What causes a relapse when you've done nothing wrong? How to avoid anymore relapses?

[Alugo6340]

I think I may of asked this question before but I dont remember. I know one thing, I seriously miss my mild tinnitus so bad. I miss even waking up alot a couple months ago with no tinnitus and would have mild tinnitus in the mornings even though it would slowly increase to moderate by bedtime. I know clonazepam played a part in waking up with no tinnitus though it wouldn't last long, after 10 minutes I get mild tinnitus for two or 3 hours but now I wake up to a level 4 or 5 tinnitus and go to bed with severe tinnitus that's like a 7 on the loudness scale. What could make tinnitus go from being quietish in the morning when you wake up to louder in mornings when you wake up? I dont go to concerts at all. This worsening in tinnitus all happened after a cold. I remember swallowing food and hearing clicking sounds everytime I swallowed and not being able to taste for a month when my nose cleared up and my worsening in tinnitus happened that time. I got a CT scan and it didnt show ETD nor did I have fluid in my ears although at first the doctor said it looked a little negative in there and said it should clear up then I went to the doctor a month later and there was no fluid in there but the tinnitus was still much worse than it use to be. The doctor didnt bother putting a camera in my nose to check for ETD. I have this whistling noise over fans, music, voices. My tinnitus gets louder at the end of the day and has done that for 6 months since that cold. I had bad sinus pressure during that cold and had two more colds since that cold last November. Watching TV is difficult with the ringing competing with it so I try using background noise but I'm still desperate to figure out the cause. I miss my old life where I could forget I have tinnitus. Not sure if the worsening has to do with my congenital deafness but I always had mild tinnitus til now. I want so badly to go back to mild. If anybody has an idea or supplement I could try to reduce the volume and go back to mild I'll try it. Today was a bad day. I'll be going back to work soon and I'll have to hear it reacting to noises at work. I work in a grocery store. Earplugs may not work for me as one ear doesnt have an ear canal and the other does. Sorry for ranting this again but why would tinnitus suddenly get worse and not fade? I got a worsening 3 years ago that lasted a week then it faded to very mild and I forgot I had it within 2 weeks but now 3 years later and a worsening and 6 months later I still have reactive tinnitus so what gives? I worked in a grocery with no issues for a year and half...not sure if I got an infection or what. Occasionally I'll get ear pain but not often and not too bad or tickling sensation in my ear but I get more ear fullness than pain but not always. I was an alcoholic for like 2 months before November came and I thought I was pregnant a month before that but I wasn't. I cant figure out the cause though cause it doesnt make sense. Sorry for the rant, I'm terrified this is progressive tinnitus. My tinnitus resolved itself before 3 years ago so why isnt it going back to mild and staying that way ? I didn't lose more hearing so what could the damage be?

[TinnitusUKPat Partner]

Hi Alugo

It does seem like you are having a very stressful time at the moment.

There are a lot of reasons why your tinnitus might elevate - it may react to noise, it may change as a result of a cold or infection and it may be made worse if you are isolated and find it difficult to focus on other things which might help reduce the amount of attention which you are giving to it.

There isn't anything that unusual in your previously manageable tinnitus changing in response to a mild illness or if it seems to be noticeable at the end of the day. For one thing, you are likely to be tired at this point and that is likely to make you acutely aware of any source of sound - be that in your environment in general or inside your head, as your tinnitus is.

Have your doctors given you any opinions on the role which your deafness plays in your tinnitus appearing to worsen or become more intense?

A lot of people at the moment are experiencing greater stress and anxiety than normal, so I would try to do what you can to tackle those issues rather than having your mind race around examining possibilities which the Covid-19 lockdown will make it difficult to get any support with. You mention that you feel your tinnitus will spike and increase when you get back to work as though it is an inevitability - your previous experience will play a part in this thought, but is it possible that the reactivity is due to being in a stressful job, as much as the sound in the the workplace?

Wishing you the best with your wellbeing

Pat

Forum Administrator