So a few years ago i was going through a bit of a tough time after my little boy was very ill, he’s ok now barring some slight Autism like symptoms, but shortly after the ordeal I got a bit depressed.
Eventually I was convinced by friends and family to go to the doctor for some help.
I was given some Sertraline pills, and told to take them but it would be a few weeks before I felt the benefit. Fair enough.
After almost a week I woke up with a really loud high pitched whine/ring in my head. Now, looking back I think I always had a tiny bit of Tinnitus, almost certainly from my youth when I used to regularly go to raves and like a muppet stand in front of massive speakers… :person_facepalming: anyway, this was MUCH louder than that and for a couple of days I thought I’d lose my head. After reading the sheet with the pills, I found out that getting Tinnitus was one of the side effects, but it was VERY rare - just my luck. Stopped taking them immediately and went back to the docs, who also confirmed it’s rare - but said oddly enough we sometimes use sertraline to treat Tinnitus!
Since then I’ve had it, it comes and goes - well it’s always there and not really noticeable, just sometimes it’s louder - this week it’s approaching what it was like years ago. Seems to get a little louder as the day goes on.
Obviously we are in lockdown now, and with the wife, myself, my daughter and son all at home and locked in and with the extra stress of trying to teach my son I think this may be why.
Usually I keep a rather loud pocket watch on my desk, it breaks it up a bit and combined with the tv etc it does a pretty good job, mixed sounds seem to work better than 1 - just wondered did any of you guys have it - and what are your methods for distraction from it?
I know my mate had it really bad to the point he couldn’t sit without something on like the tv, I don’t have it that bad, but it’s still annoying when it raises it’s volume.
To give you some idea how loud it is, even if I hold that ticking pocket watch up to my ear, I can just about still hear it. I would have to fully increase the tv volume to drown it out lol!
Had it for years . Sometimes it’s loud enough to be distracting. As you said , background noise helps . As far as I know , like Pennzy says , you just gotta learn to live with it .
Lyme disease caused mine about 8 years ago (at the ripe age of 48). Mine is reduced when I keep to my protocol (which took 6 years to figure out).
Anyway… zinc, magnesium, and vinpocetine (an extract from the periwinkle plant) are my three supplements that keep it in check. Stephen Bhuner was a BIG help with his excellent books on Lyme which cost about $100 (4 books) Vs. the $15k I spent on doctors- good ones- who weren’t able to help me despite sincere efforts.
I MUST have music to enjoy my life. I owned a recording studio for many years, and to this day I listen to music on some sincerely good audio gear Vs. TV. I also mix/master tracks for artists occasionally. So I HAD to figure it out and these supplements (along with some other Lyme related herbs like: Japanese Knot Weed, Cordyceps, Milk Thistle, Lion’s Mane, Poke Root, and a few others) have been the “cure” *in my case.
My source for herbs like these above is Swanson Vitamins. Good quality, fair priced, and decent shipping (or often free with a medium sized order).
Thanks guys, yeah, I know it’s not curable - I was just interested in your workarounds/distractions.
I am interested with Zappaman’s suggestions (and will certainly look into trying those) presumably they are in pill form? what amounts do you take daily please?
There is NO WAY I’m using meds again like those I had. The doc was quite blah say about it, I was thinking at the time ‘do you have any idea what you’ve done to me, I was already depressed and you doubled it! and I’m likely to go insane’ luckily it reduced by like 90% from that. As it goes it’s not quite so bad now I’ve just watched Logan on tv after a large JD lol.
I really think it’s stress to blame at the moment.
Funny, people think it’s stressful working in a kids arcade with all the machines singing - they often say ‘doesn’t that drive you mad?’ I chuckle and tell them it keeps me sane and they look at me oddly and laugh! it really does help though - i never notice at work……sadly I doubt very much we will return this year.
My dad has tinnitus and he said that this helps him when it’s really getting to him. From what I read, this isn’t a silver bullet (there isn’t one unfortunately I guess).
Does it help if you listen to some consistently loud music? I don’t mean music that is just loud, but music that is consistently loud and doesn’t really have any quiet gaps. Find something you enjoy listening to send you something else. You might not notice it after a while if you don’t focus in on it and listen for it. Focus on something else and your body will automatically tune out unrelated information.
@GOOSE, "I really think it’s stress to blame at the moment."
If you can track when the ringing seems to suddenly begin, or simply gets worse, I'm confident you'll realize that stress is definitely the single, greatest, cause of long-term, unrelenting tinnitus. So the best therapy is employing whatever method of relaxation that works best for you.
Additionally, there are many nutritional supplement formulations developed for tinnitus relief. Finding one that might be helpful will likely require a trial and error approach. However, you could at least narrow the choices by using the supplement information provided by Zappaman.
As one who has been suffering from tinnitus for over a decade without finding anything better than trying to reduce my nearly constant stress, I wish you the best in finding relief.
G, I’ve had it for like 25 plus years. It’s worse now. Both ears, all the time. For a while I was major depressed/angry about it. Mostly because folks without it have no clue. So your ears ring a little, what’s the big deal.
Hey how about I gently pinch your arm for a while? Doesn’t really hurt much? OK lets do it for a short time – How about say for 5 years 24 hours a day and then tell me what you think!
Lots of Docs. And Audiologists. No Joy. I also have hearing loss. Tried several high dollar digital hearing aids.
They make the tinnitus worse in my case.
Diet and stress seem to play a part. Too much caffeine or booze and it ramps up. Stress seems to do the same.
Keeping out of loud environments is important in my case.
I have custom made musicians earplugs that I can add baffles for 5-15db attenuation.
Have an app on my phone that measures background levels in restaurants Etc. Some eateries are amazingly loud. Off the OSHA charts for extended exposure.
Movie theaters are always cranked up too high. I use regular foam shooting plugs for that.
At the gun range I double up- foam plugs and digital muffs. The digital muffs let me hear the range commands.
I used to really enjoy music. Had season passes to the Dallas Symphony for years. Eventually the ringing and the hypersensitivity got so I just couldn’t enjoy the concerts anymore.
I also used to sing and play guitar. The ringing has put a stop to that also. Can’t hear myself well enough to stay on key.
Funny, when I’m really concentrating on something. It doesn’t intrude on what I’m doing – unless it’s listing to something!
Tried lots of the “treatments” and other tricks some people put forward. None worked for me.
Hang in there. Try not to stress about it too much. Eventually just accept that’s it’s a part of life from now on and enjoy the other good things in life.
All the Best,
Jeff
“…I was just interested in your workarounds/distractions.”
since mine is inherited (mother, several cousins, and more)
we have tried 98% of any type of workaround/distractions.
here is what works most of the time:
1. cheap fan. expensive fans are too quiet when running.
2. no caffeine. at all. takes about 8 “cold turkey” days to work.
3. exercise. the really hard, hurts, sweating type. yoga is not that.
one cousin just could not quit coffee, but she got in real good shape until her first child.
Mom’s fan goes with her if she has to spend the night somewhere else.
i have 6 distinct tones. i live with my own personal soundtrack.
That’s interesting timing for this topic, because i have just noticed this starting about 3 weeks ago.
For about a month and a half now the pulmonary dr has me Rx on a steroid prednisone. First month was fine, but now i have constant high frequency ringing in both ears. i thought it was like HF audio noise from some electronics, but then realized i was hearing it while outside and walking around the block.
Not sure if its just age, stress, worn out ears, or Rx drug related, but it sure is coincidental with the new med.
i was taking a blood thinnerBrelinta several years ago and after 5 months started having numbness and tingling issues—probably should have been taken off after 3 months instead of given 6 mo supply. so i know Rx can do some weird stuff.
Sorry to read about you guys dealing with it over a long term.
I had bad tinnitus for a very long time. I was also developing hearing loss; getting worse and worse. The tinnitus was always there. About 5 years ago I decided that I had to get hearing aids. Every other word I said seemed to be “pardon me”, “what?”…… I don’t notice the ringing in my ears as much anymore when I wear the hearing aids. The hearings aids did not cure the tinnitus, but now the hearing aid amplified sounds are louder and even sitting here in a quiet room as I type this it is not bothersome. I hear the dishwasher in the kitchen and it is not a very noisy machine. I hear the keys as I type.
I’ve been dealing with it since around 2012 acquired from participating in too many music groups simultaneously.
The only real way to deal with it as far as I can tell is to “get over it” and forget about it which could take weeks or months.
I reactivated my tinnitus badly when I learned to ride a motorcycle in 2018, I did upgrade my knowledge about ear plugs though. I limit myself to two rides per week which I seem to be getting away with.
A year ago after driving long distance (with ear muffs on) I additionally picked up some kind of fluttering of an ear muscle which sounds like a large diesel engine under load parked nearby. Really freaked me out and still can from time to time but if I can manage to not have tinnitus on my mind it has a better chance of going away or just being ignored.
Standard 350mg - 500mg on zinc, magnesium while Periwinkle is small (40mg)’ish I take one set a day, while some need more. I tend towards the minimalist approach (with all drugs), but it’s trail and error.
Also should look into diet as a lot of stuff we need (obviously) comes in basic foods. For example: Selenium is cheapest by the Brazil nut. Co-Q10 is PLENTIFUL in red meat (but great supplement for vegans I guess). A lot of Buhner’s work is COMMON SENSE with regard to the whole picture of nutrition and how to mix it with supplements not in ones (particular) diet.
And… our diet IS a big problem as you can guess: more-and-more it’s got lots of toxins and stuff we don’t need (but sell into food today unlike 30 years ago when soy bean oil for example was thrown out for good reason. Now it’s in MOST salad dressings, and lots of processed food- and contains zero nutritional value and questionable long-term toxicity… you know, like diet sweeteners, etc.)
My best therapy for my ringing is garden raised food (I can 140 quarts a year), wild game (which I butcher) for 80% of our meat diet and— good wine. But too much white noise, alcohol, and stress are all not good for my condition.
Finally… listening to music with good dynamic range (anything but thrash-metal) on a GOOD system- paying attention to the mix (which I do with every song I hear- figuring out how they make the sounds they do) is the BEST treatment. Loud with distortion is VERY BAD, but loud with dynamics is actually GOOD. It exercises the brain’s listening “maps” to the neurons. But without the intent to listen (and enjoy), it’s white noise. In my case there are certain kinds of music (I won’t disclose here) that are white noise to me… I’ll just say some styles sound the same over-and-over again without real musicianship involved- so yes I LOVE JAZZ (and many cutting edge NEW genres too)!
I’m sorry to hear that G0OSE, and to everyone here who has the ringing. From my experience, it came from a period of heavy stress and depression. It was very loud, only a few hrs sleep at night. This lasted almost 1yr, then subsided to a lower fluctuating level. After 2 doctors it was clear there is no cure. I hear it continuously, but just like a counselor told me once, our brains are efficient and will disconnect info not needed. You don’t always notice that feeling in your behind sitting in a chair until I just mentioned it. So it is with ringing, its always there, just don’t notice it as often. You will live and survive with it, in time it will just be normal to hear it. Try not to dwell on its affect on you. Try to ignore it. Practice these, don’t let it make you bitter, let it make you better.
A ten dollar box fan helped me a lot. Ambien helped me fall and stay asleep. I know some folks don’t like to take drugs. Fine by me.
As long as I have 5 to 6 hours to devote to sleep, I have no lasting side affects or that hung over feeling in the morning.
Word of caution though. Take it 20 minutes before you go to bed. If you remember you have to do something after you already took it. It can wait till tomorrow. Don’t even thing about trying to work through it. Don’t ask me how I know.
Again, I know some folks don’t like to resort to chemicals. I won’t enter that debate but, I will say, being deprived of needed sleep for extended periods of time is very very damaging to your physical and mental health.
My tinnitus started a few years ago, with a very faint hum in my ears. Only audible when I was in a dead-silent room (which almost never happens). blood pressure is ok, not too high. I noticed it got a tiny bit louder through the years, but might become an issue when I get older.
Wow, I knew it was more common than I thought - but it really is more common than that.
I know everyone’s is a different sound/level too. Also I know it can come and go, or hang around.
I’m gonna be honest here and right up front - for years I used to smoke weed in the evening, I have given up numerous times - last year I didn’t smoke for over a year, but I did smoke over the Christmas break - this started about 1-2 weeks after i stopped again. I would imagine it is connected. I am obviously a LOT more relaxed after a smoke - and to some degree during the day because of the ‘build up’ of thc presumably.
That taken into consideration, and all the extra stress with the full lockdown, home education, arguments, loss of job and so on - well I think this ‘return and loudening’ is a symptom of those things combined - well, it’s not coincidence I don’t think.
Today I am taking your advice and completely cutting out caffeine and alcohol for a good while, maybe it will help. What is confusing me is how I had it years ago - it kinda disappeared by 90% for years - now it’s back at say 60% of what it was when at it’s worst.
I am dealing with it, but where it is ‘new’ again it was a little worrying lol. i hope if I can find the cause and change it, it may well recede again. I hope anyway.
Thanks for all your kind input - really useful!
thanks anyway though.
But too much white noise, alcohol, and stress are all not good for my condition.
