A good nights sleep

[777john]

I think every body will agree that whenever we first get tinnitus fear and terror runs through our veins and the one thing it effects is our sleep, i remember my first few months and especially the first few weeks i was so scared i would keep getting out of bed, walking round going in to the garden , pacing the kitchen and the front room, begging my wife to make it stop, i just wanted to die , where ever i went this horrible loud noise would follow me there was no escape and the more nights i went with out any sleep the louder the tinnitus got. If it wasn't for the sleeping tablets which i finally got iv no idea what would have happened, and then i hit the anxiety button, it was a long journey back for me, it nearly destroyed me. when i came off the sleeping tablets i had to find something else to help me sleep anxiety tablets helped but also at the time i started listening to Stephen fry narrating the harry potter films and believe it or not his voice sent me to sleep, i listened to him every night for about 6 months by that time lets say id had enough of him then i found a great sound of rain hitting a window i had tried different one like that before but none of them worked but this sound did. Then in January this year i decided to go cold turkey, i decided the noise in my head was bad enough i did not want to hear other sounds as well so i gave it ago and before long i was sleeping normal again with out any thing helping me to sleep. That was11 months ago and i can honestly say, i love to go to bed now and most nights now i sleep like a baby and luckily even though I'm an old man ish 62 i have a great bladder and very rarely go for a wee in the night. I do believe once you get some kind of a sleep pattern back that's when you start to habituate. My tinnitus is still loud and constant as iv said in my other posts but i thank god i have my sleep back and my life back, tinnitus tried to defeat me but it didn't .Any body out there who is going through a tormented time at the moment believe me life will get better. I wish all my tinnitus sufferers out there a peaceful Christmas and lets believe in hope for the future

[doglover1973]

Great post John. Very happy for you. Completely agree too. Sleep is the cornerstone of our lives and when our sleep patterns are broken by T it's quite simply a nightmare. I'll never forget those early nights of troublesome T and I'm so grateful I can sleep normally again. Take heart if you're suffering - like John says - it won't always be the way it is now. Life gets better 🙂

[777john in reply to doglover1973]

Thanks doglover very happy you are sleeping well👍

[GreyMerlin]

Hey John.

Great post! I am 48 and have suffered with T 24/7 for the last five years. Your post reminded me of some of the pretty dark days shortly after my T started and although I still have some worse days when it gets on top of me, most of the time I can live with it.

For me, I generally sleep pretty well thanks to my Bose Sleepbuds. They’re not a perfect solution but having the sound of the sea (which I love anyway) makes the difference and I rarely struggle to get to sleep now.

[777john in reply to GreyMerlin]

If everybody with tinnitus could get some good sleep we could all cope better

[daverussell]

777john a great positive post. Thanks for sharing. It's a bumpy ride and we have to remember that however low we feel, it gets better.

[Bridie70]

Thanks for a true and ultimately positive shared experience 777john

[Parrcj]

Thank you for your post , I am 2 years in with T and find sleep is my biggest problem. In the day I have learnt to live with it, still a stuggle at times.

At times I wondered if I would ever find a peaceful place !!

Its great to see such a positive post I will try Stephen Fry.

I pray one day there will be cure, this has been the biggest challenge in my life.

Happy christmas all 🌲

[777john in reply to Parrcj]

Tinnitus is a massive challenge if you like harry potter this will help and you will find a peaceful place take care my friend.

[bantams]

Great post John, I and I hope it helps people who are just starting with T that life can improve slowly, can relate to everything you said as I have been there and know what you went through.

[Beesmac]

Your first few paragraphs describe me perfectly when mine started 3 years ago. I find a good book distracts me and I get to a point where I actually drop off whilst reading. Only someone else with tinnitus will understand what we go through. Thank you for posting and a Happy Christmas to all xx

[Cookie24]

Great post. Hoping I can get like you.

[RONf]

Wonderful post John.

Yes, when T first comes into your life it is not only disturbing but also destructive. Mine started suddenly about thirteen years ago. I first noticed the sound when I woke up one morning and for the following six months T consumed my life. The stillness and darkness of night time was the worst time. For me listening to simple white noise at a low level distracted me and sleep came. I still keep the white noise machine at my bedside for reassurance, but thankfully I do not need to use it.

I am grateful to my local NHS Audiologists, and to a lesser extent the local ENT Department, who have consistently been first rate in their support. Thanks to the NHS Audiology I have carefully tuned NHS hearing aids which bring in everyday sounds within the frequency range of my tinnitus and so negate my self-generated noise. These certainly helped on my journey to habituation. I now only wear them in the evening when I'm watching TV - they 'brighten' the sound. I have a regular 4 monthly rolling appointment at NHS ENT with a lovely specialist nurse. She checks my ears and removes wax by micro-suction to maximise my natural hearing capacity without any waxy blockages. She can also directly book me an appointment with the ENT doctor if necessary. Sadly, this level of NHS support is a postcode lottery. I have been so fortunate to receive this on-going professional help, which is so reassuring for the mental health issues which align themselves when T comes into your life.

Thanks again for an excellent post John. Have a great, peaceful Christmas and my very best wishes to you, and all other inter actors, on this most helpful forum.

[777john in reply to RONf]

It's great to hear that you have come through this awful disease you too have a great and peacefully Christmas

[Happyrosie]

may I add my thanks, John, to the others who have praised your post.

There must indeed be many thousand of people who have habituated to their tinnitus, and they do not post here. Indeed, why would they - they do not need this forum. This forum reminds them of how horrible life was when T was affecting them. They are now in the sunny uplands of NOT posting here.

[RobWG]

Great post this. My T has spiked significantly last few weeks (no idea why) but as part of my habitulisation it's not creating the sense of panic I had in my early phases.

I'm wary of becoming dependent on masking so currently use it intermittently as needed.

I've had my T for 3 years so still newish to it, but my situation has improved dramatically in that time. So for me things have got much better and whilst it's a journey staying as calm and as positive as I can is working.

R

[777john in reply to RobWG]

Glad to hear your T has improved a lot, that's always great to hear,my spikes are usually caused by a virus but sometimes like you iv no idea why they happen but thankfully like yours will,mine always calm down again.

[1966366]

Possibly the best post that I have seen all year. Thank you and merry Christmas x

[777john in reply to 1966366]

Merry Christmas to you too

[Graham-E]

Thanks that is a very positive post.

I hope you enjoy the holiday.

Very best G