[OT:] Hopeful Tinnitus Treatment

I recently read an article in Discover magazine about this topic:

I had forwarded the link to one of my brothers who is particularly bothered by it. Thanks for the info.

Thanks for the Discover cite. These two quotes really got my attention!

"As the brain?s feedback controls get rewired, the neurons end up in a self-sustaining loop, producing a constant ringing. That is why tinnitus *often doesn?t go away when people get their auditory nerve surgically cut.*"

" (...)they edited recordings of music, filtering out the frequencies of the ringing in the ears of their patients, who then listened to the filtered music an average of 12 hours per week. Pantev and his collaborators found that their patients? tinnitus significantly eased."

Wow!

--Winston

From reading the Discover article, it seems that a good approach would be to wear hearing aids with notch filters to tune out the proper offending frequency until your brain was re-trained and then tinnitus would disappear. I spoke to my brother who had gotten hearing aids years ago that supposedly did the exact opposite. It emitted the tinnitus frequency in an attempt to desensitize the tinnitus. My brother found it so annoying and bothersome that he threw up his hands in disgust. I don't think that he thought that my idea was any better, but I think that it is supported by the studies in the article.

Winston on Thu, 20 Jan 2011 22:57:36 -0800 typed in rec.crafts.metalworking the following:

Eh what? Can't hear you over the telephone. B-)

Interesting stuff, but you can ignore it or let it drive you nuts, it is the choice of the sufferer. I have had Tinnitus for more than 30 years. For a little over two years, I used to manage a rock group and loved the loud noise. Sin in haste, repent at leisure.

At fist it drove me nuts and it was hard to get to sleep but after learning I was going to be stuck with it for life I decided to tune it out as a problem. I still hear it but I do not let it bother me. Easy to say, not so easy to do.

About 8 years back it went from a steady whistle (about 3KHz) or ringing into mapping my heartbeat. Now I have a constant ringing beat and I can count my pulse rate. I can read my blood pressure without a stethoscope just by watching the mercury or gauge and listening to the shift in rate of the Tinnitus frequency.

The main down side to it is that is is difficult to hear someone talking when we in a room where there is background noise. Even a radio or TV in in the background and it all gets mushed together. I have learned to read lips to assist what people are saying rather than saying, "what?" about a zillion times.

Dave

(...)

I had the same reaction (brick wall filters), though I am still dubious that the symptom would disappear. I need to know more.

The next challenge is to detect each of the affected frequencies to program the notches.

Perhaps that isn't necessary!

What if the patient temporarily wore 'isolation' hearing aids that blocked all frequencies except for those that are clearly outside the "oscillating" bandwidths?

OUCH!

Fascinating subject!

--Winston

My local 'club' store is infected with sales droids that confront customers with an offer that doubles the annual membership fee, with the promise that the program refunds will offset the additional cost.

The first few times I refused the offer, the droid would always pretend that I had not responded and just kept up the high - pressure spiel.

Recently, another droid tried to ruin my afternoon with this nonsense. I told her, "Can you hear me and do you understand what I am saying?" Her response was (and I swear I am not making this up):

"You haven't said anything."

:)

--Winston

Sounds like Charlie Harpers mother ("Two and a Half Men"), or a member of the Church of Warmingism. >:->

To paraphrase the Bible: "There is none so deaf as he who will not hear."

Cheers! Rich

I had forwarded the link to one of my brothers who is particularly

I haven't read the article yet, so have no opinion on it, but I do have one idea I kind of like - does it work? I don't have tinnitus, but occasionally, for no apparent reason, I do hear a high-pitched "ringing" in one ear; One day, I decided to listen intently to it, and ask, "What is Spirit trying to tell me?" and it disappeared in a matter of seconds.

But it's well-known that I'm a nut case. ;-)

Thanks! Rich

Make up a 3x5 card of 1/4" plate and print on it "NO THANKS!"

If that didn't work on its own, just hit them over the head with the card.

You could always swing an arm around her and ask her again about the benefits of the upsale, with a pronounced WINK. Panting might helpful, as well, Winnie.

I just got off the phone with yet another Yellow Page salesfart. For the third NO, I interrupted him and bellowed "THANK YOU BUT NO THANKS. PLEASE PUT ME ON YOUR DO NOT CALL LIST."

What I really want is a device which tracks that phone line to his headset and jolts him with about 100kv of static electricity. Either that or a device which transfers my tinnitus to his ears instead of mine. Let's work on those, shall we?

-- Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air... -- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Ain't dat de trufe? And speaking of which, George Will was at it again this week. Our headline read "Government not demoralized enough" Here's the article:

Enjoy!

I may write him in for President in 2014. (copy to Tea Party)

-- Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air... -- Ralph Waldo Emerson

He wouldn't have a snowball's chance in hell with today's electorate - he uses polysyllabic words. =:-O

Thanks! Rich

I think you missed your opportunity after the first "NO." I tell them "Thanks, not interested," and summarily hang up. (actually, the telemarketers prefer that - it lets them go on to their next victim.)

Maybe if you _really_ want to get revenge on them, you could sound interested, and drag out the rest of the conversation - talk about the weather, how your hip is bothering you, the damn kids are driving you crazy, be a total doofus as they're going through the rest of their pitch, asking, "Huh? could you repeat that?" and such until the droid realizes that you're using up his clock time, and _HE_ (or she, for the P.C.) hangs up in exasperation. >:->

Just hanging up on them is a lot less stressful on the telemarketer, who after all, is just some kid who needs a job _today_, and any other job would be too little too late. FWIW, I've done it, and it was a freaking nightmare. But I got hired the day I called. My interview consisted of "Read the ad to me" on the phone. When you get a really lonely old person who's really desperate just to hear sound of a human voice, you have to hang up, and it just broke my heart every time. I quit after about a week, having never sold anything, and decided to bite the bullet and get a job the hard way. I still had to wait for the paycheck, and beg and plead and cry at my creditors and schtuff.

So I called the temp agency. ;-)

Cheers! Rich

I also heard about some guy who'd say, "Please tell me your name, your supervisor's name, and the name of your company. It is my duty to inform you that my fee for using my personal telephone equipment in the conduct of your business is three hundred dollars per minute."

Or, just let your answering machine get it - this is also called "screening." Cost: one empty message. ;-)

Cheers! Rich

I patiently explain that I spell "not interested" with three "F"s, a "C", a "K" and the vowels "U" and "O". Gerry :-)} London, Canada

(...)

I normally get a jumpy young man. Completely useless. :)

So many projects, so little time.

--Winston

(...)

A memorable spelling lesson. :)

--Winston

And sometimes "Y". .....

OH! Off!

Never mind. (I'm not quick; I'm deep.)

;-) Rich

Har!

P.S: Hey, guys. Are we going to chip in and rent Sarah Palin Lookalike Strippers for Lew and Toy for their birthdays this year?

-- Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air... -- Ralph Waldo Emerson