My T has been getting worse over the last 3 months. My Stress levels have been high too since a family crisis in January with my mother, which is no where near resolved.
Last week I was signed off work for a month with ‘Stress related problems hearing loss/tinitus’ I work in a small library which is often relatively quiet. I felt incredibly relieved, and my stress and anxiety reduced immediately.
That evening I spent with friends, the T hardly noticeable and no ‘wall of noise’ at my right ear which makes it feel blocked or full. I felt ‘normal’ again and had a taste of how I was before all this awfulness began. I slept that night without the need for masking noise and the following morning, Saturday my hearing seemed to have improved (I’m not sure if that’s possible or whether it was simply due to the lack of Tinitus)
Saturday evening i went for a drink with my other half I could hear conversations around me and the music clearly.. I thought for a brief moment that it was all going to be ok, my hearing returned and the tinitus gone.. not to be.
It has returned, of course.
I’m still waiting for my ENT appointment and am very worried about that. The situation with mum continues and I feel drained and very tearful.
I know there is a link between them but I wonder how much others find stress affects their T?
Written by
PurpleFox19
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I guess others may have a different perspective, but I've noticed my T seems to get worse and more prominent in my daily life when:
1) I haven't had a good sleep overnight, which is often caused by my anxiety and over thinking. For example last night I managed to convince myself I have liver cancer and it's spread to my upper spine (hypochondria is very much with me).
2) When my life has some added stress, like work related stuff, health concerns (of course a regular thing for me...).
So in my opinion there is very much a correlation between stress/anxiety/depression and T. With me I first started with major anxiety, the T followed, which made me more anxious. And this is the cycle I am in. So. I've come to realise that managing the anxiety is the ultimate way to reduce the impact T has on me.
I'm currently on a small dosage of Sertraline to help with the anxiety at the moment.
Hi Galla, thank you, I really appreciate your message, and I’m sorry to hear of your struggle with anxiety. I’ve been plagued by it too and I know it can be crippling. In fact I had Agoraphobia which dominated my life for many years… I’ve mostly overcome that now though I never thought it possible.
I found Yoga and Tai Chi helped me with the anxiety and I’m finding now that yoga is really helping again. I wonder if it’s something you do or have tried?
I haven't tried Yoga or Tai Chi, but considering doing so. Meditation helps, though funnily enough at the moment I'm going through a bit of a spike, likely triggered by some anxiety.
I have found sertraline and great help too. I’m on week 6 , on 50mg. My ENT specialist said anxiety and stress feeds T .. and that’s definitely true with me . I’m learning to get this under control. Meditation helps too .
Identifying an extent that stress controls tinnitus is difficult - and likely to be different for everyone as we all experience stress in a way which is specific to our life and what's occurring within in.
With that said, we have some thoughts about tinnitus and stress and what people might want to try doing to redress any imbalances here:
stress and anxiety and tiredness definitely make me worse. So I try to help myself , Walking my dogs. Try not to worry about things. Try to be sociable to help relieve anxiety Recognize when I am getting to tired and stop and rest. I am learning to control my life better. I still worry about my health though. Probably because I am now 72. I love my two poodles . I have a sister nearby. My family live 95 miles away but I see them occasionally . I hope you try to work it out , I’m still working on it !!!
Extreme stress caused my tinnitus. That stress over but the tinnitus did continue. 2 months ago I had new stress and the tinnitus went up. Though it took around 4 weeks for the increase. Anyway, that new stress also gone and here we are and the tinnitus back to as it was. And it did go down rapidly on that. Do take this as good news. If mine behaved like that, yours may too when stress is off the headlines
Hey.. this could have been me writing this ! I have have never really known total silence but it was never an issue . Then 3 months ago I had a big spike , scared the life out of me . Spiralled into anxiety and panic attacks. Stress was definitely a factor! I’m taking sertraline to cope with anxiety and depression and it works well . I’ve also seen an ENT , and audiologist. My hearing is impaired slightly apparently but otherwise there is no physical issue. My ENT Specialist said the spike is a direct response to my stress, get that under control and it should improve. I’m more accepting that the T is a part of me , and how I perceive it. It’s a journey . I use the Headspace app for stress management, meditation, breathing and it’s been amazing. I also like Dr Gladys ( tinnitus expert) for great advice. Hope this helps .
hi Andersonpug, I’m really glad to hear there’s no underlying cause for you, that must be very reassuring.
Like you I’ve had tinnitus for a long while, years even and it’s never been an issue before. So I think you’re right it is a journey like it or not and I’m only just really beginning it.
Funny, at the beginning of the year I chose a single guiding word (rather than a New Year’s resolution, I never manage to keep) my word was ‘Embrace’ it’s being put to the test now
Whether or not stress and crises moments in life trigger tinnitus, it certainly is the case that learning to deal with the panic and stress IT causes US is key to habituation when there isn't a physical cure. I've recently downloaded an app called Quieten where a chap called Julian Cowan Hill provides loads of advice about calming down the limbic system and adrenaline response. He provides a bank of short clips with snippets of advice and exercises, having dealt with rapid onset tinnitus himself. He's very easy to listen to. I fell asleep last night doing the body scan relaxation meditation he provides, without taking sleeping medication. He mentions in ine of his introductory videos that people who are naturally inclined to be hypervigilant/worriers make up the vast majority of tinnitus sufferes that come to him for help. I think that's why self help groups, like tinnitus uk, and clinicians place so much emphasis on the emotional response to it. My CBT homework was to employ body scan meditation to distract myself from the racket at bedtime, and it has worked on some nights, so I'll persevere.
Hi, thanks for the suggestion, I’ll try the Quieten app. I really don’t like taking medication of any sort, it’s a bit of a phobia of mine so managing it in other ways is preferable for me too.
Hello there Purple Agreed with everyone stress definitely increases the noise whether it actually gets louder as in hertz /decibels I don't know or care really but it does absolutely ramp up in my head ! I also have a phobia of the meds that have been offered a number of times . I manage as best I can with activity . I had to change my life literally . Went from living alone to living with 4 or 5 people . Family had to rescue me . The loud noise and constant activity has helped my depression and hence my anxiety and my tinnitus. When I am tired tho nothing seems to really work so I put in my masker and thank God that seems to distract my brain and the noise is lessened . I only use it if nothing else works as I know its not great for me to get so dependant on. Good luck to you
Like everything with tinnitus it's completely personal. Steps, poor sleep, nothing like that seems to change my tinnitus. Advil might from time to time, but not always, being in places that are really noisy might, but not always. Sorry not to be helpful, but I've come to the conclusion not much is useful about tinnitus as it's so individual. Having the facts, such as they are, helps you to understand what is happening, but until you are able to habituate to it, not much is helpful for alleviating it.
Hi PABLR thank you for your reply, Seems like we need an arsenal of coping strategies for this condition.
Although I’ve had T mildly for years it’s only now, in the last 3 months that it has become so extreme, and at the moment I’m struggling to know what will alleviate it because it’s so variable. I’ve had three days where my hearing has been particularly good, I’ve had very low grade tinitus and no wall of static at my ear, I felt positively fine. Then this afternoon the T has been raging again, I don’t know what triggered it. It makes no sense.
T is better in noisy situations. Because loud noise around us... means we can't hear the intracranial T electricity sub station. For me... phone conversations are deeply painful. Because I'm straining to hear above the T noise. Phone calls literally get unbearable, my stress + BP go through the roof. Equally computer work is agony, that silence + concentration literally strains my head + T.
T causes stress. GP's will say it's the other way around. Certainly it's worse when stressed. BLOOD PRESSURE MEDS become more important when you have T. My T causes my hypertension to go crazy when it's quiet & I'm trying to work, or on phone calls.
Two things help a fraction: 1) Cycling - I pull on my neck muscles + clench them + head muscles. Blood circulation helps a little, helps neck arteries + blood to the ears eyes and brain.
2) Sinuses + eustacian tubes are often jammed up. Those little stick things up your nose... breathing it in deliberately to the back of your ears. Opening up the eustacian tube.
Bless us all. We're all being so brave, when we have no help and no hope. And nobody understands.... apart from us on here.
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