Always happy to share my Tinnitus story in case any little snippet helps someone deal with what can be quite stressful...
It came on after a smallish indoor gig in Nov 2015 with a girl from Norway using a kick drum at the front of the stage amped through the PA. At the time I though "that drum sound seems way too powerful to be comfortable" then realised on the drive home the usual immediate post gig ringing didn't subside... and a week later it was still ringing in both ears.
After a few more weeks I went to see the doctor expecting some sort of "cure" saying I can't put up with this the rest of my life.... it was intrusive all the time.
Then saw the consultant after hearing tests at hospital... he was very matter of fact explaining it was brain generated and not fully understood but I would probably have it for ever. No further help offered.
To be honest I was a bit distressed... as much as anything because it gave me a fear of loud noises in case it increased the tinnitus to unbearable levels and I hated the thought of never going to a gig again.
After a year of trying to put up with it... and as others have said above... seeking to avoid circumstances where it was totally quiet where all I could hear was the ringing... I heard of an experimental trial through a Cambs hospital for a new way reduce the impact of tinnitus.
It turned out this was actually a nationwide research trial and I was accepted to start on it Jan 2017. The trial was prompted by the trial leader's concern there was often poor/variable support and minimal funds in the NHS for tinnitus suffers... as I had discovered.
At the trial start I gained an understanding along the lines of a post above that the ear produces a huge amount of sound signals to the brain and it's the brain that decides what we "hear". When there is a change in the signals sent from the ear such as in gradual/sudden hearing loss or physical damage etc the brain can look harder for signals it is expecting and produce sensations of self-generated sounds.... tinnitus. These can be high or low pitch and steady or pulsing.
I was sent to a tinnitus specialist audiologist at the local hospital for hearing tests where she found I had good low/medium frequency ability... above average... but a dropping off upper range greater than my age would normally produce.
As part of the trial I was issued hearing aids tuned by this tinnitus specialist with far greater care than normal to try and enhance the reduced frequencies to give the brain a more normal input. In addition they had a button where I could choose a relaxing background sound such as waves on a beach.
These hearing aids helped me to hear high pitched bleepers such as the microwave timer but it truth only helped the tinnitus a small amount.
However the major point of the research trial was an internet based CBT type set of sessions over 8 weeks where you were guided through the process towards the goal of being able to "turn the tinnitus on and off". And daft as it sounds that is exactly what it did for me.
I lost my concerns it would never go, it could get louder, there was no peace when trying to get to sleep etc.
It's hard to explain but the ringing is always there but I can go days with "not hearing it" and in fact often it only comes to the surface when the word tinnitus is said or read.
For going to gigs I have musician's type ear plugs with two different attenuation levels and an even reduction across all frequencies so I can freely enjoy live music again.
I don't need to wear the hearing aids any more.
theconversation.com/tinnitus-why-its-still-such-a-mystery-to-science-124021
Last edited by: Fenlander on Sun 9 Feb 20 at 23:43
|
