Treatments available ?

[ks1966]

Good day. I’m new to this forum and was wondering if there is anything I can do to help with my tinnitus. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

[Happyrosie]

Hello ks1966. Yes, there’s plenty you can do to help. First, the negatives - don’t believe any advertisements you see for “cures”. You can buy things that will help but don’t spend any money unless recommended by an audiologist or suitable charity.

The charity that’s the most help is the British Tinnitus Association. Reading their website will give you a lot of insight into this horrible condition

There’s a sort of teaching aid there called “Take on Tinnitus” which you can go through.

Gradually you will start to “habituate “ - get to the stage where it really doesn’t bother you at all.

[ks1966 in reply to Happyrosie]

Thank you so much for your response. It such an annoying disease

[doglover1973]

Hi ks1966 Welcome to the forum 🙂 How long have you had tinnitus? Do you have any specific issues? (Other than T being a trial) . As Rosie says - the BTA website is a good place to start . There's lots of info there and they give the lowdown on current treatments .

[ks1966 in reply to doglover1973]

Hello. Thank you for welcoming me. I’ve had tinnitus for more than 30 years but lately it’s gotten worse. I hope I find some helpful tips here.

[doglover1973 in reply to ks1966]

Do you have hearing loss too? If so it might be worth having a test. This happened to me . My T got worse when my hearing declined in quite a short space of time.

[ks1966 in reply to doglover1973]

My hearing is fine. I always had a problem hearing low pitch sounds. I hope you get better soon

[purenostalgia in reply to ks1966]

Please have your hearing checked, the first thing I said to my Audiologist was "My hearing is good" turned out my high frequency hearing was 10%.

[_Barnabas]

Hi ks

I found an app called Oto which has therapy sessions, relaxation techniques and “sound therapy”. I think it was developed by a former British Army Doctor. I find it helpful especially as I am going through a spike in my T at the moment having habituated in the past.

Hope you get some relief

[ks1966 in reply to _Barnabas]

I can’t find it though

[_Barnabas in reply to ks1966]

Sorry my typo. It’s Oto rather than Otto. I found it on apple App Store

[ks1966 in reply to _Barnabas]

Found it. Thanks o

[rabbits65]

Hello , just to add too that there is plenty of reading material out there. One book is called . Tinnitus from Tyrant to Friend . Julian Cowan Hill and there is another book written by David Bagueley (not sure of the title). I hope you find a way to feel better.

[ks1966 in reply to rabbits65]

thank you👍

[doglover1973 in reply to ks1966]

That's Living with Tinnitus & Hyperacusis by Baguley & co. It's a very good read .

[Hidden]

Join the crowd of seekers. So far this group has not uncovered any solutions, it is quite frustrating and depressing!!Our typing skills are probably improving.

[ks1966 in reply to Hidden]

thank you fir your finback 😄

[doglover1973 in reply to ks1966]

😆😆

[Poetry19]

Hello ks. I’ve been practising some exercises for my tinnitus as demonstrated by a Dr Alan Mendel on YouTube. My tinnitus is unbearable at times and for me these exercises truly work. I find I can do the exercises easily now and they are so easy to do. Worth a try !

[ks1966 in reply to Poetry19]

I will definitely check his videos out. Thank you

[purenostalgia]

Hi ks1966Happy Rosie is right, the first thing my Audiologist said to me was "Michael there is no cure, so do not believe any of the commercial adverts for a cure, they are a waste of money"

These people make money out of peoples misery and desperation for relief from Tinnitus.

When people are relieved of sometime large amounts of money only to find they have been scammed, their self esteem is even worse.

The first step you have already done by joining this forum.

Take Care

Mike

[ks1966 in reply to purenostalgia]

I was told the same. Thank you for your response

[Sparklylady67]

Hi, and welcome. I too have had T for over 30 years and understand that it can get to us. There has been lots of advice given and I'm sure that you'll find the links given useful. Like others have said the BTA website is your best point of all, all the information is backed by research. If you put in keywords in the search bar it will bring you to the pages and links e.g app- then you can see what they have written on the subject. The charity also has a phone helpline and web chat if you need to talk/ contact someone during the day. They also have a list of support groups- some are not running due to CV issues, but there are online ones. The staff at the charity are not medically trained and cannot advise on treatments but they can support you in your T journey. As purenostalgia said, there is no cure, we have to find our own form of treatment. I've removed as much stress as i can out of my life, as stress increases my noticing T. I do relaxation-.I took part in a great research project about being mindful with movement in relation to supporting my T. This introduced imagery into it and I now use the technique to calm it when it becomes intrusive. Good luck with your journey, and think about the BTA- even become a member. You'd be supporting a great support tool for T sufferers.

[ks1966 in reply to Sparklylady67]

The feedback I got on BTA is overwhelming. I feel better for some reason. Thank you very much

[Sparklylady67]

That's great to hear, they are a fab bunch of staff and volunteers.

[ks1966 in reply to Sparklylady67]

🙏👍

[tommothytompkins]

Hi ks1966, Just some of the things I do, use oto app especially sleep stories to help at night, intermittent fasting, I follow the fast 800 diet - basically healthy eating whilst reducing or cutting out carbs. I also downloaded a tinnitus hypnotherapy session, I use it most days just to relax me. I go for regular long walks by the sea - the noise drowns out the tinnitus. I still have tinnitus but for the most part it's under control and doesn't interfere too much with my life.

The best advice, stay clear of negative information, try to keep with the positive stories and you'll find something that works for you. Good luck x

[ks1966 in reply to tommothytompkins]

Thank you so much for your input. I’ll try and a keep and positive mindset

[Graham-E]

Hello and welcome, for me I have NHS hearing aides, a sound generator connected to my pillow. These are my main ‘tools’ that I use. Not really much else. Stress and tiredness are my worst things.

Keep well and keep talking

Best Graham

[ks1966 in reply to Graham-E]

Thank you Graham. I’ll try my best always

[surreycccfan]

Not wishing to sound like a broken record but not searching for a cure and only using trusted sources of information is a good first step (once you have had a diagnosis of course, which I assume you have had). The BTA has some great resources on their website, a good place to start is tinnitus.org.uk/takeontinnitus and tinnitus.org.uk/Pages/Categ...

As you have had T for some time, it would be good to identify how it is bothering you (sleep, relaxation, focus, relationships, etc.) as there are some excellent ideas on the website to help build a plan to cope.

Another path could be to attend a BTA support group (they run both virtual and face to face groups (although not all face to face groups are meeting due to covid)), more info can be found here tinnitus.org.uk/find-a-supp...

Also, another good place is to chat to the BTA either via phone or via webchat to help support and/ore direct you Tinnitus Support Team: 0800 018 0527 (webchat option is via the chat icon on the home page)

I hope this helps in some small way. Stay safe

[ks1966 in reply to surreycccfan]

Thank you so much for the valuable information. It’s hard having T. I hope I’ll done some solace in the links you mentioned