Chris, I'm really sorry about this spike and the way you are feeling. Please god darn it, don't say its over or any facsimile thereof.

Its time for you and all of us to gather together that inner strength and say I can get through this. Anybody can back down and say "I've had enough", but my God or my goodness, please get the strength from within and say-I'm fighting this and I'm going to defeat these feelings.

I'm with you on this and I want to support. Please message me or respond so we can or anyone can talk. I will stay on this site.

Its a bad time, but their is much hope for either a cure or a method to cope. Your DS friends want you well and you will be feeling better tomorrow or the next day.

Hi Chris,
I have really severe and loud tinnitus I am getting counselling at the Canadian Hearing society..They tell me to stay away from salt....I feel like giving up sometimes, so tired of the whistle in my ear and head...But we can't we gotta be strong and cope there will be a cure

Chris,

There's no words, only Perserverance.

Perserverance is a thousand times greater than an idea, a passing thought, or a word. For too many it's a real, real, too real a constant suffering.

A hundred miserable even tortured years are like pissing in a stream that flows into a river that flows into the ocean...long ago dissolved and forgotten.

...for who, for what...?

..."we now only see in a mirror dimly"...
Keep Faith
Keep your Faith
..."then we shall see clearly"...

I don't believe you believe it's all for nothing.

Chris
You had a bad day. It happens. I had 2 bad days last week and I felt really bad and defeated. It comes in waves. But it's not worth giving into it. I got one of my old cd's of ocean sounds. I used Wavepad and I looped the sound of the waves coming ashore and saved it in mp3 format to my mp3 player. I can close my eye's and imagine I'm lying peacefully on a beach and forget about the tinnitus for awhile.
Instead of using a fan, why not try something like this.
If I can figure how to do it, I could even send you a copy of the mp3 file that I created.

greg

I have ups and downs with TRT - I spike to a high "eeeeee" and then it goes so low, I can't hear it.

If you do try TRT - there is a process where it seems to get worse at first.

One thing that is happening with TRT is my brain is accepting it more and reacting less.

Hello Chris:

I pray that you don't go down defeated to this demon called tinnitus! I have had spikes in the past couple of months that I didn't think I'd be able to make it through, but by the grace of God I am still here today. Please know that you aren't alone in this battle. It feels like it sometimes, I understand. When I was first diagnosed with t I thought I was the only one in my city that had it, but I have found out now that I work with people who have t and I have even come across a person at one of our state university's who is going through the same thing. Please don't let this get the best of you and don't let it win! I will keep you in prayer!

Dear Chris,
I want you to know that this is a place where people understand what you are going through and where your head is today.
You will get through this.
I was asking myself some pretty serious things at the beginning.
I was still in that place through some very bad years.
I needed someone to tell me something to keep me going.
I found people here really care. Really care.
Some are going through hell.
We are here as a group of people that will hold on to each other and comfort each other when needed.
I found some days I can get through okay and some are just terrible.
I come here for comfort and much knowledge.
Please stay with us so we can wrap you up with love and understanding.
We care very much.
We will always be here if you need a shoulder.
I will email if you like.
I want you to know, you have good friends who care.

A big giant hug to you.
Sandy

Hi Chris, I joined today as I was thinking the same thoughts , its only by coming in here and finding people with similiar symptons that I know Im not alone with my demons! It gives me hope! It is hard but lets hang in there, hey ! Big hug to you my friend x

Chris I'm not good at this. The last two days I have had the same thoughts as you. It has been almost unbearable, I look at the worry on my wife's face, and see how my children are so concern abou me. I try so hard to not let them see how bad it is. My oldest grandson, a teen, I have always tried to be a good role model for him, so I try to put fourth such a strong effort so much for him. Somehow I find the strength to keep going for them. I truley wish I could come up with something that would help us all and maybe there will be, but I am going to keep going as long as possible and I hope you will also. I was really down tonight and I usualy come in here once a day. Tonight, I really don't know her well but Mandy posted a song that I haven't heard in years. I listen to it about 4 times and read as it played and it did help me and it picked me up a bit. Go to Mandie's post and listen to it. I even saved it on my computor. We are about the same age and maybe I can help you, and you help me cope with this thing. That I'm sure you are like me and don't even understand what is happiningto us. Chris hang in there hang in there for my sake. So many few understand what we are going through. I know because I did not know till it happened to me. Feel free to contact me any time you want, I will try to get back to you and maybe both of us will get through this together. Your Friend Frank

Chris go and see your doctor and get something to help you cope. You will get past this, we've all been where you are now at some stage. Get whatever you need to help you get past this. I still have to take sleeping pills sometimes to just knock me out , sleep is a great helper, even if you wake up and it's still there,, if you''ve had a decent sleep you can cope better.

I am overwhelmed by the response and support.
That same day I wrote this, I was to meet with a friend from church for our weekly chat about things in general at 5:30 p.m. He called at 3 to see if we were still in and I told him in no uncertain terms I didn't feel like discussing the sad spiritual state of the world when my own life was a mess.
As you might expect, he showed up at 5:30 "uninvited".
He said as I Christian, I needed to remember that God can heal me if we chooses, and if he doesn't, or doesn't now, He will give me the strength to hang on.
That's what I'm trying to hold onto now. I have no inner resolve of my own left.
But if you've read this far, I have a question.
What is meant by a "spike" and by that I mean: Do you mean that on Tuesday your T is the usually blech, but on Wed and Thurs it "spiked" to more annoying levels, but then on Fri, it came back down and on Saturday he was even better still.
I measure the actual noise, not the perceived noise and I do it based on what doesn't cover/mask the ringining. All I have ever known for the past year is increaseincreaseincrease.
Do your spikes go up and then come down or stay up?
I will respond to some of your personally and thanks again for being there.

I don't think mine spikes Chris. I think each person has their own set of circumstances with their T. No two are alike although some may experience similar patterns..
I went to a praise and worship service last night and I felt my T intensify throughout the entire program. I wore an ear plug but it did no good. In most cases my T remains the same but last night I guess I was made more aware of it going on in my head.
I was so ready to get out of there,
Isn't that the ironic thing? I'm in church and my T is raging out of control? That's the devil's work at best.

Chris, I want to give you a bit of advice that someone gave me nearly 2 years ago.....don't make it important. It seemed at the time a rather silly thing for someone to say to me when my life was just all about T.

I would talk about it 24/7, I would walk around with my head in my hands 24/7. It woke me in the night...I walked round the garden at 3am and 4am...it was constant 24/7 on my mind...my whole life.

And you know what...I can't really remember the turning point but turn I did. You really have to take control of the situation yourself. I found (the hard way) that no-one will really help you with this you have to do it yourself. It has to not be the only thing you constantly think about in your life.

I realise now that the "Don't make it important" bit was right on the nail. Through further research and forums like this I came to realise that the brain is most likely responsible for the actual noise. The more we focus on the noise the more louder it becomes. our brain is playing the noise in a loop system over and over in the brain and the more we bring attention to it the more it does it.

TRT and CBT are ways of managing the noise. Ways to overcome the negative feelings that T loves to thrive on. You could do with trying to see about CBT or TRT. I think it would benefit you greatly but you have to have the right attitude for it to work as well.

When friends call to see you, thats really great as long as you don't sit there taliking about Tinnitus. That just makes it worse.

You know the best remedy for me is distraction. Getting to grips with something that can take your mind off it for a few hours will work wonderfully for you and make you feel as though there's light at the end of the tunnel, there is, I am proof. I never thought I'd cope or be able to live with this condition, but we do because whats the alternative? Not worth thinking about, don't go that route.

Please think about getting some help. If you need something to help you cope for the short term then get the help you need. Once you are in a better mindset then you can look into other therapies like TRT and CBT.

And just to finish off about the spikes...well some peoples T will increase in volume due to something they ate or drank. My T can increase in volume if I have too much Chocolate (which I love) so after Christmas I was having a bad time for a couple of weeks. I paid the price, so did my weight !!! but it usually returns to its just annoying constant drone that I always have. I have to then use "Good thoughts" and tell myself it will calm down and it will settle. It does.

Best wishes.
Mandy

I have OCD, actually only the O. I don't wash my hands (more than once anyway) or any of the other compulsives that people do (not putting them down; I'm on that site as well)
So I guess that explains a lot. I take only 100 mg of a medicine when 300 is the norm, but any more and I get too sleepy (one more thing to be discouraged about; I can't even take the full dose of medicine I need)
I do see a psych, and the aforementioned friend. I went the last couple of days OK, but today I got depressed again. I don't see how a person can "get used" to something that keeps changing.
I'll make note of your comments, though. Thank you.

Oh, and my T does not get worse at any particular moment (after chocolate, etc.)
I don't drink any caffeine, I do eat chocolate, but hardly enough to blame the spikes on. I am getting more sleep now that back when my OCD kicked into high gear and I had no major problems with T (since a child, I've had a very mild ring that I already ever noticed).
I've been to a handful of loud music concerts and never once developed the major T I have now. I have attended h.s. sporting events for 29 years and again, it's a blessing not a curse.
I'm still not sure I buy the "it's all in your brain" idea, but I will keep it in .... er ... mind (?)