What Positive Things Has Having Tinnitus Made You Realize?

[Emma]

Tinnitus has made me realize a lot of things and I see that as a positive.

-I appreciate my family a lot more now. I wish I wouldn't have squabbled over minor things with them. Before I had tinnitus my family would argue a lot. Having tinnitus reminds me not to sweat the small stuff.
-I appreciate my eye sight a lot more than I did before.
-I appreciate that I don't live in a poverty-stricken nation. I get sad thinking of someone maybe in a third world nation, maybe somewhere rural developing tinnitus somehow and having no access to an ent, hearing aids, tinnitus retraining therapy, etc.
-I appreciate money a lot more. I wish I had saved up better.It could have come in handy now.
-I try to be nicer to people- because you never know what "invisible" ailments they may be coping with.
-Tinnitus can be difficult to cope with, but I can still hear and communicate verbally with others.
-My favorite foods are still delicious, tinnitus doesn't interfere with me enjoying a meal.
-Tinnitus makes me more mindful of my teeth and to take care of them. I am just more aware of my health in general.

 

[Emma]

I mentioned that tinnitus makes me more mindful of my teeth, because, dental infection can cause you to get referred pain to the ear, and who needs that?

 

[calin]

Nice Emma! It is good to find things to be grateful for ... always!

Doing what you are doing eases the anxiety of T I think. ...softens the irritation.

 

[Sen]

i've learned a lot about myself since my ear issues began. i've been able to look at the life i had up until now in a much more positive light. i really had it good.

 

[calin]

i've learned a lot about myself since my ear issues began. i've been able to look at the life i had up until now in a much more positive light. i really had it good.

Can you give a bit more about how you had it good?

 

[Sen]

Can you give a bit more about how you had it good?

i was working full time, enjoying my spare time, and planning on going back to college.

 

[calin]

i was working full time, enjoying my spare time, and planning on going back to college.

I see. So, I am thinking that something triggered your current T problem. Forgive me if you mentioned it... can you explain how it started?

 

[Sen]

nothing triggered it. just a gradual build up to hyperacusis, loud tinnitus, and now vertigo/dizziness. i also have a lot of fatigue and brain fog. started in October, got worse in January, got worse again in February.

i'm a musician and former concertgoer so i'm sure it had something to do with being around loud noise a lot.

 

[calin]

nothing triggered it. just a gradual build up to hyperacusis, loud tinnitus, and now vertigo/dizziness. i also have a lot of fatigue and brain fog. started in October, got worse in January, got worse again in February.

i'm a musician and former concertgoer so i'm sure it had something to do with being around loud noise a lot.

hmmm... there is something else. How are your relationships?

 

[Sen]

hmmm... there is something else. How are your relationships?

they were great before my health went downhill. as far as i know there is no evidence that relationships have anything to do hyperacusis, ear pain, vertigo, and screaming tinnitus. if you have a peer reviewed study you can share, please share it.

 

[calin]

they were great before my health went downhill. as far as i know there is no evidence that relationships have anything to do hyperacusis, ear pain, vertigo, and screaming tinnitus. if you have a peer reviewed study you can share, please share it.

No sweetheart! I am just a caring person.

Your avatar interests me. What is it? I sense a chaotic expression. Is it a piece of artwork?

 

[Sen]

it's an album cover.

 

[calin]

it's an album cover.

I see.

I do empathize with your health concerns. Wish I could do more to ease your pain and suffering. It has taken me some time myself to get my T down to a manageable level.

ps... had that feeling it was a music artwork piece.

 

[Sen]

I do empathize with your health concerns. Wish I could do more to ease your pain and suffering. It has taken me some time myself to get my T down to a manageable level..

you should consider yourself lucky. those of us with severe tinnitus very rarely experience anything like a volume reduction. on the contrary, our tinnitus gets louder!

 

[calin]

you should consider yourself lucky. those of us with severe tinnitus very rarely experience anything like a volume reduction. on the contrary, our tinnitus gets louder!

I am blessed... yes. I did about a zillion things to get it down!!!

 

[calin]

you should consider yourself lucky. those of us with severe tinnitus very rarely experience anything like a volume reduction. on the contrary, our tinnitus gets louder!

Oh, BTW... I had severe tinnitus. Lorazepam helped. My rain/thunder cd is still my friend at night to sleep!

 

[Sen]

what types of things? my guess is, if it went down, it would have regardless of what you did. there are no known reliable methods of appreciable volume reduction in the world apart from benzos in a small minority of people.

 

[Markku]

Tinnitus has made me realize a lot of things and I see that as a positive.

I love your attitude Emma. Wonderful post.

I definitely agree with all you've said.

I took way too many things for granted before and having tinnitus has really caused me to introspect on several of them.

Good can come from the bad. Every now and then you can read about people (or maybe you know of some yourself) who have faced life-altering hardships and yet they go on, find positives, and are able to look to the future with a bright smile.

Sinister and pessimistic attitude is to be avoided at all costs. Easier said than done in some circumstances, of course. And some people are just more positive by nature. We are built so differently.


Seven stages of grief, after getting tinnitus, modified by yours truly:

1) shock and denial - who can go to sleep with this ringing in my ears. this is abnormal and i now try to sleep it off, tomorrow is a new day and by then it's gone.
2) pain and guilt - it doesn't seem to go away. why I did this or that, could I have avoided it all.
3) anger and bargaining, including emotional outbursts that can permanently damage relationships and attempts to bargain with a higher power for relief from the emotional pain - you my friend don't fully understand! my ears ring and whoosh and I can't do anything or cope. you have no idea! life is a living hell! please leave me alone. i won't ever forgive myself for probably causing my ears to ring permanently!
4) depression and loneliness - my life sucks. nobody wants to even see me anymore. i'm worthless as it is.
5) upward turn - slowly but surely habituation happens, and life starts to get more positive notes.
6) reconstruction of life with tinnitus - things improve even further, concentration gets better, ability to work or study improves, social relationships are rebuilt if previously lost, etc.
7) acceptance and hope - it's not the end of the world. there are other things in life worth clinging to. i hope for a remedy, working treatment very much, but as is tinnitus no longer occupies my mind 24/7, and i can again function.

There is always hope. Once again thanks Emma for reminding that it's always worthwhile to look at positive things even when completely underwater with a tormenting condition (i.e. not yet habituated, or got relief from anything).​

 

[Emma]

Thanks for the kind words Markku. I really agree with your stages of grief Markku. I really wish I had been a lot nicer to my family. I now realize they mean so much to me. Earlier on I was even thinking maybe tinnitus was a punishment for being a mean, ungrateful kid growing up. I know that is silly, but I am sure when something bad or unexpected happens, we may start thinking we have deserved it- whether we believe it is from god, karma, or whatever. So I really had to deal with stages 2 and 3 you listed.

 

[Mahdi]

I learned life is just like a blank....

 

[Karen]

How is life like a blank, Mahdi?

 

[Mahdi]

How is life like a blank, Mahdi?

A blank cartridge. Now, it's up to you to find out what I meant.

 

[Hudson]

We always saved our brass for recycling into new cartridges, my friend.

A blank cartridge is only blank as long as you allow it to be.

 

[Karl]

It is very hard to say anything positive about tinnitus.

I'm usually of the opinion that learning the truth about things is a good thing. Through tinnitus, I have learned a lot about how the auditory system works and about the brain. I suppose it is positive to learn these things. If it weren't for tinnitus, I would find these subjects boring, I'm afraid.

Tinnitus is a great humbler. It has shown me how delicate the human body is. Even our auditory system requires a fine balance, which is something that had never occured to me. I didn't particularly want to learn this lesson, but this journey call Life has taken me here.

 

[erik]

I have found positive in tinnitus. I have new appreciation for the life, the human body, family and friends. The body is indeed fragile, yet resilient. You have to learn how to take care of it to get the most out of it. Sometimes, you need a wake up call and I guess Tinnitus and MS was mine since they both occurred around the same time. Also at that time I was overweight, I had high cholesterol, high blood pressure and high anxiety--all of which I took meds for. Now I have none of these issues, I am 25lbs lighter and I take NO meds.

I have a different outlook on life and work hard to live it to the fullest. I spend more time with family. I go to church every Sunday. I take better care of myself, I eat better and exercise much more. I take regular walks and play soccer and basketball 5x a week with guys usually half my age or more. I eat a low sodium, low fat, low cholesterol diet. I quit drinking diet Coke and coffee which I drank for years and now only drink green tea and water. Not to say I don't go out an have a few "real" drinks now and then

I now understand how to eat. I look at food in a totally different way. Instead of looking at food as just "food", I now look at food for its nutritional content and what my body needs for that day. I eat an apple and think about the vitamin content and fiber I get from it. I know when I snack on a couple servings of Sugar Snap Peas (which I love by the way), I will get getting over 100% vitamin C, over 50% of my vitamin A, 50% vitamin K and most B vitamins for the day. I drink plenty of green tea for it's powerful antioxidants. I try to make sure I get as much raw vitamins from food as possible but I also use supplements to cover all my bases. I planted an extensive garden last year and plan on tripling the yield this year. We prepare as much of our foods from scratch so we know what is in it. Yes, this all takes a lot of work but it is worth it.

I relax more. I de-stress regularly. I don't worry about the little things that used to annoy me. T still annoys me but despite this, I feel I live a full life. I still work 1.5 jobs and love them both. I am good at what I do and people appreciate me for that.

I may have not gotten rid of my Tinnitus in the past 11 months but I feel that I am in a good place. I cannot control my Tinnitus but I can control my life and that is what I chose to do. If I have to live with this for the rest of my life, so be it. I will still live my life and do WHAT I want to do.

 

[J M]

At the moment, I am struggling to find anything positive about the damage to my hearing, which brought on tinnitus.

I was coping with the mild tinnitus OK, but the acoustic trauma I suffered at the dentist office (ultrasonic teeth cleaner) has been very difficult to deal with. I doubt I will ever have another tooth filled via a drill (and definitely will not have my teeth cleaned ultrasonically) , and I am very afraid to go to the ER.

 

[Paul D]

It has shown me how delicate the human body is. Even our auditory system requires a fine balance, which is something that had never occured to me.

I, too, never gave much thought to the intricities of hearing. Funny... I've been able to easily accept the structural components going awry; back, knees, shoulder cartlidge - attributing such decline to over-use, abuse, genetical predisposition, and just plain middle age. But the nervous system? Maybe that's why tinnitus and its effects comes as such a shock, particularly when it just won't go away. Regarding any good that may come of all this? I'm certainly more focused on a healthier lifestyle; better eating, sleeping, and living in general, in an attempt to make good use of and preserve those functions that remain relatively intact. I actually took a walk at lunch today, and it was freezing outside! Change is hard, but it can come slowly.

 

[J Cowan Hill]

I realised that tinnitus was my own personalised in-built healthometre and started to work with it.
Once it had become a friend I let it guide me back into a state of really good health.
Nowadays if it starts to reappear I go to bed early, or eat really healthily, or do more meditation or calm down, and it doesn't manifest. I am very grateful for my tinnitus for being such a clear indicator of when I need to take better care of myself.
Working with tinnitus has led me into meditation, Buddhism and has opened up a whole new world to me. So we are good friends these days, even though we don't see much of each other!

 

[Lisa Robinson]

It's made me realised how important our hearing is and how fragile, being young you think it won't ever happen to me. It does!!

How important family and friends at to me to cope with anxiety and have someone to talk too.

 

[Telis]

Made me realize what an incredible life I once had...I may have never really known this until I was on my death bed, now I have half my life left to think about it.