Quick question: Has anyone ever cured tinnitus based on the theories of TMS/PPD?

Has anyone cured their tinnitus with help from theories on TMS/PPD?

If yes, then please tell me how you did so? ;-)

 

In an anxious moment a couple of days ago I felt myself starting to "have" tinnitus. I've never had or thought about it before but my ears were on my mind (strange image!) after an episode of vertigo. I went to tinnitus.org and followed their instructions. My "tinnitus" (or fear of it, which is really what the problem is according to the website) is gone. Good luck!

 

Hearing of things like this gives me hope that the psychological component of many conditions is becoming more mainstream!

Thanks for posting @LaughingKat!

 

Thanks, I will take a look. Glad that you solved it!

 

Hello Scott,

I've had great success in minimising both Tinnitus and Hyperacusis using TMS techniques. The tinnitus I actually healed for long periods without even knowing about TMS.

What I did was decide that it wasn't unpleasant! I just made a decision that it would no longer upset or hurt me. I learned to love it I suppose. I stopped closing gates quietly, stopped playing my music at baby volumes, I stopped focusing any attention on it.

When I could hear it at night I imagined it as a dissonant companion rather than something scary. I accepted it to the point where I started to think it would be weird and lonely for it not to be there. Now I hardly ever notice it, or the Hyperacusis - and I work in an office above a factory full of band-saws, industrial CNC machines - a cacophony of hellish noise to most.

The one thing I need to face now is overprotecting my ears at band practice, I still wear ear defenders as the level of noise is huge and I find it easier to isolate myself and hear my voice when wearing them, but it's not a big issue which affects or upsets me.

 

I had faint, random tinnitus that disappeared with my back pain. It was never severe but more just annoying. But I have not had it in ages now.

 

Hi Veridian - do you mind I ask what caused your tinnitus ? I am struggling with that and hyperacusis as well that developed as a side effect from a medication. I imagine if tinnitus is caused from actual damage to the ear from a medication that TMS principles wouldn't work?

 

I really don't see how medication could damage the machinery of your ear? The noise is most likely a TMS symptom, something you've noticed and become fixated on, which then fuels it. Maybe a medication that suppresses anxiety could force the nervous system to drive that energy out in another way, such as tinnitus?

Tinnitus is basically the sound of your brain wiring and firing - just like the noises a computer modem makes. Then there is also the general background noise our ears produce - we make the mistake of assuming our ears should be perfectly quiet, WRONG! Some ears are louder than others, just in the same way some microphones buzz and hiss more than others - it's called a noise floor.

Some people don't notice or care about this low-level background noise, but here's the key part - what happens is that our nervous systems get amped up through stress/anxiety and fight/flight kicks in, sometimes gets stuck on. In this sensitised state, our amygdala TURNS UP AND IMPROVES our hearing, so we can hear pin drop - or a tiger rustling in the bushes 50 meters away, to keep us safe.

When our hearing is TURNED UP/IMPROVED through fear, we hear the noises our brain makes and hiss of our ears much louder - and we mistake this ability to hear louder and clearer for sensitivity (Hyperacusis) and start avoiding noise, which is the worst thing you can do as fear/resistance/avoidance only fuels this fear state, and we get stuck in it.

I still sometimes have little spells tinnitus and hyperacusis as I'm still working on breaking down my fear and anxiety levels - but when I chill and have a few beers on the weekend or am relaxing having fun, it's never there. This tells you all you need to know.

To answer the original question, I always thought playing in loud rock bands, DJing, going to concerts and making music my whole life caused tinnitus - and maybe at the very onset of symptoms it did, but it's viewing it as an injury or unsolvable problem that made it persist. Stop giving a fuck about it and it will go away, accept the symptoms and put your focus elsewhere - the suffering around the symptoms is a million times worse than your ears ringing.

 

There are some medications which can damage hearing, They are called ototoxic. Not to suggest that’s a specific reason for T &/or H.

That being said, there is a “person, who published a list of 100’s of medications. That is NOT an accurate list according to numerous reputable docs I’ve spoken with, but there certainly are some medications that have a propensity to damage hearing & balance.

Whatever has caused the T to start doesn’t matter in relation to progression of it getting better. I’ve experienced varying levels of T & H 4 years now. Understanding, the majority of this time, has not bothered me, but there are times it spikes. I travel, dine out, participate in hobbies, etc,

So, yes TMS plays a large part in how T & H is addressed and whether you succeed in moving past it, but like other TMS symptoms, it can return in the right situations.

 

It's like a tiny bit of ear congestion, for me it only lasts a few seconds

 

I would not use the word cured. It seems the better question is how can you reduce the presence of T. If you don’t notice it, is it gone? And to that question the answer is a definite yes