alwaysdrinkin

I don't know if many people here can answer this question regarding tinnitus, but I am looking at it more in the way as possible PAWS?

Basically since I quit alcohol I have been able to ignore my tinnitus a lot more, push it out of my consciousness, even when I heard it...it didn't really bother me. One of the great benefits of quitting alcohol, feeling better and able to cope with the ringing better.

I have been feeling OK for awhile now, better mood, more stable. Today is 36 days sober, I woke up today feeling flat, slightly depressed, anxious, my tinnitus is the same volume but I have gone from easily ignoring it...to being greatly bothered by it again, irritated by the noise again?

MY QUESTION? Is the change in mood withdrawal? Feel good for awhile then feeling low again? Making me concentrate on my tinnitus again? Maybe the chemicals in my brain are changing, making me feel good for awhile, then depressed again?

Thanks for listening.

advbike

Did you have a lot of salt or caffeine recently? - that will reliably make mine more noticeable.

GracieLou

Mine goes in and out like that and I am 10 months sober. If I am bothered by other things/feelings in my life then it is more noticeable. Not because of any chemistry imbalance but more because I am agitated anyway and that is just one more thing I can pile on to my bad mood.

I know they say that sugar, caffeine etc can aggravate it but honestly I have never seen any significant difference. Some days I can ignore it/tune it out and others it is right up in my grill.

For example this post. I was ignoring it until I read this and boom there it was again. Not to make you feel guilty, it is that it came to my attention is all. That is how it works for me. It reminds me of the lyrics of an old song.. "whomp, there it is!".

Pete55

I've had 24/7 Tinnitus since childhood, I live with it, it's driven me nuts at times, "sounds of silence" I know not of at all.

Digital Electronic Hearing aids help if adjusted to a level equal to the Tinnitus squeal, it has a effect of canceling out this sound.

It took a while to find an audiologists that can do the adjustments who understood and was patient.
Once the audiologists got the adjustments right, made sure I kept a copy of the settings for future reference.
But yeah, Tinnitus is one hell of a thing.

alwaysdrinkin

I guess if your mood is low anyway you notice tinnitus more, I haven't noticed a difference with salt, caffeine etc. I am a little disappointed because for a month now I was dealing with it a lot better, ignoring it. Tinnitus was the reason I started drinking heavily, the first year was HELL! A lot of dark thoughts, but I am doing better now, apart from the past few days, hopefully once my mood picks up it will be less bothersome again. Thanks for the replies.

alwaysdrinkin

I now know what caused me to feel weird yesterday....GREEN TEA!

I recently started drinking green tea, every time I did I felt spaced out, anxious, depressed, it was even giving me nightmares!

I have stopped drinking it now, I now drink black tea and coffee with no issues, well I'm back to normal! Tinnitus doesn't bother me, anxiety has gone, so has the weird feeling, I must be allergic to green tea, never drinking it again!

ChiefBromden

I had to laugh, because for me it works exactly the same way. Today I had forgotten I have it (badly sometimes) until I started reading this thread.

Had it for 5 years, it's an on and off thing, and the only logical connection seems to be stress/mood. But apart from that it's pretty random.

20 months sober, no difference with before or after really, albeit that I am less stressed most of the time now, so fewer prominent tinnitus days.

AtlantaAlcy

Actually I think dehydration can cause tinnitus. I know it certainly does for me. Both caffeine and salt can cause dehydration so that could be the underlying cause.

"Drink enough water" is one of the best things you can do for yourself in general, and plus it's super easy to do.

Also tinnitus isn't just hearing a pitch when it's dead quiet. That happens to literally everyone from what I've read. The definition of tinnitus is something like when it affects normal day-to-day life.

alwaysdrinkin

It doesn't matter how loud tinnitus is, tinnitus is simply ringing of the ears, mine is loud enough to hear over the TV, but I have got used to it. Everyone experiences something called "fleeting tinnitus" which only lasts 10 or so seconds, which is the hearing calibrating itself. It would be great to hear silence again after 19 months of constant noise! I can only dream.

advbike

Good point. I need to work on keeping better hydrated. But salt and caffeine also raise BP which I believe results in louder ringing. After a workout sometimes, or if I'm really stressed, it gets going pretty good.