Now tinnitus...

Well my saga continues. A couple weeks ago I developed tinnitus in my right ear, it seems to be unusual in that the ringing oscillates between 2 frequencies (WEEeeoooOEEEoooEEEOoEEooEEEEEoo), like a malfunctioning siren. I noticed it the day after I had been playing guitar, I was sitting close to my amp with my right ear facing the speaker, it wasn’t super loud but the guitar I was playing has a particularly shrill “icepick” high frequency sound, I remember finding it a little uncomfortable but not bad enough to stop playing. Anyway when I noticed the ringing in my right ear the next morning I didn’t really panic, I have been playing in loud bands all my life and have had temporary ringing after loud events that goes away in a day or 2. I suppose I noted that this ringing was different because of the oscillating frequency, I’ve never experienced that before. A week went by and I noticed no waning, I still wasn’t too worried. Last week it started really getting to me though and I’ve started trying to drown it out with white noise. The past few days I’ve had difficulty sleeping or watching a movie. Its beginning to drive me insane.

I’m aware tinnitus is common in the TMS world. I’ve read a few stories on this forum and it seems like the kind of symptom where most people end up settling for “its still there but I’ve learned to live with it.” I’m no stranger to these sorts of symptoms, in fact I’ve been racking them up over the years. I’m not really afraid of any of my various chronic symptoms anymore, but to a certain extent they all allow me moments of reprieve, they come and go, I’ve learned how to feel safe even in the face of them. I feel extremely unsafe right now with this tinnitus, theres simply no escaping it, its always there, and I hate the idea of being reliant on white noise to preserve a shred of sanity. I have not seen a doc about this yet, not really sure what benefit that would be, other than finding out if theres hearing loss. Anyway, just needed to talk about this somewhere, I’m pretty distressed and have that awful knot in my chest over this.

 

Hi, your post resonated with me today because after starting TMS work for my other symptoms, I've noticed the past couple of mornings upon waking I've developed the same symptom, and it's exactly as you described (faint waning siren). I'm trying to stay calm through it. I really think it is another manifestation of TMS for me since starting the work. I have also read it is a common manifestation in TMS. I've had somewhat of a faint tinnitus my whole life, usually a little more noticeable at night which I read is a very common thing. However it's funny how I've started noticing it more since starting TMS work. It is something that would cause me a great deal of anxiety so... go figure

Are you applying any of the same TMS work toward your symptom? I do believe it's TMS for you as well.

 

@HealingMe I must admit I haven't begun applying TMS techniques to this yet. I subscribe to Dan Buglio's perceived danger theory, which emphasizes finding safety and living life, instead of focusing on emotional work. I've never found 'TMS work' to be helpful. I can say that the first week the tinnitus appeared I was not worried or afraid of it cause I just assumed it would pass, and it seemed much less noticeable then, I was doing all the things I normally would do and it hardly phased me. Only this past week, as I began thinking this is not going away and could last forever (permanent damage) the fear has spiked, I have begun avoidance techniques (white noise) and focusing on it, it seems louder and more intrusive. So I'm certain there is a fear based element to this. It also came on the weekend that my parents were supposed to visit and I was very stressed out about it. But that same weekend I was cutting wood with a very loud circular saw and sitting in front of a guitar amp so, like usual, its hard to make sense of it all.

I just read about tinnitus retraining therapy, which is basically a graded exposure program to alter your reaction to the symptom, a typical TMS approach which has worked to reduce fear for me in the past, and I plan to stop relying on white noise and masking, I think I need to just convince myself there is no danger or threat to this sound and stop focusing on it.

 

I've found Dan Buglio's strategies very helpful, too. It has helped me a lot to focus on living life and letting time pass.

I think what truly spiraled me into intense fear of my pain initially was thinking it would never go away and last forever, which is exactly what you describe - but it's not permanent! The fear based element is SO, SO REAL. And breaking that is tough work, but it works. The fact that it it got worse or more prominent for you after this type of thinking, along with the stress of your parents visiting, is a sign it's anxiety based. You have the right strategy in mind to stop relying on avoidance. You got this.

 

Hi.
I'va had a tinnitus for years, in the same time I started Anti depressive treatment. I thought it was a second effect, but I quickly have understood that it was a question of emotions (Dr Sarno said if the treatment prevent to feel the rage, the symptom will come somewhere else). So I think that emotional work is so important, the way you are comfortable with.

 

Seeing a doctor could actually be more helpful than you might think. They can check not just for hearing loss, but also for any underlying issues that could be contributing to your tinnitus. Plus, they might suggest some treatments or therapies you haven't tried yet, which could offer some relief or at least new strategies for managing it.