People with tinnitus, how long have you had it and does it bother you?

[Pinkpowderpuff]

7 months in and although I'm coping better than I was each day is still pretty difficult. I'm hoping one day I'll reach the holy grail of hearing it but not being bothered by it. I feel I'm still a long way off that though!

@Dementedswan The implant might help calm the tinnitus down? I don't have any hearing loss thankfully and also no inkling as to why I developed tinnitus. Frustrating.

I've had it for as long as I can remember and it didn't bother me much. However in the last few months it has got so much worse and is affecting my hearing. I have a hearing exam soon and I hope they can offer me some hope.

Although I'm slightly reassured that I'll grow accustomed to it over time, that time seems like it'll be years! On I struggle then I suppose. Sorry to all the rest of you who have this but I'm glad the majority of you can live with it without it affecting anything.

@Dementedswan hi! How are u now ? Im worried to have my first jab because of this . Thankyouxx

I've had it my whole life, at least as long as I can remember, but it did get worse in my teens when I started getting migraines. Most of the time I can just tune it out, but quite often if I'm in a quiet room just by myself I'll play white noise to cover the worst of it. Sometimes it's very present, but I try and distract myself with other sounds, music or TV, when it gets like that. All I can say is that it does become more bearable, as others have said, though I appreciate that doesn't help in immediate terms. I hope you can begin to tune it out soon, after that it just becomes a background part of life- I can imagine it must be so hard when you're still adjusting.

I had an explosive device go off near my head when I was 18, I'm 42 now.

My brain tunes it out 90% of the time, it's only when I notice it that it begins to annoy really.

The worst thing is that because my brain is tuning out the tinnitus it amplifies other sounds around me and makes my hearing incredibly sensitive. I can hear dogs and neighbours and birds and people and cars and farm vehicles and all manner of stuff. That drives me batty most of the time.

20 years, it stressed me out massively for months at first. Now I am completely used to it, and don't notice it for weeks. My brain found a way to cope. Reading this thread I can suddenly hear it loudly again haha, probably will be in the background again by the morning. It really does get better

@Hangthetowels

20 years, it stressed me out massively for months at first. Now I am completely used to it, and don't notice it for weeks. My brain found a way to cope. Reading this thread I can suddenly hear it loudly again haha, probably will be in the background again by the morning. It really does get better

Meant to type 10 years!

5+ years, only one ear, fairly severe and pulsating. I had a pretty complete work up for it when it started including an MRI due to the presentation but it turns out it is most likely just a result of hearing loss in one ear and the brain compensating for it. It’s tolerable these days. I would like to be able to hear silence again though - I miss that.

I can’t remember how long I’ve had it, probably from all the gigs as a child/teen but it doesn’t bother me most of the time.

It only really bothers me when I think I hear a noise at night and I’m straining to hear the potential murderer

Mine started in the summer of 2020, I mostly notice it when I'm somewhere quiet or at home. My ENT doctor recommended using the Tinnitus Calmer app if it gets worse & becomes distressing, so far it's been manageable

There's good advice here too
www.tinnitus.org.uk/

I don't know how long I've had it. Decades and I'm mid 50s. Alongside some hearing loss which started about 10 years ago. I notice it first thing in the morning and it seems to get worse when the weather is cold and frosty. This may be something to do with air pressure but it could also my imagination.

I'm more bothered about the hearing loss than the tinnitus tbh, but the two do go hand in hand. I'm at the stage of routinely using subtitles when watching TV and films, which helps.

I had it at a low level for about 20 years which was ok but it has really ramped up over the last 2 years and is very annoying. It also wakes me up at night.

@Dementedswan

I'd love the sound of silence! Do wonder if there's a link between covid vaccine or covid with aggravating existing tinnitus. I'm going to mention it on Wednesday when I go for my second jab. I have a symphony playing in my ears constantly now and it's very hard to ignore. I've grown up with tinnitus so used to it, but this is loud and invasive. Also I'm getting sort of electrocution pains in my ears and temples since the jab.

Covid is known to cause tinnitus. I developed it after my first covid vaccine and there are a small minority of others who have either developed it or had it aggregate existing tinnitus. It seems to be a rare side effect but I don’t know anyone will know about it when you go for second dose. Some ent are acknowledging an increase in reporting post vaccine Most people who have an aggregation of existing tinnitus find it goes back down again eventually.

I've only had tinnitus for about 4 months, since a lengthy drilling session at the dentist. My ears were ringing after the drilling and so far it's not stopped.
It's like a constant hiss, and I miss proper silence. But if I concentrate on the sound at bedtime, strangely it seems to help me nod off to sleep quicker!