Hi all
Read Chris's story so I would get motivated to tell mine. It is true when T lost its power over me then I stopped visiting sites looking to calm my anxiety. You will probably find more stories on line with people struggling with their T then having success. Most of the success stories never get written because we go back to our old lives. I have tinnitus now for 10 months but I first noticed a reduction just after 3 months. I started getting more sleep, less anxiety sickness and long periods when I wasn't aware of it. By the 6 month mark, made a commitment to return to all my old social activities, one step at a time. At 9 months it virtually doesn't touch my life at all. Flare ups are nearly always attributed to stress or lack of proper sleep. The noise is there much of the time but I have to listen for it to know.
I am absolutely amazed at the power of the brain to find its own remedy. The best description I can find is it was like a high pitched dentist drill inside my brain. In my younger days there was no such thing as an atheistic for teeth drilling. I hated that noise. With the onset of T, 2-3 hours sleep a night was all i could expect despite using sleeping tablets. I refused to attend any social activity, even my only grand child first birthday. I initially couldn't face going to work and talking to people, spending my time walking or doing jobs around my house with white noise ear phones. I eventually went back (white noise ear phones straight on when not taking to people (real estate agent), hiding the anguish but it helped a little to keep me distracted. I would count each hour down to the end of the day and the afternoon walk would give me some relief. I would do all the house work, cooking, car cleaning, anything to keep me distracted. My days were strict with protocol, if friends or family visited then the visits would need to be short term and times when I thought I could best cope, The best measure is I lost 15 kilo in 3 months because of the constant churning in my stomach. I considered topping myself and started planning how. My wife was very sick at the tiime and needed high care so that also helped distract me. I told my family and friends to give me 6 months to return to some sort of reality. I didn't believe it because online stories tended to say 12 to 24 moths before any real improvement if any, I was wits end. At 3 months, my stomach sickness started abating, I new I was turning the corner.
I tried a concoction of remedies, no shortage of them on line. These are the ones I recommend. 1. CBT therapy - study mindfulness, muscle relaxation and ask for advice on good CBT books. 2. I used tinnitus retraining therapy (neuromics). Cost around $6,000. 3. Ginkgo biloba. 4. Used anti anxiety medicine (lovan). I think this was important for me. At the end of the day, it is probably the brains ability to habituate.
No more is it painful, very occasionally it is bothersome. In no way does it affect my enjoyment of life. In some ways I am thankful for the experience as CBT therapy taught me to enjoy life. Don't sweat the little things anymore. When pain of any cause does occur I am much better equipped to cope. House not so clean, yard not so tidy, cook spasmodically, life is back to normal!
I wish you all similar success (from Australia)
Read Chris's story so I would get motivated to tell mine. It is true when T lost its power over me then I stopped visiting sites looking to calm my anxiety. You will probably find more stories on line with people struggling with their T then having success. Most of the success stories never get written because we go back to our old lives. I have tinnitus now for 10 months but I first noticed a reduction just after 3 months. I started getting more sleep, less anxiety sickness and long periods when I wasn't aware of it. By the 6 month mark, made a commitment to return to all my old social activities, one step at a time. At 9 months it virtually doesn't touch my life at all. Flare ups are nearly always attributed to stress or lack of proper sleep. The noise is there much of the time but I have to listen for it to know.
I am absolutely amazed at the power of the brain to find its own remedy. The best description I can find is it was like a high pitched dentist drill inside my brain. In my younger days there was no such thing as an atheistic for teeth drilling. I hated that noise. With the onset of T, 2-3 hours sleep a night was all i could expect despite using sleeping tablets. I refused to attend any social activity, even my only grand child first birthday. I initially couldn't face going to work and talking to people, spending my time walking or doing jobs around my house with white noise ear phones. I eventually went back (white noise ear phones straight on when not taking to people (real estate agent), hiding the anguish but it helped a little to keep me distracted. I would count each hour down to the end of the day and the afternoon walk would give me some relief. I would do all the house work, cooking, car cleaning, anything to keep me distracted. My days were strict with protocol, if friends or family visited then the visits would need to be short term and times when I thought I could best cope, The best measure is I lost 15 kilo in 3 months because of the constant churning in my stomach. I considered topping myself and started planning how. My wife was very sick at the tiime and needed high care so that also helped distract me. I told my family and friends to give me 6 months to return to some sort of reality. I didn't believe it because online stories tended to say 12 to 24 moths before any real improvement if any, I was wits end. At 3 months, my stomach sickness started abating, I new I was turning the corner.
I tried a concoction of remedies, no shortage of them on line. These are the ones I recommend. 1. CBT therapy - study mindfulness, muscle relaxation and ask for advice on good CBT books. 2. I used tinnitus retraining therapy (neuromics). Cost around $6,000. 3. Ginkgo biloba. 4. Used anti anxiety medicine (lovan). I think this was important for me. At the end of the day, it is probably the brains ability to habituate.
No more is it painful, very occasionally it is bothersome. In no way does it affect my enjoyment of life. In some ways I am thankful for the experience as CBT therapy taught me to enjoy life. Don't sweat the little things anymore. When pain of any cause does occur I am much better equipped to cope. House not so clean, yard not so tidy, cook spasmodically, life is back to normal!
I wish you all similar success (from Australia)
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