Silence? What's that?

They say you never miss something until it's gone.  In my case, it's silence.  I'm suffering from tinnitus, and not just a little ringing; I'm talking about a sound like a sitting next to the engine on a jet.  The sound never stops, never gets better and has ruined almost everything in my life.


I just woke up one morning with this noise in my head.  I'd had ringing in my ears once in a while, but this was different.  For one thing, it was loud.  VERY loud.  I told my wife that my ears were ringing, and, "if this doesn't stop, I'm going to go crazy."


I didn't know at the time, but that statement would come true over the next few years as I tried everything I could think of to help stop the noise.  The first thing I tried was the opposite of what I should have done.  I thought it was just a matter of keeping things quiet, so I tried to cut out any outside sounds.  I turned off the radio, TV, fans and anything else that made noise.  As it turned out, I needed those sounds.


I started sleeping less each night and waking up several times.  Each time, the ringing would be louder and keep me up longer.  Some nights were so bad that all I did was stare at the clock watching each minute click by, hoping that I would fall asleep. 


If you have tinnitus, you know what it can be like, wishing to go to  sleep and not being able to remember how. 


This is the first time I've blogged, so it may take me some time to get things right.  If you'll give me a chance, I think I can show you a world that most people don't know exist, and maybe offer some advise to those who do.


Follow my blog and I'll tell you what's happened to me, what works, doesn't work and the best thing I've found so far.


Thanks,
Benton
(edited by InsomniAmy)