Tinnitus Success Story: Beth
my name is Beth Leoben.. I’m a mom.. I have two grown children launched out the door. I work in sales. I work for a clinical lab so. I am out seeing physicians most of the day my bliss is my cycling. I’m a road cyclist. I also ski . I hike and anything outdoors. I’m just happy my tinnitus (my T) started over Christmas . I was sitting on my sofa.
I would hear it in the background and my background is speech pathology and audiology just like dr. Julie’s that’s what my undergraduate degree is so. I sort of knew what it was and then. I had an episode that week that was pretty traumatic that happened in front of my house and the stress was pretty high and then it just turned on my sound is very high-pitched it’s a hiss.
If you picture a wind tunnel that the wind is moving very very quickly and there are shards of glass hitting each other that’s in my head how. I describe it sometimes. I cannot turn it off nothing will make it go away . I hear a 24/7. I’m an early riser . I do a lot of my computer work my emails at 6:00 in the morning.
I could not put a sentence together I’d get up. I sit in front of the computer. I put music on the music was bothering me put the TV on TV was bothering me. I couldn’t put a sentence together work was not good in fact. I went to the HR gal . I said.
I may go on FMLA for three months. I thought. I needed to take off time distress because stress makes it worse and just go away for a bit and see if. I can get this better by myself my son told me mom it came on so quickly it’s going to go away really quickly so every day. I get up . I kept waiting. I didn’t want to admit and acknowledge that this wasn’t going away by itself . I am more of a holistic kind of person so.
I wanted to try anything that was not invasive. I went to an audiologist and she tested my hearing and she said you do have a mild to moderate high frequency hearing loss . I said what can. I do about it and she said nothing much. I had about six sessions of acupuncture they felt great didn’t do any good he put me on a bunch of different supplements and then two weeks later it got really bad.
I finally went to see an ENT and he did all the testing he said you’re absolutely perfectly structurally fine he threw a plethora of drugs at me to see if the inflammation would get away and nothing nothing worked so. I did all the avenues. I needed to do. I was physically fine. I had no balance problems. I had no headaches.
I didn’t have any symptoms of something structurally wrong with me but when you have T you try everything. I would have gone and seen a witch doctor in a teepee if someone could have helped me it was on one night . I remember this vividly it was the Academy Awards . I was by myself at home.
I couldn’t sit still it was so loud that. I was pacing . I was crying it was a turning point for me it was getting worse and worse and worse my anxiety was getting worse and then that night. I had to do something. I hit bottom the next day my car drove me dr. Julie’s office and Patrick was there and when. I said to him. I need help.
I broke down crying and Patrick started talking to me and he said we can help you you’re so new to this we can help you and then dr. Julie walked in and the first thing she said to me. I remember was that she said when her T gets bad she has to leave a patient because she can’t focus . I said you get it you understand what.
I am going through if you don’t have this at the level that. I have it and probably so many of her patients that you don’t get it and she said make an appointment. I can help you we can get this better and she herself has tinnitus. it’s like anything else until you walk in someone else’s shoes you really don’t know what someone’s experiencing .
I knew that for the two months that. I had it without help everyone was trying to be so supportive but they didn’t get it and then when dr. chu Julie told me she had it. I knew. I knew. I could get help. I had a scheduled MRI for nine o’clock the next day Julie had an opening the same time . I cancelled the MRI .
I saw Julie and that afternoon when. I left. I was a new person. I had hope. I just knew. I had a plan. I did not have a plan before and it changed my whole mental attitude. I said okay. I’m gonna get better this is going to get better when they explained it to me when they explained how scientifically this works.
I went fine it made sense it clicked it. I’m a science person so it just made so much sense to me then of course it’s going to work an analogy if. I could I was telling my son this and he said mom. it’s just like a stroke victim when someone has a stroke you have to get the neural pathways changed to get their arms working or their legs working again and the sooner the better that’s exactly what they’re doing with your brain. This is so recent for you they’re just going to create new neural pathways .
I went of course it is made sense and when you accept it and you believe it it works the T sound is still there. I still hear it. I’m only three months in and Julie said six months to a year my anxiety is gone. I had such high anxiety where being alone was very uncomfortable for me.
I need to be surrounded or talking to somebody that went away within a week the tone therapy the Zen therapy made it go away and to me that was worth everything you always hear about hearing aids and you always think it’s for older people I’ve accepted them it’s takes one second to put them in my ear.
Read more: Tinnitus and Hearing Aids
I don’t even know. I have them in that tiny no one ever knows. I’m wearing them. I love them it’s weird but. I love the tones it’s very zen it’s very calming to me . I’m really kind of proud of it because it has helped me so much work is great. I can compose emails.
I’m cycling. I was skiing again going out with friends having a good time gardening cooking doing everything. I love it it’s not interfering anymore it’s really in the background for me now. I will say the one thing. I miss and people have tinnitus understand this.
I don’t have silence anymore so when. I went skiing. I used to have that beautiful silence. I don’t get that anymore but. I know. I will. I know this will get better it makes so much sense to me it makes so much scientific sense that. I know it’ll work. I just have to give at the time that she told me to give it but with the anxiety being gone.
I’m living my life again if. I can tell people who are watching this to not be scared not be skeptical not be embarrassed it’s just part of life it’s part of what happens to our bodies but you don’t have to live with it and you don’t have to live with the anxiety which can really ruin your life it can really stop you from living your life and life is wonderful and the minute.
I had this and the anxiety went away . I said it maybe took a week of this tone therapy. I’m back . I’m really happy
Read more: Silencil Natural Remedies For Tinnitus