1. Hi Kyle, tell us a bit about your condition. How long have you had tinnitus? What symptoms have you been getting? Is the sound you hear there all the time, or is it intermittent?

I’ve had tinnitus for about 9 months. It is mainly in my right ear though a different sound lighter and less aggravating happens in my left ear. The right ear is a buzzing that comes and goes sometimes persisting on/off throughout the day for over 80% of the day and other times it is less than 15% of the daily and barely noticeable. I can go about a week without it bothering me much followed by a week of intense and aggravating buzzing.

2. How did you actually develop tinnitus in the first place? Has anything in particular triggered it? Can you tell (or guess) what the underlying cause is?

My best guess is that stress brought it on and perhaps a low immune system. I was going through a huge transition in my life, moving a lot and felt very ungrounded. Actually, I still feel this way and perhaps that’s part of the reason I still get the ringing.

3. How did it use to affect your day-to-day life when it started? What impact has it had on you in the past?

It was much more distressing in the beginning. I feared that there might be something really wrong physically that the ringing was symptomatic of. I’ve also felt that the root cause of it has been emotional/trauma related and struggled to understand what I could change in my life to alleviate whatever internal conflict might have been at the source.

4. Have you had somebody to diagnose it? Have you been to see a GP, audiologist, or any traditional health care providers about it? What treatment did they offer?

Thus far traditional/ Western medicine has not offered any help.

5. Have you tried any alternative treatments, dietary/lifestyle changes, or treatments not offered by traditional health care providers? Have you had any success with of them?

I have sought counseling from a tinnitus specialist (see below) and tried yoga as well as some craniosacral therapy. Largely based upon my inconsistency with these three approaches I have not found consistent benefit.

6. Have you seeked counseling or therapy? In particular, have you looked into sound therapy, tinnitus retraining therapy, or cognitive behavioral therapy? Did any of them help?

The counseling I tried was a one time 2 hour session to learn some tools for retraining. I have not been consistent with these tools and disliked the CD with guided meditation I was given as I did not find it to be relaxing.

7. How did you eventually start to cope with it? Do you manage it better now than when it first started? What impact does tinnitus have on you today?

Overall, I manage tinnitus better now than when it first started. I still have moments that it really bothers me and especially if it’s been a few days and stress in other areas of my life compounds it. But, for the most part I am not giving it as much power as I once had and I am more able to direct my attention away from it.

8. These days, what do you do to manage your tinnitus? What do you do when it gets particularly bad?

When it’s really bad I lay down and try to focus on my breathing. I relieve myself of as many other stressors as I can at that moment and focus my energy at calming down from within.

9. Do you believe there’s a single “silver bullet” cure for tinnitus? Do you believe there will ever be one?

I would love to snap my fingers and have it be gone but I believe it is hear to teach me something. I believe I am on a journey with it and that someday it will be gone or have minimal impact on my life. I think it’s different for each person but at the root of it, tinnitus, like pain and other life challenges, has the potential to be a great teacher. In that, there is a silver lining and perhaps some solace for any of the challenge it has been.

10. Anything else you’d like to tell us that we might have left out?

That we’re not alone. You’re never alone with your pain or tinnitus. Don’t be afraid to reach out to people. And, love yourself. This is a great place to start.

Thank You Kyle

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Kyle Willets is a Physical Therapist and a blogger at cookingupprana.com. You can also find her on Twitter @KyleAnneWillets