Ive had tinitus for about a month now and its making me insane music doesnt sound like it used to be and i hear it everywhere. Can i even still use headphones or will it frym ears and make it worse . Pls help

  • pkelly500@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    Fellow tinnitus sufferer here for about 15 years, but it has intensified over the last four or five years. A few tips:

    1. Time to get real: There is no cure, man. If you have tinnitus due to true ear damage and not wax or other obstructions, you will have it forever. You’ll need to learn coping strategies. Sorry to break that news.
    2. Protect your remaining hearing at all costs. Wear quality plugs to shows. Wear quality plugs when using power equipment. Use quality plugs anywhere there’s sustained loud noise.
    3. Stay up on your sleep and exercise. That can reduce the severity of tinnitus. Caffeine also is a big trigger for some people.
    4. Do NOT use IEMs. Shoving sound directly into your ear canal is not good for your hearing or for tinnitus.
    5. ANC can help tinnitus sufferers because you don’t need to turn up your headphones that loud due to noise cancelling.
    6. Limit your time with headphones and keep the volume down. Sucks, but your hearing and ear health are more important.
    7. Find coping strategies. Find ways to relax and/or block the sound. White sound machines help; I usually run a space heater or fan in my office, depending on the weather. That constant noise helps mask the tinnitus. Walking amid natural sound helps. But the biggest step is realizing tinnitus almost certainly is not going away, so don’t drive yourself nuts hoping it will magically disappear. It won’t. So, try to use whatever coping mechanisms work for you.

    I wish you well, friend. Tinnitus sucks, and I wouldn’t wish it upon anyone. But you can learn to live with it. I would cry buckets of joyful tears if the noise in my ears ever stopped, but I also have learned to cope with the sound and not let it drive me nuts.