Tinnitus: Hyperbaric Treatment vs. SCUBA Diving

I tried a hyperbaric chamber yesterday for one hour. I was unaffected by the pressure. The tinnitus was as loud coming out of the chamber as it was when I entered the chamber. I do get some relief when I SCUBA dive in the open ocean and I am now even more perplexed as to why that relief happens in the ocean.

It is only logical that pressure or temperature would be the source of relief. I've tried ice vests, cold water, and now the hyperbaric chamber...I'm stumped. Perhaps the brain just shifts gears while diving. Perhaps the salt water environment somehow alters the brainwaves or EEG levels at depth. Who knows? It is an odd phenomena. Divers with tinnitus, please comment and let me know if you experience relief while SCUBA diving.

Tinnitus: Cars That Cancel Traffic Noise

A noisy car, squeaky brakes, and traffic background noise can amplify subjective tinnitus and or hyperacusis. As a result, a long drive can be very difficult for people who suffer from these conditions.

Good news! According to Consumer Reports (April 2013) the automobile industry has begun to sell cars that have noise cancellation technology built-in. The technology is similar to modern noise cancellation headphone technology. Here is a list of vehicles that have the technology built-in.

Acura (ILX, RDX, and TSX)

Chevrolet Impala

Honda Accord

Crosstour

Odyssey

Cadillac 

Lincoln

Ford (C-max, Fusion Hybrid)

If you are considering purchasing a new vehicle then you may want to research this topic further. Here's the link: http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/news/2013/02/cool-car-features-you-can-buy-now/index.htm

Tinnitus: Discrimination

Yesterday I heard a BBC radio report about a man with Parkinson's Disease and how he was detained by police because he looked as if he was fidgeting and showed hardly any facial emotion. It was his non-verbal communication that the police perceived as suspicious behavior.

I started wondering about tinnitus sufferers and how we may be inadvertently sending similar non-verbal communications signals to people around us. If we lack sleep we may appear lazy, bored, fatigued, uninterested, and distant.

After a few evenings of total sleeplessness we could be more easily agitated and fidgety. If the tinnitus is very loud we may not know that we are talking over it and so what we perceive to be normal speech may be misperceived by other people as shouting or aggressive behavior. People with hyperacusis and tinnitus may begin to slur words due to grogginess. Slurring words could be misperceived as being drunk.

A friend of mine was accused of being drunk at work, as a flight attendant, and she was placed on administrative leave until, after some tests, it turned out that she was suffering from early signs of muscular dystrophy (a non-visible disability at first). The false accusation really was a stressful ordeal for her.

Tinnitus, like Parkinson's Dissease, is a non-visible disability. Discrimination is typically just a misinterpretation of unintended non-verbal communication. This is why I make sure to communicate my condition during important situations where the stakeholders need to know. Think of police as stakeholders. If, hypothetically, I get pulled over for a broken tail light I would immediately communicate to the police officer that I sometimes speak over my auditory condition and that it can be misunderstood as nervousness, shouting, and anger.

Other stakeholders (people who need to know about your tinnitus) may include:
Spouse
Family
Friends
Medical Practitioners
Supervisor
Co-workers

Tinnitus: Aspirin

According to the National Institute for Health aspirin does cause tinnitus. Since I already have tinnitus, I learned that aspirin increases the volume and annoyance level. Usually the volume will come back down in a day or two.

I realized that, for me, a major headache that lasts for hours is more endurable than major tinnitus that lasts for days. I now avoid aspirin. I use an ice pack applied to the back of the neck as a natural remedy for headache and I simply go outside and walk. You'd be amazed at how a quick change in environment can cure a headache. I try to take a ten minute walk twice per day.

If you have heart problems and your doctor says that you must take aspirin then you should follow your doctor's instructions.

More information:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18225604

Tinnitus: Inexpensive Masking

If your tinnitus is so loud that you require hearing aids with maskers but you can't afford them then the next best thing would be to purchase some noise canceling headphones like the ones that Bose has just announced. Plug it into your iPhone or iPod and select a masking app that masks your tinnitus. You can find pink and white noise apps on iTunes. Before you do this you should seek the advice of an audiologist who can help you to adjust the volume level of the masker so that you don't make your tinnitus worse. If you are suffering from hyperacusis as well as tinnitus then a masker may not be an option for you. The masker may be amplified by the hyperacusis which could make your tinnitus worse.

If you can afford them, hearing aids with maskers are a better option because the masking will be specific to your unique tinnitus and fitted by the audiologist specifically for you.

I have no affiliation with any of the companies that produce these products and do not benefit financially from informing you about this option.

More information:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=&sku=981896&is=REG&Q=&A=details

http://store.apple.com/us/product/HB764VC/A/bose-quietcomfort-20i-acoustic-noise-cancelling-headphones

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/white-noise/id289894882?mt=8

Tinnitus: Magnesium

Magnesium is one of the herbal treatments that tinnitus treatment providers allow their patients to try. It has no known side effects and doesn't seem to worsen the tinnitus and so it is typically allowable. The idea is that magnesium is essential in maintaining healthy cilia cells inside of the cochlea.

Some people claim that magnesium cured their tinnitus. If cilia cells are destroyed, they are non-regenerative and therefore will not grow back no matter how much magnesium is being consumed. An analogy would be to think of oneself pouring fertilizer on a dead tree stump and claiming that the tree came back to life. That would be a miracle. This analogy is applicable to people whose cilia cells have been amputated by sudden loud noise. The microscopic fallen trees will not grow back. 

There are people who suffer from acute tinnitus, who have not had an amputation of the cilia cells but instead have damaged cilia cells that may repair over time. Here's where magnesium might help. As an analogy, think of a thirsty tree that is bent. Adding fertilizer may help to reduce the time it takes for those damaged cilia cells to repair. That is the idea behind adding magnesium. 

People who have amputated cilia cells, whose tinnitus is getting worse over time, may want to try magnesium to strengthen the undamaged cilia cells as a preventative measure to slow or stop the progression. There's no way to determine the efficacy of adding magnesium to one's diet. 

I started on a daily liquid vitamin called Max Effect that has 25mg of magnesium in the hopes of preventing my tinnitus from getting any louder. As it stands, the tinnitus is barely tolerable. I can't imagine it getting any louder. So, I'm trying to strengthen the remaining cells. There is no way that I'll be able to tell whether it is working. I'm not endorsing Max Effect. But, I am raising awareness of the product as a possible source of magnesium. Consult your doctor before you try any treatment.

Tinnitus: Behind the Scenes

How the Blog Began
This blog began with me experiencing progressively worsening tinnitus (ringing in both ears) and then noticing average sounds (e.g. lawn equipment) that amplify louder inside of my ears but no one else's (this is called hyperacusis). Not knowing exactly what was going on with my ears was perplexing, vexing, confusing, and frustrating.

Discovering the Tinnitus Rip-Off Industry

I was trying to find real information about tinnitus and instead I kept finding advertisements claiming to cure tinnitus. I was told by a few audiologists that those so-called cures are a rip-off and that there is no cure for tinnitus only temporary relief through treatment (e.g. cognitive behavioral therapy and pain management, medications for sleep, and hearing aids with maskers). 

The Drive to Post

As my tinnitus grew louder so did my desire to find out the scope of what I was dealing with and I wanted answers. I realized that other people may want to read about the answers that I discover. I also have access to a team of medical providers who look at the tinnitus from different perspectives. I often post insights from my medical team.

The Gap

I noticed a huge gap between what the providers do know about tinnitus and what tinnitus patients don't know about tinnitus. The goal of this blog is to be a proverbial bridge and also to provide my thoughts and theories based on current research that may lead researchers to a cure.

Helping Others

At first I was reserved about writing this blog because I was concerned about my medical privacy but then I realized that if I could help one person who is misinformed or perhaps help researchers and medical providers to understand things from a different perspective then it was worth laying my privacy aside. 

Then and Now

I began the blog in 2007, I wish that I could say that my tinnitus is cured or better since then, but it isn't. I have learned to better manage my life to minimize what triggers the tinnitus and to use good  practices for temporary relief (e.g. a healthy diet, light exercise, scuba diving, hearing aids with maskers, moving to a quiet neighborhood and using noise cancelation headphones while at the movie theater, and catching sleep when I can.). Since 2009 about 18,000 viewers from all over the world have reviewed my posts. 

Copy-Cat Blogs

Other Tinnitus123 websites and blogs have been created trying to mimmic my blog with one distinct difference, the copy-cats are trying to sell "cure" pills and gadgets. I'm committed to not selling tinnitus cure pill products or gadgets on this blog. I believe that it is unethical and somewhat inhumane to sell placebos and to fill people with false hope. If I provide a link to a product that I use it is simply me raising awareness. I receive no profit from the products that I mention.

Some people with severe chronic tinnitus lose everything including their jobs, houses, cars, friends and family relationships suffer, and marriages can end as a result of the debilitating effects of tinnitus. The last thing that people with tinnitus need is a hyper-marketed fake cure from a seemingly credible source. There is no cure that I can sell to you. Check back in five to ten years and I'm confident that there will be a cure. Synthetic and stem cell research seems to be the most promising.

The Name

What led me choose tinnitus123 as the name? I tried all kinds of names and they were all taken so I simply added 123 at the end of the word tinnitus. At the time the 123 didn't mean anything. Now, I'd say that it means the three step process to understanding tinnitus.

Steps 1-3:

1. Identify the source of your tinnitus (e.g. auditory nerve, cochlear trauma, brain injury, blood disease,  etc.)

2. Minimize or eliminate what triggers your tinnitus (e.g. alcohol, caffeine, smoking, eye strain, industrial noise, bananas, avocado, tomato, walnuts).

3. Do everything that you can to keep your tinnitus from getting permanently worse. Assemble a medical team to help you to create a tinnitus management plan and ask questions.