Tinnitus is a condition that affects almost 50 million Americans. As an audiologist, I see many local people in and around Massachusetts who are struggling with the troubling symptoms.
And it’s no surprise since tinnitus is most described as a ringing, hissing, buzzing, or whistling in the ears. For some, these sounds are faint and mild and don’t cause much disruption to their life.
However, it’s estimated that at least 2 million people have extremely debilitating cases – leading some people to complete despair.
At Duncan Hearing Healthcare, our expertise in hearing health and related issues has ensured our patients a treatment option that works for them and leads them to a better quality of life.
One of my patients has shared the incredible story of his journey in combatting tinnitus to help others in his situation who might also be feeling helpless.
You can listen to his story here, but if you prefer reading, then continue on…
A First Hand Account
Tinnitus first hit me at the end of April. Now I’d had it before, so I knew what I was right away.
I went off into the deep end, got very nervous, worried, and anxious about it and started research again because I didn’t think it was going to go away this time.
I subscribed to the American Tinnitus Association, looked online for a lot of things, got connected to another doctor who was an ear, nose, and throat guy at the Newton Mosley Hospital and he was useless. He didn’t do much for me at all. Just told me it would go away. Which, of course, it didn’t.
Anyway, from the back of the ATA magazine, I found three doctors in the area.
The first one was a guy in Bansfield and I went to see him right away. He said, ‘Yes, we can help you. We have these devices we put in your ears which are sound generators.
I was so frantic. I went away two weeks later, it freaked me out over a weekend – I hadn’t had sleep for a couple nights, not because of the tinnitus, but I called him right away on the weekend. And he called me back and he said, ‘I’ll order the devices for you.’
He put them on me and the noise was so loud, it was awful. So I worn them for like three or four days and I called him and he didn’t call me back right away. I said, ‘I can’t wear them anymore. I’m giving them back to you.’ And he was pretty aloof.
I mailed them back to him and he paid us. It was a lot of money. It was $5,000 for these devices. He gave us $4,000 back and I don’t miss the guy at all. He was not very professional.
I don’t remember how I found out about Dr. Jastreboff. I think I found him online just one way or the other and started reading about his method, which made a lot of sense.
There’s two parts of the Tinnitus Retraining Therapy. The first part is emotional support, learning about it, helping the patient cope with it.
If the first part doesn’t help, then they go to the sound generators and apparently they work pretty good over time. It takes you a while. But that made me feel a lot better.
So, uh, I found another guy that was listed in the magazine. I found him in Dartmouth, went to him and I didn’t like him at all.
And then I went to Nancy and fell in love.
Wow. She knew all about everything. She was very sympathetic, kind, and understanding. Perfect. And she focuses on the first part of Dr. Jastreboff’s therapy, which I’ve come to find out is extremely valuable, extremely helpful, and that’s what she and I have been working on since May.
I’ve had some rough times since then, but I’m telling you right about now, I’m afraid to say how much better I am, because I’m afraid it’s going to come back, and I’ll be right back to square one.
But I am doing so much better. I hear it all the time, pops in and out of my head and I don’t freak about it. The psychological aspect of this is – if you can get somebody that understands that part of it, like Nancy does, you are on your way to being able to understand and deal with it.
I can’t say enough about Nancy. Always available on the phone. I had a rough patch back in September, I forget what it was, but man, I was freaked out for couple, or three days, and I talked to her and she calmed me right down and been fine since then.
So, there’s hope, there’s definitely hope. I’m telling you that there’s hope and I feel better now than I ever had about it. If you’re thinking of coming to see Nancy, don’t spare the horses.
I thought it was the end of the world when I first came. I’m an anxious person by nature, I think a lot, which is what is not good for tinnitus. Most people that are this type of person will suffer the most with tinnitus because it’s such a mental issue. It’s such an emotional issue and Nancy helped me that with that immensely.
How We Can Help You
Because there is no one type, at Duncan Hearing Healthcare, we find there is no single approach to tinnitus management that works exclusively for every patient.
The first step in the management process is scheduling a tinnitus consultation and assessment appointment with one of our certified audiologists.
If you or a loved one is experiencing challenges with tinnitus, please wait no longer – schedule a tinnitus consultation by clicking here.
We’re trusted by thousands of patients across Massachusetts, and we’re here to help you get back to enjoying the life you love.
