Sleep

[Peejayache]

Hi everyone. Do others find that T often sets in 4 to 5 hours after going to sleep regardless of how it was before?

[Happyrosie]

For what it’s worth, my opinion is that T backs off in waking hours because you’re occupied and there is noise around you so your brain ignores it. As it should. In the middle of the night there is nothing else to distract your phantom hearing system so the T giggles inanely to itself and taunts you.

I look at it like this: We have squirrels in the garden and they nick the bird food. When I’m busy cooking or sitting in the chair reading or talking, or however I’m occupying myself, I see the squirrels and ignore them. If I’m sitting in the garden and they come in, as they do, I get irritated and think to myself “and they are going to have babies soon so there will be even more of them!”. But grey squirrels are here to stay. So is my T.

[doglover1973]

Hi Peejayache My T is always louder when I wake up first thing in the morning or later in the day - if I snooze. I've no idea why this should be. How about you?

[Peejayache in reply to doglover1973]

Hi doglover and yes mine is worse in mornings and often reappears after an afternoon nap. The frustrating thing is that it's entirely inconsistent.

[TinnitusUKPat Partner in reply to doglover1973]

I don't know if you recognise any of the ideas covered by Dr James Jackson's research, which makes for interesting reading: tinnitus.org.uk/Blog/the-co...

[doglover1973 in reply to TinnitusUKPat]

Thanks TinnitusUKPat I've not seen this before. The link between cortisol - too low or too high - and tinnitus is very interesting. This resonates with me as I have cfs too. I wonder if Dr JJ has got any further with his research ..

[ViHayhurst in reply to TinnitusUKPat]

Again, Dr. Jackson addresses the need for funding. Still on the back burner in the United States. You Brits appear to be doing somewhat better -- both advocacy groups and patients should really start to push this --- research funding is needed to get those answers!

[Happyrosie]

That’s the beauty of tinnitus - it gets you when you don’t expect it! I had a bad night last night, with my heart pounding at 85 beats per min (usually resting heart rate 64 - yes I have a Fitbit). In spite of relaxation breathing. So the T was loud. And it’s loud now as I’m so tired!

[perlcoder]

Yes. I think that is, sadly. a fairly common part of T.

On the other hand, to the extent that my T (22 years and counting), is still capable of periods of silence, I find that after a bad day, it will sometimes go silent in the night. The silence is such that it wakes me - if you see what I mean. In my case this may be linked to the fact that I always fall asleep within minutes of my head hitting the pillow, no matter how bad the T when I go to bed, no matter what else may be troubling me. This has been true all my life.

We are all different.

[Peejayache in reply to perlcoder]

Wow 22 years! How have you coped with it for so long? Like you, I usually "hit the sack" and sleep well for those 4 to 5 hours. After that it is sporadic napping.Of course the rest of the day is spent feeling tired.

It is a very debilitating condition to be sure.

[perlcoder in reply to Peejayache]

For the first 15 years, T was a nuisance for sure, and a often big one, but it was day on / day off (regular as clockwork), and it did not noticeably disturb my sleep. If I woke in the night, I could go back to sleep without much, if any, difficulty.

A major deterioration began 5 - 6 years ago. That was progressive, but it began with T waking me in the night with increasing difficulty to get back to sleep. That was accompanied by a gradual breakdown of the day on / day off - so that days off became fewer and less predictable in coming, and an increase in loudness.

So, really, it has only been for a very few years that my T has been louder, pretty much continuous and sleep-depriving. I am not sure that I would be here now if it had been like that from the beginning, but of course hypotheticals about that kind of thing are not very helpful.

So yes - debilitating indeed.

[lilliput]

Mine is the same volume regardless of time of day. Having a spike after being able to ignore it (still there) but it's never varied.

[lilliput]

Was going to do the survey but stuck on at which time is it loudest question and gave up!

[Hookie01]

Yes, mime starts after I have been laying down for a few hours, so it's there when I wake in the night and the morning.