Tinnitus from Working at a Wood Cabinet Assembly Line

I have had tinnitus for over 28 years and now that I am old, it has gotten worse and louder. It is about 3.7 kHz. There is no relief. I sleep about 4 hours a night. I take 200 mg Trazodone just to get to sleep.

No one understands what tinnitus is. They think it's all in my head. Along with depression, a lack of sleep and anxiety, I am going down hill quickly. Looking for a job is horrible and no one wants to hire me. Savings are almost gone. I don't really have enough to retire and with no family to ask for support, I really don't know what to do.

I tried for disability about 10 years ago and lost. I don't know if I should try again.

Thanks.

 

Hi @Zapmaster.

You have noise-induced tinnitus. This type of tinnitus will usually remain stable for many years once habituation has been reached. However, there are a few things that can make it worse: Stress, an underlying medical problem within your auditory system, hearing impairment or a reaction to certain types of medication.

Putting all the above to one side, the most common reason is further exposure to loud noise or listening to audio through headphones, headsets, earbuds, noise cancelling and bone conduction headphones. If you use any of these devices, I advise you to stop using them even at low volume. It is probably a good idea to have your hearing checked at ENT.

Tinnitus can affect a person's mental and emotional wellbeing considerably. Under these grounds you maybe able to apply for disability due to the impact the tinnitus is having on your mental health. You will probably have to show that you are having treatment. This can include medication and having counselling with a tinnitus therapist, such as an audiologist.

All the best,
Michael

 

It's very difficult to get disability in the U.S., especially for tinnitus. And all the ongoing documented medical treatment needed to be sustained as evidence would be very costly. A lawyer is recommended as well. There was a recent thread about this:

Unable to Work Because of Hyperacusis/Tinnitus: How to Pay for Things?

I was habituated for many years to my mild tinnitus, but it kept getting slowly worse over 20 years until it suddenly got a lot worse suddenly less than two years ago and am now beyond habituation.

Trazodone 200 mg is more than I normally see people using for sleep, which is 50 to 100 mg. Mirtazapine seems to be more effective at low dose for sleep but may leave groggier than Trazodone and has other possible side effects like weight gain and eye problems.