress isn't linear.

 

[AnonymousHamster]

Hi @AnonymousHamster -- Just to mention, Benadryl can cause or exacerbate tinnitus. I suspect it's fairly rare, but wanted to at least mention it--just in case...

Thanks for the heads up. I won't be using it much longer anyhow. But I don't believe it's making anything worse as some of my better days took place after taking it for sleep.

I'm having a really bad day today. Had horrible sleep. Feeling quite sad. That's why I haven't been posting much.

Hey @AnonymousHamster, you've given me a couple of ideas that I've been meaning to try out, thanks.

I've been meaning to try out using a humidifier during the day. I read a post by someone who said that they took a trip to South America, and they said their tinnitus went away while down there and they couldn't figure it out why. I suspected it was the change in humidity. Also, a friend of mine who has variable tinnitus went on a trip to Sweden, and he said that his tinnitus went away while there and came back when he returned. It turns out that Mucinex helps him reduce his tinnitus a lot. Do, again, I'm suspecting a change in humidity, perhaps affecting his sinuses or his Eustachian tubes.

Another thing I've been meaning to try is Sudafed. I used to take Sudafed when I had allergy attacks, but I haven't taken any since my tinnitus onset. But I had it in the back of my mind to try it on one of my loud days to see if it has an effect (and try Mucinex too, because why not )

Anyway, thanks for the ideas, I'll give them a shot.

@Joe Cuber, I hope some of those things help. Sometimes I think they help me, other times I don't. Today is one of those days I feel I can't win. It's fluctuated in volume from my base volume to higher and back to base a few times. Yesterday it was really quiet for a decent portion of the morning. Heck at one point I thought it was gone! It was probably just super low. Today has just been horrible. I'm losing my mind and feeling defeated again.

I'll be 5 weeks Tuesday coming up. I keep telling myself in this thread and to my wife that the fluctuations have to be signs that this is temporary. But man when it's up in volume, it's hard. Today I took a nap because my sleep was so terrible last night and it actually got louder.

Tomorrow is the audiologist and then calling my doctor to see a more qualified or at least caring ENT.

I wish everyone luck. I will keep updating my status. I really appreciate everyone here. I know I keep saying that.

Lastly, if things do indeed get better I'll be posting my log and what I did and went through to get better. I won't just disappear. I only take days off here due to depression getting to me.

Thanks again guys.

 

[Lane]

Today I took a nap because my sleep was so terrible last night and it actually got louder.

That's something that happens to a lot of people with tinnitus. I nap daily, and sometimes my tinnitus is 2x-3x louder when I wake up. That's the case even if I only manage to nap about 5 minutes or so. It usually takes 1-3 hours for it to recede again back to baseline. It seems like usually the longer I nap, the less the spike.

 

[AnonymousHamster]

I'm thinking of grabbing an antihistamine today after my audiologist appointment. I'm going to stop Benadryl at bedtime. I'm using Olbas oil when I steam rather than Eucalyptus. I'm taking Advil regularly.

Last night before bed I steamed with Eucalyptus. Took 2 Advils, 2 Benadryls, a Lorazepam and did a saline spray (this one shoots up with a button and feels like a Neti pot but I choke less, it says it has no additives.). My tinnitus was quieter last night and quieter for the first 3 hours I was awake too.

Edit - decided against the antihistamine since I read they can dry stuff up. Just going to stick with nadal steroid spray, saline spray, advil, and steam with olbas oil and hope for the best.

 

[Joe Cuber]

Hey @AnonymousHamster - A lot of what you're describing about your current experience is something I can relate with a lot. Allow me to react to what you're saying in hopes it can help you:

Sometimes I think they help me, other times I don't. Today is one of those days I feel I can't win. It's fluctuated in volume from my base volume to higher and back to base a few times.

A big challenge with intermittent/fluctuating tinnitus is figuring out what is correlated and what is coincidental. You can try so many things, but only with time will you be able to see some patterns. For instance, I'm 7 months in, and I can finally tell that inactivity during the day is predictive of a bad day the next day.

Yesterday it was really quiet for a decent portion of the morning. Heck at one point I thought it was gone! It was probably just super low. Today has just been horrible. I'm losing my mind and feeling defeated again.

Man, I know that rollercoaster. The swings can floor you. The quiet days can make the loud days twice as rough, dashing any built up hope. I've thing that's helped me is recognizing the pattern over time. With mine, I know about the rate of good days to bad. The pattern becomes the new normal that I can anticipate.

I'll be 5 weeks Tuesday coming up. I keep telling myself in this thread and to my wife that the fluctuations have to be signs that this is temporary.

5 weeks is early on. Underlying your thoughts here is an inference that you think it ought to clear up soon. It may do just that or it may linger for quite a bit longer. One thing I've learned in my CBT course is to look out for "should statements", like, "This should be over soon" or, "I ought to be getting better by now." These are called cognitive distortions and as the CBT theory goes, this kind of thinking can lead to unhelpful emotional reactions. Trying to balance your thoughts based on facts and rational thoughts can help, like, "I'd like this to over soon, but it might take longer than I like. I see that people tend to improve over time, either because their symptoms improve or they become more resilient. I'll just take this a day at a time."

I really appreciate everyone here. I know I keep saying that.

No worries, we're just here looking out for each other.

Lastly, if things do indeed get better I'll be posting my log and what I did and went through to get better. I won't just disappear. I only take days off here due to depression getting to me.

Take as much time as you need, post when you're up for it. We'll be around.

 

[AnonymousHamster]

Hey @AnonymousHamster - A lot of what you're describing about your current experience is something I can relate with a lot. Allow me to react to what you're saying in hopes it can help you:

A big challenge with intermittent/fluctuating tinnitus is figuring out what is correlated and what is coincidental. You can try so many things, but only with time will you be able to see some patterns. For instance, I'm 7 months in, and I can finally tell that inactivity during the day is predictive of a bad day the next day.

Man, I know that rollercoaster. The swings can floor you. The quiet days can make the loud days twice as rough, dashing any built up hope. I've thing that's helped me is recognizing the pattern over time. With mine, I know about the rate of good days to bad. The pattern becomes the new normal that I can anticipate.

5 weeks is early on. Underlying your thoughts here is an inference that you think it ought to clear up soon. It may do just that or it may linger for quite a bit longer. One thing I've learned in my CBT course is to look out for "should statements", like, "This should be over soon" or, "I ought to be getting better by now." These are called cognitive distortions and as the CBT theory goes, this kind of thinking can lead to unhelpful emotional reactions. Trying to balance your thoughts based on facts and rational thoughts can help, like, "I'd like this to over soon, but it might take longer than I like. I see that people tend to improve over time, either because their symptoms improve or they become more resilient. I'll just take this a day at a time."

No worries, we're just here looking out for each other.

Take as much time as you need, post when you're up for it. We'll be around.

Quick questions: have you noticed your tinnitus is lower overall since it started? Has it ever gone away completely?

For me the answers are: yes, it's lower than the first week and a half. And yes, it's gone away completely (or at least super close to it that I thought it did) a few times for a couple of minutes and once for an hour or two.

Also, I've honed in on the regimen I'm going to follow for the next while. I'm going to start each day with my steroid spray after a hot shower. Then I'll take some Advil for inflammation a couple times a day. I'll use a saline spray throughout the day too. The saline spray I have now shoots out and gives me the feeling of a Neti pot with less choking lol. I'll be quitting the Benadryl and only taking Melatonin to sleep at night with Advil again. I've been trying to sleep elevated or at least on my non-tinnitus ear. I'll also keep up with inhaling steam. Though I do plan on switching to Olbas oil later today when I grab some. I've been using Eucalyptus.

Your comments on CBT make sense. I have been expecting a certain timeline. While it may not be a perfect change of course attitude wise, I won't give a specific timeline. Rather, I will just take note of the positives and remind myself the probability of this going away is very high and that I just need to take care of myself. Including being more active like you suggested.

This morning I'm more positive. After steaming, using saline, taking Benadryl and Advil last night I woke up to a much lower volume. It didn't return to baseline for about 3 hours. Which is an improvement over yesterday even at baseline.

Thanks again guys.

 

[Joe Cuber]

Quick questions: have you noticed your tinnitus is lower overall since it started? Has it ever gone away completely?

Yes, overall, mine is less severe than when it first started. In the early days, I had a few really loud screeching days, I thought I was going to lose my mind. I was well into suicidal ideation. Other than when I had COVID-19 about 2 1/2 months in, I haven't had a day like that since, although I still do have really annoying days.

And, yes, mine goes away entirely on the order of every other day. In general, I get either a whole day of silence or a whole day of loudness. It switches in my sleep. (It's actually a little more complicated than that because I also have reactivity that comes and goes independently, but that's another story.)

I've been trying to sleep elevated or at least on my non-tinnitus ear

I tried many positions. Sleeping elevated works poorly for me, since I have sleep apnea. Obstructed breathing is correlated with bad days for me. I've learned that sleeping on my back or on my bad-ear side work best for me. So, when I sleep on my side, I put a pillow speaker and lay on it with my bad ear so I can mask with nature sounds. Sleeping on my good-ear side is correlated with bad days. This is why I think my tinnitus has something to do with my neck and/or inflammation or fluid flow.

Your comments on CBT make sense. I have been expecting a certain timeline. While it may not be a perfect change of course attitude wise, I won't give a specific timeline. Rather, I will just take note of the positives and remind myself the probability of this going away is very high and that I just need to take care of myself. Including being more active like you suggested.

That sounds like a constructive approach

 

[AnonymousHamster]

Yes, overall, mine is less severe than when it first started. In the early days, I had a few really loud screeching days, I thought I was going to lose my mind. I was well into suicidal ideation. Other than when I had COVID-19 about 2 1/2 months in, I haven't had a day like that since, although I still do have really annoying days.

And, yes, mine goes away entirely on the order of every other day. In general, I get either a whole day of silence or a whole day of loudness. It switches in my sleep. (It's actually a little more complicated than that because I also have reactivity that comes and goes independently, but that's another story.)

I tried many positions. Sleeping elevated works poorly for me, since I have sleep apnea. Obstructed breathing is correlated with bad days for me. I've learned that sleeping on my back or on my bad-ear side work best for me. So, when I sleep on my side, I put a pillow speaker and lay on it with my bad ear so I can mask with nature sounds. Sleeping on my good-ear side is correlated with bad days. This is why I think my tinnitus has something to do with my neck and/or inflammation or fluid flow.

That sounds like a constructive approach

I have sleep apnea as well. I use a CPAP machine as a result. Last night the filter went bad and caused a weird issue. It was making the one ventilation flap noisy. SLAP SLAP SLAP. Ugh. Fixed it but only near midnight.

So I saw my Audiologist yesterday and he was incredible. He said due to my symptoms and what the tests showed that he was 99.9 percent positive I had ETD from my illness(s). I originally got pink eye with sever congestion. And then a week or so ago a flu that was terrible. He believe the flu probably set me back on recovery which I don't doubt. According to my log I had no good days until 4 days after I had the worst symptoms. Since then I have been getting more and more good days.

The pressure in my ear was WAY off. However, after reviewing images, there was no damage or fluid. He also showed me my hearing test and explained it all in great detail. While I do have some hearing loss, the fantastic thing is that it is all still within the normal range! It is so minimal I barely notice it. I was very, very happy to have this confirmed. I'm also very happy to hear that the pressure was off. This correlates with the cracking I get and the off and on pressure I feel. So now I've been told it's ETD twice.

I'm not sure if I mentioned it before but I haven't been able to use a Neti pot or the electric variants either. Well, the audiologist showed me what he used. I picked one up right away. I used it later in the evening and I swear the volume went down some. I went to sleep so much easier outside of the CPAP issue lol. Upon awaking today the noise was MUCH lower still. I ended up doing my usual Omnaris nasal spray and a couple hours later I did the sinus rinse again. It's just a bottle you squeeze. I have to say "ahhhhhhhhh" while doing it or it goes in my throat. But it works. Well, the noise changed shortly after using it. Sadly it didn't go down. Instead it changed pitch to a higher pitch. It's now 1.30 pm here and the noise has returned to base level. I just did a steam inhalation with Olbas oil and it felt great. No change as of yet. Did some saline spray too and have also taken 2 Advils. I'll be doing 1 more sinus rinse later, another steam, and 2 more Advils before bed. No antihistamines or anything else.

The audiologist was betting the inflammation would be cleared up in about 2 weeks from his experience. He shared anecdotal stories to share why he believed this. I did clarify that it could take long so as to not get my hopes up! And he was clear that the tinnitus may go away with it, or it may linger for a while after until it goes away.

I think it's AWESOME you get completely silent days. I haven't had that as of yet. But now that I find I am getting more and more quieter moments I feel it's only a matter of time until I get silent moments again. And then maybe days! I didn't know there was such a thing as pillow speakers. I've spent a lot of money as of late so I'll explore it but won't get it for awhile lol.

If you still suspect inflammation, I really think you should try steam inhalation. The facial steamer I bought really seems to be helping. It was also only like $25 bucks Canadian. And the Olbas oil I switched to last night is incredible. I could feel the Eucalyptus open things up a tiny bit, but this is just... wow! The drainage afterwards is much better. Very excited to keep it up. I think it helps long term more than it helps in the immediate sense though. So I stick with it regardless of good or bad days.

Will keep updating. Thanks for sharing info!

EDIT:

I wanted to expand that the hearing loss is supposed to be temporary and is due to the pressure imbalance. It was very minimal. All in the normal range.

Also, I used your CBT advice in regards to not setting expectations. While it is indeed exciting that it could be approximately 2 weeks for the inflammation to clear up, I am trying to prepare myself as much as possible that it won't be. I don't have a history of this kind of thing. Last time I got backed up so much was 8 years ago and there was no tinnitus. Thanks again for the CBT advice. I'm trying my best. I think we both know I will be disappointed if it's not clear in 2 weeks. But at least I am not banking on it. I imagine I'd respond much worse if I were. Hopefully I'll be able to use your learned wisdom and be even more prepared when 2 weeks comes.

 

[Joe Cuber]

I have sleep apnea as well. I use a CPAP machine as a result. Last night the filter went bad and caused a weird issue. It was making the one ventilation flap noisy. SLAP SLAP SLAP. Ugh. Fixed it but only near midnight.

Hey there @AnonymousHamster - We have a lot in common, I use a CPAP machine as well. I didn't know the filters could go bad, glad you got it fixed.

While I do have some hearing loss, the fantastic thing is that it is all still within the normal range! It is so minimal I barely notice it.

Yet another thing in common. I also have hearing loss. In my case, I have mild/moderate hearing loss in the high frequencies in both ears (although my tinnitus is unilateral right). And as many say, hearing loss is often associated with onset of tinnitus. I hope your hearing loss is temporary. Mine is years in the making. It's quite noticeable when I'm trying to listen to someone in a noisy environment, which is why I've gotten hearing aids.

The audiologist was betting the inflammation would be cleared up in about 2 weeks from his experience. He shared anecdotal stories to share why he believed this. I did clarify that it could take long so as to not get my hopes up! And he was clear that the tinnitus may go away with it, or it may linger for a while after until it goes away.

That sounds super positive. I am truly hoping the inflammation goes down in short order and that your tinnitus guess with it. Glad you're trying to keep your hours in check too. Fingers crossed.

I think it's AWESOME you get completely silent days. I haven't had that as of yet. But now that I find I am getting more and more quieter moments I feel it's only a matter of time until I get silent moments again. And then maybe days!

I don't know if I mentioned it, but my fluctuation pattern has been daily since onset. It totally confused the hell out of me. One day completely loud, the next day silent. The next day completely loud, then silent... Fast forward to today and it's still like that, though I have more silent days than loud days now (at onset it was the other way around). I'm hoping you get quiet moments, then days, then weeks...

There's so many things to try. I hope you try out a pillow speaker at some point. That's one of my better purchases. I still use it nightly out of habit, whether it's a loud or quiet day. Thanks for the steaming tip, I'll have to give that a try. I also want to try GABA Calm. I see others have given that a try. I've been reading up on how intermittent tinnitus might be due to neurotransmitter issues, and so wanted to explore that more.

Thanks again for the CBT advice. I'm trying my best. I think we both know I will be disappointed if it's not clear in 2 weeks. But at least I am not banking on it. I imagine I'd respond much worse if I were. Hopefully I'll be able to use your learned wisdom and be even more prepared when 2 weeks comes.

Hey sure thing, I'm happy to talk about CBT more if you ever want to talk more about it. There's so much content in CBT to learn and practice. It's definitely one of those things that you have to keep applying to get the most out of it.

 

[Juan]

Conjunctivitis: was it viral or caused by bacteria?

 

[AnonymousHamster]

Conjunctivitis: was it viral or caused by bacteria?

At first they assumed viral. But then afterwards I was given antibiotics just in case (about a week after it started).

I have been sick 2x since this started too. So I have no idea if I would have healed up by now. I was starting to see some good days, then I got sick and had bad days. Then I started to see some good days once again, then I got SICK again and had bad days.

 

[Lane]

I have been sick 2x since this started too. So I have no idea if I would have healed up by now. I was starting to see some good days, then I got sick and had bad days. Then I started to see some good days once again, then I got SICK again and had bad days.

Hi @AnonymousHamster -- I read a book once that touched on the role of antibiotics in chronic disease. One Naturopathic Doctor discovered that as much as 90% of his patients with "chronic" illness had their illness start after a round (or more) of antibiotics. Unfortunately, when conventional doctors prescribe antibiotics, they seldom make sure the beneficial bacteria that's destroyed is replenished in some manner.

 

[AnonymousHamster]

Hey there @AnonymousHamster - We have a lot in common, I use a CPAP machine as well. I didn't know the filters could go bad, glad you got it fixed.

Yet another thing in common. I also have hearing loss. In my case, I have mild/moderate hearing loss in the high frequencies in both ears (although my tinnitus is unilateral right). And as many say, hearing loss is often associated with onset of tinnitus. I hope your hearing loss is temporary. Mine is years in the making. It's quite noticeable when I'm trying to listen to someone in a noisy environment, which is why I've gotten hearing aids.

That sounds super positive. I am truly hoping the inflammation goes down in short order and that your tinnitus guess with it. Glad you're trying to keep your hours in check too. Fingers crossed.

I don't know if I mentioned it, but my fluctuation pattern has been daily since onset. It totally confused the hell out of me. One day completely loud, the next day silent. The next day completely loud, then silent... Fast forward to today and it's still like that, though I have more silent days than loud days now (at onset it was the other way around). I'm hoping you get quiet moments, then days, then weeks...

There's so many things to try. I hope you try out a pillow speaker at some point. That's one of my better purchases. I still use it nightly out of habit, whether it's a loud or quiet day. Thanks for the steaming tip, I'll have to give that a try. I also want to try GABA Calm. I see others have given that a try. I've been reading up on how intermittent tinnitus might be due to neurotransmitter issues, and so wanted to explore that more.

Hey sure thing, I'm happy to talk about CBT more if you ever want to talk more about it. There's so much content in CBT to learn and practice. It's definitely one of those things that you have to keep applying to get the most out of it.

Hey Joe, first my update. I have been having ups and downs. Last Friday was my last "good day" for volume. Before that it seemed to be one day good, one day bad, one day good and so on... Then over the past weekend I got a little sick again. Nothing as major as last time. Mostly congestion. This week I've had only one "above average" but not good day. The only thing that has been mostly consistent are my mornings. My mornings are typically almost always quiet now. Not muted, just much quieter. Sometimes so quiet I don't know it's there for a bit. Last night was terrible. It was so loud I couldn't tell which ear it was from. It eventually calmed down to base level. Maybe a bit better. Upon awakening it was a bit lower than base level. Then got louder. As I write this, it's 1 pm here and it's a bit above base level I think. It's hard to tell. I am at work and it's fairly noisy (not super loud).

I had a phone appointment with my doctor today and I am getting referred to a second ENT. The last one was horrible. I wasn't even there 5 minutes. I got good news from an audiologist though. No hearing damage! But the pressure was off in my problem ear. He was super thorough. I got to see images of my ear drum, he showed me how he knows there was no fluid, and he tried to trick me many times during my hearing test. Wonderful guy who got an excellent review on Google lol!

So to finalize, my hearing is thankfully all in the normal range. Yay! If anything, it will improve, but it won't be by much at all. I was sure it was going to be bad due to the moments of silence where there was no noise and thus I didn't click the button lol.

As for the inflammation, I think it has been going down. I have been doing Valsalva. I am VERY gentle when doing so. If it doesn't want to open, I don't do it. This past week my ear has been opening much more easily. Sometimes I could hear what felt like air hitting a wall. This week I sometimes hear actual air though! The pressure gets stuck for a moment, but when I flex my jaw down, it releases. I still get the clicking in my ears (mostly the problem ear). Sometimes it's a lot of clicking, sometimes very little. I guess that's normal for ETD which the ENT and Audiologist both believe I have.

Your pattern sounds like mine was like. I was starting to see more and more good days over bad. Then I got sick which put me to starting point. Then the good days started returning, but then I got sick again. This week has been nothing special. It sounds like yours is going away, albeit slowly.

I'm going to explore the pillow speaker, but sadly I have been missing a lot of work. I am also about to miss a lot more! Starting Monday I am taking 2 weeks off. My doctor has been recommending it since the onset but I didn't take the offer because I liked the distraction. Well after a call today, I took the offer. So finances are a bit of an issue. It's also why I haven't donated anything towards Tinnitus Talk yet. I'm hoping to in the new year.

I'll be doing CBT in the new year. My doctor says he will be giving me a referral for it. I think it's time. I'm having a hard time this past week. Mentally I have been feeling very weak, whereas before it fluctuated. Now I am embarrassed to be at work due to my emotions. I need time outs and I go to the bathroom for it. I am embarrassed but want to admit it for anyone else struggling such as myself.

I will be checking in again. I hope after some days off I have better news to report. I will be steaming more often! I will have a cool mist humidifier near me all the time, chewing lots of gum and keeping up with my nasal spray in the mornings.

Thanks again for responding!

 

[AnonymousHamster]

Hi @AnonymousHamster -- I read a book once that touched on the role of antibiotics in chronic disease. One Naturopathic Doctor discovered that as much as 90% of his patients with "chronic" illness had their illness start after a round (or more) of antibiotics. Unfortunately, when conventional doctors prescribe antibiotics, they seldom make sure the beneficial bacteria that's destroyed is replenished in some manner.

From what I have read at least, that is temporary. Correct me if I am wrong please! It seems you are well read on these topics.

 

[Lane]

From what I have read at least, that is temporary. Correct me if I am wrong please! It seems you are well read on these topics.

Hi @AnonymousHamster -- My understanding is antibiotics almost always disrupt the body's microbiome (bacterial flora), and some proactive efforts to restore some of the friendly bacteria in our gut is usually necessary in most cases of people taking antibiotics.

If the course of antibiotics was short, it may be possible to restore some homeostasis by eating some fermented foods like yogert or kefir, or drinking fermented drinks like kombucha. If the duration was longer, it can often be difficult to restore the original homeostasis, even when taking some probiotic supplements that are found in health food stores. Unfortunately, the different strains and brands don't always have a guaranteed high quality.

If further efforts are deemed necessary, rectal implants of various probiotics can be attempted. And if that doesn't work, fecal implants may need to be considered. I have a friend who supplemented with just about every kind of probiotic he could think of, but when he had his gut flora tested, it was discovered he had virtually none. The following link will give you some more in-depth information on some of this.

Mood & Healthy Gut Flora: Nurture Your Microbiota!

It may be that you don't have to be overly concerned about this, but if you notice that things "aren't quite right" in some manner since you took the antibiotics, you may want to consider whether your microbiome has been disrupted, and to what extent. Naturopathic doctors would generally have a much better understanding of this than conventional doctors.

 

[Strawberryblonde]

Can you take some probiotics to help even out the gut flora, @AnonymousHamster?

Edit# what @Lane said

 

[10Kcd]

I will be checking in again. I hope after some days off I have better news to report.

Hey @AnonymousHamster - I'm hoping that you'll have some more good news to report. I also hear the ups and downs have been an emotional struggle, especially with the impact to your work and finances.

I salute your decision to explore CBT - for all the ways I've tried healing since my acoustic trauma, the things I feel most certain have helped are those related to my mental well-being (therapy, antidepressants, etc).

Wishing you healing and peace!

 

[Joe Cuber]

Hey Joe, first my update. I have been having ups and downs. Last Friday was my last "good day" for volume. Before that it seemed to be one day good, one day bad, one day good and so on... Then over the past weekend I got a little sick again. Nothing as major as last time. Mostly congestion. This week I've had only one "above average" but not good day. The only thing that has been mostly consistent are my mornings. My mornings are typically almost always quiet now. Not muted, just much quieter. Sometimes so quiet I don't know it's there for a bit. Last night was terrible. It was so loud I couldn't tell which ear it was from. It eventually calmed down to base level. Maybe a bit better. Upon awakening it was a bit lower than base level. Then got louder. As I write this, it's 1 pm here and it's a bit above base level I think. It's hard to tell. I am at work and it's fairly noisy (not super loud).

I had a phone appointment with my doctor today and I am getting referred to a second ENT. The last one was horrible. I wasn't even there 5 minutes. I got good news from an audiologist though. No hearing damage! But the pressure was off in my problem ear. He was super thorough. I got to see images of my ear drum, he showed me how he knows there was no fluid, and he tried to trick me many times during my hearing test. Wonderful guy who got an excellent review on Google lol!

So to finalize, my hearing is thankfully all in the normal range. Yay! If anything, it will improve, but it won't be by much at all. I was sure it was going to be bad due to the moments of silence where there was no noise and thus I didn't click the button lol.

As for the inflammation, I think it has been going down. I have been doing Valsalva. I am VERY gentle when doing so. If it doesn't want to open, I don't do it. This past week my ear has been opening much more easily. Sometimes I could hear what felt like air hitting a wall. This week I sometimes hear actual air though! The pressure gets stuck for a moment, but when I flex my jaw down, it releases. I still get the clicking in my ears (mostly the problem ear). Sometimes it's a lot of clicking, sometimes very little. I guess that's normal for ETD which the ENT and Audiologist both believe I have.

Your pattern sounds like mine was like. I was starting to see more and more good days over bad. Then I got sick which put me to starting point. Then the good days started returning, but then I got sick again. This week has been nothing special. It sounds like yours is going away, albeit slowly.

I'm going to explore the pillow speaker, but sadly I have been missing a lot of work. I am also about to miss a lot more! Starting Monday I am taking 2 weeks off. My doctor has been recommending it since the onset but I didn't take the offer because I liked the distraction. Well after a call today, I took the offer. So finances are a bit of an issue. It's also why I haven't donated anything towards Tinnitus Talk yet. I'm hoping to in the new year.

I'll be doing CBT in the new year. My doctor says he will be giving me a referral for it. I think it's time. I'm having a hard time this past week. Mentally I have been feeling very weak, whereas before it fluctuated. Now I am embarrassed to be at work due to my emotions. I need time outs and I go to the bathroom for it. I am embarrassed but want to admit it for anyone else struggling such as myself.

I will be checking in again. I hope after some days off I have better news to report. I will be steaming more often! I will have a cool mist humidifier near me all the time, chewing lots of gum and keeping up with my nasal spray in the mornings.

Thanks again for responding!

Hey @AnonymousHamster - Have to agree that taking time off work and enrolling in CBT are helpful moves toward making your mental health a priority. When I look back at my own experience, the most important things I've done were: taking time off work to reduce the stressors I was capable of controlling, taking anti-anxiety/antidepressant meds (I needed the help, I was a complete mess--I'm off of them now), taking the CBT course, speaking to therapists, and practicing the Back to Silence method posted here on Tinnitus Talk. The combination of these put me in a position where I was finally able to accept my tinnitus--which was super hard to do, admitting that it was a part of me--which put me on the road to eliminating my depression, drastically reducing my anxiety, and getting back to my life.

I hope the next ENT is way better than the last. I'm glad to hear that you feel the inflammation is reducing. I hope that you can get past your sickness and that your good days start rolling in.

It's awesome that you have quiet mornings too, that must be a relief to experience those. I wanted to tell you that, on my loud days, the strength of mine is lowest in the morning, and it picks up just after noon. The most bothersome part of the day for me is between about 1 pm and 6 pm. By evening, it reduces to the morning volume. I'm not sure why it does that--an unsolved mystery. A friend of mine who has recently gotten tinnitus says his does the same thing.

 

[AnonymousHamster]

Just an update.

I'm back at work in 2 weeks. I kind of want to extend the leave. Not sure.

I started to see more good days than bad. But this past week I had a setback when my son freaked out screaming when I got him from daycare. The next day was a little worse. Today is the worst it's been in a while though. It's above my base level. It was quieter earlier. I fully believe this will go back to lower volume. I'm just at 2 months of this now.

Some observations:

1 - Valsalva is WAY easier to do now. Before it was hard to do. So I just wouldn't as I didn't want to create more problems. Like, you could feel the pressure pushing on my eye! Those days are long gone. It's very, very easy to do now in comparison. Also, the air retracts almost immediately now. The crackling from flexing the area or swallowing is still mostly the same. It fluctuates.

2 - The sound is now almost always a higher pitched hissing. It's rarely the tone I used to hear. It fluctuates in volume. Not to my heartbeat or anything. But it's like EEEEEeeeeeEEEEEeeeeEEEE (but again, a hiss/white noise kinda sound). I read in an older thread here once that someone described it as robots cooking robot bacon lol. It's actually not a bad description.

3 - Above average/good days were becoming more frequent. From the 27th of November to the 3rd of December I had 2 positive days. The following week from the 4th to the 10th I had 5 positive days. This week, from the 11th to today I have only had 2. That is because the Thursday is when my son freaked out.

4 - Noise only sometimes affects it. And when it does, it subsides pretty quick on average.

5 - Now that the tinnitus has changed, the sounds I used to use to mask it at night can actually make it sound worse. I have been sleeping with only fans on now rather than something playing on my phone. I used to use an app to play an air conditioner noise. It is no longer needed.

6 - It still gets louder at night. There was only one or two days where it didn't this past couple weeks.

I have been sticking with inhaling steam a few times a day. Often with Olbas oil. I have been chewing gum fairly often. I use saline spray but not too many times. Once or twice a day. I also do a sinus rinse once per day now. Usually before my final steam before bed. When I wake up I use my Omnaris spray in the correct method (facing down and spraying straight up). This is followed by about 20 gentle Valsalva.

I haven't had any moments of silence. But I have had moments where it was so low I forgot it was there for a brief bit.

I won't lie people. Today I am in tears a bit as the hissing and static is so loud. I also developed a very light tone in my right ear from my son screaming on Thursday. Thankfully I can't really hear it unless I plug my ears! From what I have read the change in tinnitus is a very positive thing. I did a search and many people state that they started with a tone, then a hiss before healing. It's really easy to want to skip some of my regimen on good days, but I am trying.

Thanks everyone for talking me through all this. And a big thank you @Joe Cuber.

I keep checking for alerts even though I haven't been posting. So if someone dealing with similar circumstances wants to ask anything, I will get back to you.

 

[Joe Cuber]

Hey @AnonymousHamster, good to hear from you, and I'm glad to stay in contact. I might be wrong, but from reading through your latest update, I get the impression that your anxiety level is still pretty high. Is that the case? I see that you're monitoring the qualities/characteristics of your tinnitus, but I'm wondering whether you're spending equal (or more time) on your resilience--things like mindfulness, meditation, counting the positives, treating yourself kindly--things like practicing gratitude and going for nature walks. Anyway, just a thought. Stay strong.

 

[hopefuldede]

Hi @AnonymousHamster, I am following your progress. I was wondering how you are doing? I also assumed that I had ETD as I had mucus build up and popping ears. I was following a similar protocol to you; steaming, Valsalva etc. I was also using Avamys nasal spray.

I had my main ENT appointment last week and using a nasal camera he identified I had slight PET. It has left me wondering whether I inadvertently created this situation for myself. I immediately stopped the daily protocol. He said my eardrums were thin (likely by me doing Valsalva). My post is not to put you off your protocol if it's helping but it's just to show you the other side of the coin.

It's only been a week since I stopped self treatment. I will let you know if anything changes for the better.

 

[AnonymousHamster]

Hi @AnonymousHamster, I am following your progress. I was wondering how you are doing? I also assumed that I had ETD as I had mucus build up and popping ears. I was following a similar protocol to you; steaming, Valsalva etc. I was also using Avamys nasal spray.

I had my main ENT appointment last week and using a nasal camera he identified I had slight PET. It has left me wondering whether I inadvertently created this situation for myself. I immediately stopped the daily protocol. He said my eardrums were thin (likely by me doing Valsalva). My post is not to put you off your protocol if it's helping but it's just to show you the other side of the coin.

It's only been a week since I stopped self treatment. I will let you know if anything changes for the better.

Hi @hopefuldede.

So I have seen some improvements. It's at a glacial pace though. I actually stopped using my Omnaris nasal spray on the 5th of this month. I had read about how using it too much can cause a rebound effect where your body actually tries to compensate and create even MORE mucus in the Eustachian tubes. I figured I had been taking it for nearly 5+ months so that was a good run of it. I'm not concerned about PET (Patulous Eustachian Tube). Air still gets trapped a bit. It's easier to get out now though. I don't do Valsalva as much as I used to. But it's remained easy to do too. If you read my older posts, I sometimes had to tilt my head to make it happen. Sometimes I just couldn't (and I would never try too hard for fear of damage). For months now it's just always worked. And if a bit of air gets trapped, I can just flex or massage the area and it retracts back.

I am still waiting to see another ENT. It was requested in January. I'm in Canada so it's going to be a long time...

As for the improvements I mentioned... well, I can now stand louder noises without it spiking dramatically! In fact, this past weekend I went to a very loud party. People had to raise their voices to speak, often yelling lol. And I was fine. The noise used to increase substantially. In fact, during the party the tinnitus didn't bother me at all. Also, I no longer play sounds on my phone to sleep. I am capable of sleeping with just the sound of some very loud fans lol. My noise has changed too. The volume is more tolerable. It's not a dramatic change though. On my good days it still gets louder at night (and no, it's not just seeming louder because it's a quieter ambient surrounding). I used to enjoy the days where the sound changed from a tone or electrical hiss to crickets. But now the tone/hiss is quieter than it used to be. The crickets are the loud noise now. The crickets didn't get louder either. It's just the other noise is quieter than it used to be. I feel the crickets are now starting to drop too. If I am in a loud room, I notice the crickets. If I am moving about, it's not as bad.

I've had this for over 6 months now. I feel like I will recover still. I just think 'Im one of those people who has a very, very long road to recovery. In the past I read about ETD a lot and it can take literally 2 years to heal! Well, at my pace I believe it. I'm really hoping the summer helps speed up healing some. I feel the dry cold weather here hasn't done me any good.

Lastly, I also bought a spin cycle and drink vastly more water. Working out used to cause a spike. It no longer does, or it's rare that it does. I don't steam as often but I am starting to pick it up again. I am aiming for once a day minimum. I chew gum VERY often. @Joe Cuber once asked me if my tinnitus was somatic. I said yes. It still is, but not nearly as much or as often now. So even though I mentioned everything has been minor in improvements, I still remain confident it's going to go away. If not fully, at least to a level where I truly won't care about it.

I tried to be detailed, but if you want anymore information, let me know.