How I Beat Tinnitus

What?! No Cure For Tinnitus?

There I was, running to the bathroom again and closing the door. Was the high-pitched noise in my left ear still there? Yes…I could clearly hear the sound that started when a wave crashed on my ear during kitesurfing.

Scared about what was happing to me, I searched on the internet and discovered that I had Tinnitus. What I then read made me even more scared: there is no cure. People online were talking about depression from tinnitus.

Was this really happening? Did the Harvard Medical website just tell me I had to live with a horrible noise in my ear for the rest of my life? That sent shivers down my spine…

I even tried Ginkgo Biloba pills to cure my tinnitus, but nothing worked

I Tried Ginkgo Biloba Pills

The following months quickly became most frustrating time of my life.

Desperate to solve the problem, I struck upon Internet forums that claimed there actually was a cure for tinnitus.

I bought ginkgo biloba pills off the internet – to no effect. I listened to nature sounds the entire day to distract myself… only to pause and listen if the tinnitus was still there.

I started playing white noise sounds at night. I walked around with noise cancelling headphones all day to ‘protect’ my ears.

While these actions seemed to provide some immediate relief, they were actually making the ringing in my ears worse.

Then, Stress made it Much Worse

As I focused more and more on my tinnitus, other sounds were starting to appear. The constant, 7000 Hz beep was now accompanied by a lower, pulsating sound, as if I heard water running.

What, this might actually get worse?! I thought I had to beat this high pitched noise, now I have another problem on top of it? Now the tinnitus was starting to affect not only my mood, but also my sleep.

I was becoming scared to go to sleep hoping it would be gone tomorrow. Only to be disappointed again in the morning when I discovered the noise was still there. 

Now trying to over-protect my ears, I even developed mild hyperacusis: oversensitivity to noise. Now using earplugs in movie theaters and covering my ears at a party, I was apparently making this worse and worse.

A hearing test confirmed irreversable hearing damage in my left ear

Irreversible Hearing Loss

I decided to see my doctor – which is always the first and right thing to do. He recommended to see a ENT specialist. I got hope again! Perhaps they would find a physical defect that could be surgically operated. 

My audio tests showed hearing loss in my left ear at about the same frequency of my tinnitus. However, this was irreversable and could not be operated.

Even though I found the cause of my tinnitus, that didn’t help me. The ENT specialist confirmed there is no cure…“just learn to ignore it”. Sure, how can I ignore this horrible non-existent sound?!

I got angry at myself. Why did I not start wearing earplugs at parties from an earlier age? If only I had worn ear protection during kitesurfing. Why did I stress out so much previously if I knew that could cause tinnitus? 

I developed a method

I started having nightmares in which I woke up sweating with the noise much louder. My sleep and stress got to a point where I could’t take it anymore. 

Desperate to solve my problem, I applied structured problem solving which I learned during my Masters in Bio-Medical Engineering.

I wanted to understand the mechanisms behind what was happening in my head. I needed to find out what was causing it, and what was making my tinnitus louder.

Learning from the best tinnitus experts in the world, I discovered a secret that prevented me from getting better. Ever heard of the ‘fight or flight’ response?

Since the Stone Age, we’re wired to survive attacks by making our brains hyper alert. Your brain thinks it’s under attack  by the tinnitus sound. But this time, the threat doesn’t run away like the tiger, but is always there.

Finally, Silence!

I managed to turn off my fight or flight mechanism by combining three scientifically proven methods: Cognitive Based Therapy, Mindfulness and Tinnitus Retraining Therapy.

I also made some changes to my life in order to experience less stress. Being able to relax more, the filters in my brain started to mute the tinnitus sounds.

My method worked! A few weeks later my sleep improved and I got less stressed. The months after that were two steps forward, one step back. After a year, I often did not hear my tinnitus anymore. Now, when I do hear it on the occasional bad day, it doesn’t upset me – and I’m back on the water! 

I realized I could help others just like you avoid this emotional rollercoaster. So I spent over a year creating the 5-step Still Tinnitus Course. Combining several clinically proven theories and practical exercises, I’m convinced you will benefit.

Me enjoying kitesurfing again after treating my tinnitus!

May I help you too?

At the beginning of 2023, I quit my job and decided to work full-time on Still Tinnitus. That starts with a goal: to help 10,000 people no longer suffer from tinnitus.

I now see the fact that I do not have a ‘traditional background’ as an audiologist or psychologist as a strength rather than a limitation. Before I started Still Tinnitus, I was already hired because of my talent for making complex problems understandable and improving them with a fresh perspective from outside.

Hopefully this way I can save you some of the misery I experienced myself. Even though there is more healthcare available nowadays, you are still sent from pillar to post. Long waiting times, misleading information and ‘just learn to live with it’ makes tinnitus unnecessarily bad.

Stay hopeful and don’t be fooled by negative messages because for many people tinnitus will diminish on its own. But if your tinnitus symptoms do not get better, make sure you get help as soon as possible.

Here’s to a happy life with tinnitus ❤️

Roel