I've had this for 10 months and counting now. It just keeps getting worse. More and more sounds. Everyday it's a different collection of noises. They keep saying that it will moderate. When does that happen if it is going to? One tone would be a whole lot easier to ignore.
When Does This Moderation Supposedly Happen?
- Thread starter Jkph75
- Start date
No I mean actually calm down. I keep hearing that in time it calms down and that at first people get many different tones. Obviously, this doesn't happen for everyone but if it is going to happen when would that be?
I dunno, its 8 months and i'm waiting for mine to go away completely for me. I've not heard modarate/moderation used in this context on the forum or in any of the stuff ive read about T, but I think I know what you mean.
I think if I waited for it to go away completely, I'd be waiting, well... I do believe in miracles, so it's definitely possible
I've heard some people say it can go away in a year, 18 months, stuff like that... I'm holding onto hope because I feel if it doesn't go away, then I will.I think if I waited for it to go away completely, I'd be waiting, well... I do believe in miracles, so it's definitely possible
I hope you don't mean that literally. Trust me I know how hard this is. You never know what the future holds. Even if it doesn't go away, you could get to a place where it doesn't bother you as much. Or someone could somehow cure it. Or any number of things could happen that you would otherwise miss out on because you checked out over tinnitus. Having tinnitus could lead you to something good that you otherwise wouldn't have had. You just never know what will happen.
Member
bill 112
Member
I developed T in January 2011
By December the same year my T was 99.9% gone even 100% at times.
In February 2012 I went to a loud venue with earplugs and the following day the T was back with a new low loud tone to accompany it.
5-6 months later it reduced by about 95% leaving me with a barely audible hiss that could only be heard in absolutely silent environments.
January 2014 I over done it a bit and was exposed to an insanely high pitched noise.T and H went through the roof to an all time high,unimaginable levels.
One year later and my T yet again reduced by about 90 percent leaving me with a barely audible hiss,my H reduced by about 85% also.
This was me and we're all different but in proof that it can reduced significantly over time if your cautious and not unlucky or stupid like me.
Two years after my last incident I got screwed over again,as of yet no improvement so far.
I'm sorry. Mine is too. I feel like I lost hearing though it hasn't shown up on an audiogram. I am having problems understanding what people are saying. It isn't just a sound that I hear above other sounds. It's like it is starting to blot out other sounds. Idk what else that could be other than hearing loss. Idk why it hasn't shown up on my audiogram yet.
Bill, your story is really uplifting. Mind if I ask a few questions about your noise-induced episodes of tinnitus? How loud you T was? Do you recall when you started seeing some improvement?
bill 112
Member
When it started I had no idea where it came from,I just woke up with a full left ear that was cracking and popping then it spread to my right ear,the followed shortly after.I had been to a concert two months prior so I don't know if that was the cause but according to the hospital it was an infection but I can say for certain.Anyway below is a little scale to give you an idea of how loud it was and how low it eventually got.Not habituated but genuinely got quieter.
JANUARY 2011:6/10
MARCH:6/10
APRIL:3/10
JULY:2/10
NOVEMBER:2/10
DECEMBER:0.1/10
It basically disappeared,it was even difficult to hear it in a dead silent room.
FEBRUARY 2012/Club incident
FEBRUARY:7/10
APRIL:7/10
JUNE:5/10
AUGUST:2/10
NOVEMBER 1/10
And it stayed that way up until January 2014.
JANUARY 2014/High pitched noise plus loud birthday
JANUARY:T 8/10 H 8.5/10
MARCH:T 6/10 H 8/10
JUNE:T 4/10 H 6/10
AUGUST:T 4/10 H 5/10
NOVEMBER:T 2/10 H 4/10
DECEMBER:T 1/10 H 2/10
And it remained that way with slightly more improvement for the following year.Hope that helps.
Hi @Jkph75
Tinnitus can be a complex condition when it is loud and intrusive. Since you have had it for ten months and it seems to be getting worse there usually is a reason for this. I have taken a look at some of your previous posts and haven't seen where you have mentioned what might have caused it or any treatment that you have had? Therefore, I would like to ask you a few questions and hopefully you can answer them.
1.Was your tinnitus caused by exposure to loud noise or music? Example: listening to music through headphones at high volume or attending concerts or clubs where loud music is played?
2. Have been seen at ENT and had the usual tests such as hearing and MRI scan? Have you been referred to a Hearing Therapist for any treatment? This can be TRT, CBT. Hearing aid if you have any hearing loss. Have you been offered tinnitus counselling?
3.Do you listen to music through headphones or any type of audio? Do you sleep in a quiet room? I ask this because using "sound enrichment" at night can be helpful.
Michael
Agree with bill and Michael. Examine your lifestyle and evaluate overall sound levels. With injured ears, a person has to be more vigilant about sound exposure or you can go bad to worse. This in fact is a tenet Michael taught me and why I have gone cold turkey on headphone usage.
My initial interpretation of Michael's advice which was to dismiss it initially was wrong. My initial view was, keep listening levels low...true listening level is confounded by ambient sound levels...and I will not add further injury to my ears. This is incorrect and viewing through the lens of having normal hearing. A person with injured hearing has to have a different set of rules because they are more vulnerable to further sliding down the slope to greater tinnitus and hearing loss.
Once ears are injured they are less tolerant of even normal listening levels. If a fire truck goes by and you are standing by the street, all bets maybe off to those with damaged ears. You may suffer a setback...so you maybe setting your ears back everyday unknowingly. By contrast if a fire truck goes by with siren blaring and a person standing next to the street, there maybe some injury but it is undetected due to backdrop of overall normal hearing. Not the same. Injured people are more vulnerable. Protect your ears for the best possible outcome.
Crude analogy: A tennis player with tennis elbow is in a quandary. How do I play tennis and yet not hurt my arm worse? Its tricky...like any overuse injury.
My initial interpretation of Michael's advice which was to dismiss it initially was wrong. My initial view was, keep listening levels low...true listening level is confounded by ambient sound levels...and I will not add further injury to my ears. This is incorrect and viewing through the lens of having normal hearing. A person with injured hearing has to have a different set of rules because they are more vulnerable to further sliding down the slope to greater tinnitus and hearing loss.
Once ears are injured they are less tolerant of even normal listening levels. If a fire truck goes by and you are standing by the street, all bets maybe off to those with damaged ears. You may suffer a setback...so you maybe setting your ears back everyday unknowingly. By contrast if a fire truck goes by with siren blaring and a person standing next to the street, there maybe some injury but it is undetected due to backdrop of overall normal hearing. Not the same. Injured people are more vulnerable. Protect your ears for the best possible outcome.
Crude analogy: A tennis player with tennis elbow is in a quandary. How do I play tennis and yet not hurt my arm worse? Its tricky...like any overuse injury.
@Michael Leigh
Not noise exposure, unless you count bars and clubs over 15 yrs ago. Woke up like this after having my daughter. I don't use headphones now and haven't for a long time. I believe that I have Meniere's Disease as I also have had dizziness. I don't really go anywhere too loud, though maybe I should be more vigilant with noise protection. I am getting worse by the day. This noise is at a level where I can barely function. I can't take it anymore and I know it's only going to get worse.
Not noise exposure, unless you count bars and clubs over 15 yrs ago. Woke up like this after having my daughter. I don't use headphones now and haven't for a long time. I believe that I have Meniere's Disease as I also have had dizziness. I don't really go anywhere too loud, though maybe I should be more vigilant with noise protection. I am getting worse by the day. This noise is at a level where I can barely function. I can't take it anymore and I know it's only going to get worse.
@Jkph75 You need to go back to ENT or get a referral to another clinic for more tests. If it's Meniere's that you have or something similar, it can be treated so hold on to the thought that there is treatment out there, so hopefully you won't have to endure anymore suffering for much longer.
I hope you start to make improvement soon.
All the best
Michael
Jomo
Member
- Sep 9, 2016
- 403
- Tinnitus Since
- 9/4/16
- Cause of Tinnitus
- going for a rim shot on the snare drum.
Question about the ear plugs you used at the concert. Were they custom fitted musician type or just foamies? Do you feel like you inserted them properly? Thanks for the story. It gives me hope.
bill 112
Member
They were foam earplugs,I was assured they were enough as they were what my father used when he done front row concert security.My ear canals are narrow so cut the tip off for a better fit,they did however get pulled from my ears without me realising for quite some time.
Thanks. I've been to 6 ENT/Neurotologists. I've had 10 hearing tests and every other test there is. They can't say for sure b/c my hearing is in the normal range in my good ear and fluctuates across all the frequencies without leaving the normal range. I am already taking steroids and a diuretic. There's nothing else they can do for fluctuating hearing and tinnitus, unfortunately. I hope they work quickly on this stem cells stuff.
Maybe the forum staff can moderate our tinnitus?
Where are you at now? was January 2014 your last incident?
bill 112
Member
No,I sadly pushed myself waaay too hard in early 2016 and screwed them up by unimaginable levels.Ecery second is a battle now....
Sorry if I'm asking too much questions, but I'm wondering what exactly happened in 2016 that made everything worse? Sound exposures? It really does seem that some are more prone to increasing symptoms. As much as positivity is a value, I really am trying to find the balance between "it will get better" "use protection and everything will be fine" "spikes always go away" If these things are not always true, they need to be discussed, otherwise people risk increasing their symptoms.
I've been living in a bubble since my onset, and I'm still hoping for it to go away, but if it doesn't I certainly am scared of the future. And even if it does, I still will be scared.
EDIT: I just saw your post in another thread that answers my question about what happened in 2016, so yeah suffice to say it does seem that the existance of people who experience worsening of symptoms is a thing, even with only "moderate" exposures. Well, what is considered moderate to the "average" person at least.
One of the problems we face, Spiral, is that a common piece of advice from Practitioners is that normal sound can't hurt us. The problems with this are: 1. They don't actually know that, they surmise it based on (presumably) best evidence. 2: "reassurance" is popular in Medical and Nursing training, but it's not well understood, and meaning well is no substitute for having actual facts. 3: One man's "ordinary sound" is another man's cacophony. 4: Most of us know what caused our condition, but hardly any of us know what's actually happening in there and which direction it will go, what our thresholds are, or have become, depending on what we do or don't do. 5. Research into this whole thing is patchy at best. We are listening blind to a large degree. Much of what we do know tends to come from the information we provide to each other here, and that is as copious, and varied, as all of our presentations are. Its an otological buffet of fear and misery for the newcomer I'm sure, and like a buffet, you can keep going back and finding something tantalizing you missed, even if you aren't hungry.
I will say this though, don't internalize the problems of others as necessarily having application to your own situation. Read, observe, and know yourself.
I will say this though, don't internalize the problems of others as necessarily having application to your own situation. Read, observe, and know yourself.
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