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Original poster

Did your tinnitus improve with time?

79 replies

UnplainJane · 01/03/2021 11:23

Had it 5 months now and the BTA websites underlying message is that it gets better with time - I understand this means you just adapt to it as the 'norm' at some point so it's not as bothersome. Obviously I hope it'll go but looking very unlikely! I've seen various HCPs and nothing wrong, hearing is good.

Just looking for others experience of it 'getting better with time'...... Don't know if it makes a difference but I've got various noises/pitches going on, not just one tone.

OP posts:
SoftParade · 02/03/2021 18:11

With me it recurs, sometimes it almost goes away for a few days/weeks, then it's back. People who haven't experienced it really don't understand how much of a problem it can be :(

timtam23 · 02/03/2021 18:39

I've had tinnitus and chronic facial pain for about 5 years now, following s viral infection. I mostly don't notice the tinnitus so much now but it definitely gets worse if I'm stressed/tired, if the weather's cold or if I have a blocked ear, sore throat or a cold. I try to distract myself with something else, this helps quite a bit. I've never tried white noise or anything like that. Personally I found audiologists/ENT very dismissive of my symptoms and not helpful with any suggestions of how to manage them, but there's a lot of advice online

Pippa234 · 02/03/2021 18:48

I used to wear ear plugs as well as it got worse if I was around loud noises like hair dryers, I can cope with hair dryers more now.
But if I am having a bad day (which is very rare and usually linked to me being unwell) I put ear plugs in, it definitely helps.

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General health
TurquoiseDragon · 02/03/2021 19:08

Mine improved once I began to wear hearing aids. No idea why.

Original poster
UnplainJane · 02/03/2021 19:18

@TurquoiseDragon I think if you have tinnitus caused by hearing loss then the hearing aids help to recover the lost hearing which cancels out the tinnitus. I don't have hearing loss so won't help me unfortunately.

OP posts:
LongTimeMammaBear · 02/03/2021 20:07

Hi Op

I have hearing loss and hearing aids. I didn’t realise at first it was hearing loss. The tinnitus was noticeable first. Hearing aids did not stop my tinnitus. I hear it all the time, some times more than others as volume, tone/pitch and sound changes

In fact, some times it’s so loud I can hear what people say.

I’m not debilitated by the anxiety and frustration of it like I used to be

I had in line CBT vis a tinnitus clinic out of Royal Surrey Hospital

With that said, I had CBT previously (in person) for depression/anxiety so I was very open to CBT and so desperate for help that I’m not how much was my will to make it work.

So my tinnitus isn’t gone. But I’m no longer letting it get the best of me. Took some horrendous feelings/episodes to get here. But just wanted to let you know, it can be fine even if it never goes away. I never believed that when I was going through the worst of it.

LadyCatStark · 02/03/2021 20:11

DH has had his for 12 years. He says it does fade into the background most of the time now as he’s so used to it, but it does affect his hearing.

1forAll74 · 02/03/2021 20:23

I have had tinnitus for about 5 years now. It keeps me awake at night, and ruins any proper sleep.. As others have said, thinking about it makes it worse, or more noiticeable, so if I read in bed,I kind of forget about the noise, the same if I do some diy job, or some gardening etc.

I haven't been in any loud noise venues etc, or war zones,ha ha, lots of musicians in rock bands suffer with tinnitus.

Mine started 5 years ago, with a ringing sound, but now it's turned into a louder whooshing noise., and very annoying. It seems to have started in my right ear, but now it feels like it is in my head, which worries me a bit.

Original poster
UnplainJane · 02/03/2021 20:47

It's really bothering me this evening, I'm sure it's getting worse 😔

OP posts:
ScienceSensibility · 02/03/2021 20:55

So sorry to hear you are suffering, OP

I have had tinnitus for thirty years now. Mine was caused by a medication for endometriosis which has now been discontinued.

A later doctor described the medication as ‘evil’.

It has caused me immense misery and contributed to the break up of my marriage. I went the length and breadth of the country at first in search of a cure, so many different therapies tried and specialists consulted.

There is no doubt in my mind that tinnitus profoundly changed the direction of my life, and I find it devastating that we are no nearer a cure or remedy than thirty years ago.

I feel for my fellow sufferers.

MySocalledLoaf · 02/03/2021 20:58

I’ve had it for 36 years at least, I remember hearing it aged 4. Doesn’t bother me or even register now, although if I think about it I can hear it.

Original poster
UnplainJane · 02/03/2021 21:04

@ScienceSensibility Sorry you have had such a rough time of it. I hope you've managed to have good times despite the struggles. Are you always aware of it? Lots of people seem to manage to fade it into the background eventually so it doesn't affect them so much. I must admit I do feel a sense of sadness and desperation when I think of having this for the rest of my life. I suppose it's like any condition really - it can be life changing and just comes down to long term management.

OP posts:
somethingwittynotshitty · 02/03/2021 21:19

Mine was blood pressure related. Like many other symptoms I had, it disappeared when I started taking beta blockers. It won't be the case for many people, but it's worth ruling out.

Original poster
UnplainJane · 02/03/2021 21:24

I've had various blood tests and checks, nothing untoward found other than low ferritin but I had that before the tinnitus started and was taking iron supplements already.

OP posts:
TurquoiseDragon · 02/03/2021 21:27

[quote UnplainJane]@TurquoiseDragon I think if you have tinnitus caused by hearing loss then the hearing aids help to recover the lost hearing which cancels out the tinnitus. I don't have hearing loss so won't help me unfortunately.[/quote]
Yes, I've wondered if the tinnnitus related to hearinng loss is simply almost but not quite hearing the sounds. Although, in my case, my hearing loss is congenital, so I never had those sounds to begin with.

saraclara · 02/03/2021 21:40

Have you had a hospital referral, OP? I had to push my GP a bit, but I did get to see a consultant who did a full array of tests. She then referred my to the hospital's tinnitus counsellor, who offered me several sessions. She introduced me to various apps and online options, taught me some translation and meditation techniques, and helped me pin point what circumstances made it more/less obvious and what we could learn from that. I was also given a choice of free gadgets that produce white noise.

Simply talking to experts who took it seriously and empathised with my experience, helped me deal with it..

saraclara · 02/03/2021 21:40

Translation? Relaxation. I don't know what autocorrect was doing there.

Original poster
UnplainJane · 02/03/2021 21:44

@saraclara thanks. I went to see a private ENT as waiting list for NHS was 7 months. He couldn't find anything wrong and just said I would get used to it after a few months..... Nothing else after that. How long have you had it? Do you cope with it ok now?

OP posts:
saraclara · 02/03/2021 22:01

[quote UnplainJane]@saraclara thanks. I went to see a private ENT as waiting list for NHS was 7 months. He couldn't find anything wrong and just said I would get used to it after a few months..... Nothing else after that. How long have you had it? Do you cope with it ok now?[/quote]
I think about three years? Mine isn't too bad though, to be fair. It's the classic high pitched whistling sort which is reasonably easy to mask.

My late husband's was much worse. Like loud helicopter blades whirring in his head. Much harder to ignore, and very distressing. It was his experience that made me push for a referral. I was worried that mine might get worse. But that doesn't seem to be how it works, and that reassurance in itself, was helpful.

I can actually go for quite a long time barely noticing it. Oddly it's worse when I get out of the car after a long journey, or when I've been on a train. But of course that hasn't happened for quite some time.

The last few weeks it's been more noticeable, but again, I think stress makes it harder to ignore.

Original poster
UnplainJane · 03/03/2021 12:29

I keep getting that fleeting tinnitus today as well which makes me panic for a few seconds that it's suddenly got worse but then it fades off again. I hate it!

OP posts:
ScienceSensibility · 03/03/2021 14:47

Thank you @UnplainJane

I’m sorry my post was so gloomy. I just dashed it off in despair.

Yes, of course, life has delivered other blessings, and there are times when I notice it less. I used to be obsessed with monitoring the changes, and the fear it is going to get worse never leaves.

I truly hope you are one of the people for whom it is a temporary nuisance. Take care 💐

Original poster
UnplainJane · 03/03/2021 17:39

@Pippa234 can I just ask how loud you used to find yours e.g could you hear it over most things? And also did you do anything specific to get used to it or was it just time?

OP posts:
Pippa234 · 03/03/2021 18:08

UnplainJane it was loud enough that I couldn't always hear people if they were speaking to me in a busy place, like a playgroup.
I was convinced I had lost some of my hearing but I passed the hearing test, infact the dr said I had really good hearing, he said it could be because when you have the hearing test you are in a quiet room and so you can focus more, also you are only listening out for a beep.
He said some people's ears also focus more on background noise anyway and with the hum of the tinnitus being fairly loud and then adding background noise it will be harder to hear.

I wore ear plugs alot because I found noise made it worse. My kids being loud and the hoover and hairdryer was really overwhelming.
I literally couldn't put the hoover or hairdryer on without my ear plugs in or my tinnitus would be louder afterwards and it was very stressful.
I could hear it all the time yes.
It was particularly bad in the beginning and it was more unsettled the pitch would change more than it does now.
It's still there all the time now, I am just no longer focused on it like I was.
It really took me time.
But ear plugs may be your saviour like they were mine in the early days.
I couldn't be without them.
Stress will also make it worse get some ear plugs see if they give you any relief if yours is sound sensitive like mine was.

Oh and I can use the hair dryer now and the hoover but I can't use my hoover that I use for cleaning carpets as the pitch and loudness effects my ears.
I had a Dyson hand held hoover I had to get rid of it as the pitch of it and loudness was terrible for my tinnitus.

I know it's hard I really hope you get some reliefFlowers

weemidden · 03/03/2021 18:19

Like a previous poster, i've had tinnitus since i was a child. I thought everyone heard the noises, and was gobsmacked to learn as a teenager that silence really means hearing no sounds ShockBlush
Thirty years living with it, and it rarely bothers me. I've learned to tune it out.

Interestingly, since mask wearing (including at work), social distancing and generally not socialising my tinnitus has been more stable at staying in the 'quiet range". Probably not picking up colds/germs as that makes me feel run down = more whistling/whooshing.
A small win....

awaynboilyurheid · 03/03/2021 20:24

pippa can I ask what ear plugs you use? Thanks