"What... seems... to be... the... problem... little one."
Posted on 12/05/2016 6:55:23 AM PST by far sider
Hey guys. I'm 58 and have had tinnitus for about 30 years now. It has always been just an annoyance. But this year the volume has increased A LOT. It's like a very loud dentist's drill in both ears. I have heard that tinnitus can make you suicidal. I always scoffed at that but I'm starting to see why it would be attractive to some people.
I have a few questions and would appreciate any feedback.
1. I know there is not cure but do any of you know of anything that can reduce the volume?
2. Do cochlear implants help tinnitus?
3. Is there anything promising down the road?
My doctor doesn't have any answers.
FWIW, my GP said I had fluid in the ears caused by lots of air travel (she used to work for an airline). A couple of my colleagues at work, who also travel a great deal, report the same symptom.
I remember when this was on FR a few years ago. Did it actually work for you? I tried it but not 50 times.
"What... seems... to be... the... problem... little one."
I don’t know if I have a mild case of tinnitus or not but I suspect i do. I do know that there is never “silence”, that in a quiet room I hear a slight very volume low but constant high pitched hum/buzz. But it’s so low in volume that it doesn’t see to be anything like tinnitus sufferers complain about. I’ve had it my whole life so I always assumed this is just what people hear when it’s quiet. I don’t know. If it is, I certainly hope it never increases as you indicate can happen.
Yes, it worked for me. For the first few weeks the relief didn’t last that long (hours), but I would just repeat every time it came back. After that, it lasted much longer, and now after a couple of years I am basically free of tinnitus. It’s probably been over a year since I’ve had any tinnitus at all.
Sound therapy works for about 5% of the users. What works for me are the Widex hearing aids which produce chromatic sounds around the frequencies that are missing. Remember, tinnitus is always associated to hearing loss at specific frequencies. It is not your ears, its your brain that is trying to fill the gap.
There ARE cures. One person I know started taking high quality fish oil (not a shill for this company but I trust it because within two weeks of taking it my special needs three year old started speaking finally) — one good brand is Nordic Naturals — and the tinnitus disappeared.
Seriously, do not give up and don’t do surgery. Research other dietary ways. I am not kidding, someone plagued with tinnitus for years started taking the EPA fish oil from Nordic naturals for other reasons and never had tinnitus again.
How do you cover both ears and still have a hand free to bang the back of your head?
I did read recently that the drug oxytocin MAY have some properties which help.
That is the feel good hormone released after orgasm. Maybe you could get a doctor’s prescription.... ;)
I was put on aspirin in my teens for peripheral circulation issues and it caused tinnitus! Stopping taking the aspirin got rid of it.
Eliminate cards and sugar and you will see a big reduction
I did
Mine was caused by stress-
One of the side effects is hearing loss. Not exactly the best cure for tinnitus.
Oh, and stop eating pufa oils at the same time you start taking the EPA. The point is to get your omega 3s way up and your omega 6s way down.
No packaged foods or any food cooked in canola oil and other seed oils. When you have to eat out all their stuff may be cooked in poor oils like those. So at home never use them. Only coconut oil, butter, very high quality organic olive oil (most are allowed to have bad oils mixed right in and sold as olive oil). Packaged snacks (chips) would be huge offenders, though there are some health food brands switching to coconut and avocado oil cooked chips.
My friend has stuck to this diet and his tinnitus never returned.
How did you get it?
I have it. Loud. A variety of sounds. I’ve just heard that Turmeric/Curcumin may help quite a bit. I’ve just started taking it.
Just type Curcumin Tinnitus into your search.
Seems as if much of the suggestions here revolve around getting inflammation and auto immune problems decreased. Suspect that is the key for many.
I’m very sorry you suffer from tinnitus. In regard to your question about cochlear implants, I’ve read they can actually enhance the ringing; I’ve steered clear from them for that reason alone.
What I have tried (as of late) is Lemon Bioflavonoid 700 mg (Lindberg brand was highly recommended over others), and it has definitely done something (however not major, but I would not stop taking it). I continue to take it every day.
I also take Acetyl L-Carnitine, and that has helped with my brain in general, the horrible foggy agitated feeling of listening to noise all day. It’s been a huge plus! I now take 500 MG 2x a day (but worked up to this amount). I take the Source Naturals brand.
Recently I’ve been taking Synchro Gold Turmeric Elixir (horrible tasting, but I’m now downing straight shots!), and it has helped with being able to have clarity to what little hearing I have left.
Also, I’ve tried the Paleo Diet and it is helpful. (Whenever I have quit coffee, for instance, the noise/lack of clarity goes away by about 20%.)
P.S. I’ve found Amazon commentary to be very helpful in regard to supplements which may or may not aid in reducing the ringing.
=============How did you get it?===================
1968 gunship rocket in Vietnam hit a few feet away from me. 2 1/2 pounds of comp-b high explosives that close followed by multiple bombing runs dropping 500lb bombs a few hundred feet away finished the job. No high freq hearing, tinnitis screeching 24/7 and the shrapnel didn’t do me any favors either. But, we adapt.
...and avoid 20+yrs careers in Aviation, Armor, Artillery, and the Infantry.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.