Hello Dr. Nagler,
My name is Antonis. I'm a 32 years old dance instructor, living in Athens Greece. I had been reading many threads of this forum and found many useful information. My initial intention was to seek advice from you for my recent tinnitus onset that began 3 months ago, but i'll hold that a little bit and dedicate this to you, since i was really concerned about your health issues.
Dr. Stephen people like you are super rare. You give all this advice, support and information for nothing in return. So many tinnitus sufferers, from all over the world have been benefited from you. I had been following your posts back from Tinnitus Talk forum. I've been lurking in that place the last two months and that's how i found you.
I don't know exactly how my tinnitus came up. As a man that needs to consider always the worst case scenario, i had been obsessed in searching Tinnitus Talk to track down and get inspired by success stories of people with
catastrophic tinnitus that managed to live a normal and happy life, so i could convince myself that this can really happen, in the possibility of things might reach that point for me. This search was pointless. Well if other people read this thread, i want them to know that this was my biggest mistake. I could find nothing more then horror stories, people in denial, people suicidal, former members that might as well committed suicide, people who insulted and underestimated the pain and suffering of the few folks who tried to follow a positive approach.
I had been wondering if this is the future for me. On top of that Tinnitus Talk made me numb in following possible treatment approaches. For every treatment practice or/and medicine approach etc. there had been always a thread that filled me with doubts, fear and disappointment.
Is really tinnitus the one unbeatable monster which is invulnerable to every possible weapon?
I tend to sound a bit rhetorical. Maybe my greek blood is the culprit. Just kidding! That said, i think is good to pinpoint the following; For sensitive people like me support forums like TT adds much more pain and distress to the pre-existing anxiety that tinnitus alone provides. It made me lost my hope and my faith. Two necessary factors to trust as life companions. On top of that it made me depressed, gave me panic attacks with cruel posts and horror videos and made me gradually isolated from my social activities. Not the best strategy, indeed.
My tinnitus is 24/7. It never stops. It began as one mild tone unilateral. Now it's bilateral with various sounds. After three months i suppose that it's here to stay. Right now is bearable and maskable. I try to find a diagnosis. Went to many ENTs. Had many medical exams. Audiograms, high frequency audiograms, Otoacoustic Emissions, ABR, MRI, CT, few blood test. Good results.
Anyway, I followed your advice in Tinnitus101 and restricted my TT visits.
Now I ended up working with a neurologist. Got a 24-hour encephalography as well. Maybe ebv virus is the culprit. Nothing is for sure. I surpassed the fear that TT gave me and decide to trust my doctor. He claims that my tinnitus can be gone. Despite that i know from the internet that there is almost zero chance for that, but i hold a hope. Is that bad? I decided to follow his drug therapy. I was so afraid in the first day. After two days there had been moments my T was a bit improved. Then back again to baseline. Maybe it was a coincidence. The good thing for sure?
No horror story after intravenous drug. I'll let you know about the progress after i complete my treatment. Who knows?
Four days now i feel a bit more optimistic. What matters is that i have to find a way not to get worried for what future may bring. It's not easy. I want to feel free again. To truly listen again to my friends stories with no worries of my tinnitus in the background. I hope i won't have to quite my dance profession due to the music exposure. I also hope i can play the piano again. I quite the piano due to fear of making things worse. This cost me much and amplified my depression. I want to be myself again. To find my shiny smile that made me adorable.
Dr. Nagler i hope you are getting better. I hope the best for you and your family. When i tried not to expose myself so much to Tinnitus Talk i googled your name (the one of the few good tokens of that dark place) and found this forum. It has been quite soothing reading many of your advices. As i am a resident of a country under economic crisis i'm not sure if i can afford a TRT protocol. However my brother lives with his family in Baltimore. I was thinking if you can refer a specialist there that you trust, just in case. Or even in Greece, although i doubt it there is anyone here. I also have a friend in Atlanta. That also could be a scenario in case she can host me if i manage to find the budget to meet you in flesh for a consultation/treatment.
Now a few questions:
1) Do you think TRT stands for idiopathic/progressive tinnitus? I observed from people stories that this kind of tinnitus is prone to get worst overtime to the point that gets unmanageable compared to noise-induced which tends to stay stable (or even resolve). I hope i am wrong. Couldn't find a good story for this. If tinnitus is progressive, does that mean that TRT isn't suitable?
2) Two months before my tinnitus onset i was prescribed fluconazole as an antifugal drug. Any ototoxicity information about this? Could this drug be the offender?
Dr. Nagler, don't want to consume much of your value time. Sure i have more questions, but i'll try to review your threads ones again. Please get well soon and keep in mind that the sun and sea of Greece is therapeutic for the body and soul. Be my guest with your family to spend a summer in my family's house next to the beach. It would be my pleasure.
PS. Through my statements I didn't mean to insult nobody who is not coping well. It's not easy. People are different. Every tinnitus case is different. I hope the best to everyone out there who fights with this ailment. God bless! Category: Questions and Answers
