Quiet Issue 2 2019

QUIET 

Issue Two 2019 

Noise and the 

nightclub worker: 

looking after your 

hearing at work 

New hope? 

EMDR as a treatment 

for tinnitus 

Real lives 

How piano tuner 

John overcomes his 

tinnitus 

Where 

in the world 

would you like 

to walk? 

Take on our step 

challenge! 

QUIET 2019 Issue Two www.tinnitus.org.uk 1

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2 

www.tinnitus.org.uk 

QUIET 2019 Issue Two

News 4-7 

Announcing our 

new Ambassador 

New tinnitus 

prevalance figures 

Tinnitus Week 

Goodbye, Krys 

Events 8-9 

European Tinnitus Course 

Annual Conference 

Fundraising 19 

A refreshing cup of tea 

Support groups 29-31 

Reducing isolation 

Developing support groups in Wales 

Support group listing 

Help 20-21 

Noise and the nightclub worker 

Flying and tinnitus 

RideLondon 22 

QUIET 

Volume 30 Number 2 ISSN: 0968-1264 

Research 12-18 

Understanding children's experience of 

tinnitus 

Prioritising hyperacusis 

EMDR as a treatment for tinnitus 

Meet the researcher 

Step Challenge 11 

Real lives 23-28 

Read how three people are living with 

tinnitus. Plus your letters! 

Contacts 

Our Vision: 

A world where no one suffers from tinnitus 

Our Mission: 

Research: We want a cure, we will drive & demand progress 

Help: We want everyone to know what tinnitus is, how to 

prevent it & how to manage it 

tinnitus.org.uk 

Editor 

Nic Wray 

nic@tinnitus.org.uk 

Address 

British Tinnitus Association, Ground Floor, Unit 5, Acorn 

Business Park, Woodseats Close, Sheffield, S8 OTB 

Registered charity no: 1011145. Registered in England. 

Helpline 

0800 018 0527 

Whilst the British Tinnitus Association makes every attempt to ensure the accuracy & reliability of information in this magazine, it is 

not a substitute for medical advice. You should always see your GP/ medical professional. Advertisements for organisations, products 

or services do not imply endorsement of them by the British Tinnitus Association.

Meet our 

Ambassador! 

Samantha is a great role model for people 

with tinnitus and hearing loss, not letting 

these conditions hold her back in her 

career. We are thrilled that she has agreed 

to become an ambassador for us. Sam is 

an exciting talent with a clear passion for 

helping us raise awareness of tinnitus and 

the support for those living with the 

condition. 

We can’t wait to work with her more and 

we’re very pleased to have her in the team! 

Photo: Samantha Baines (right) with BTA Events 

Manager Marcus Bowen. 

Comedian, actress, broadcaster and writer 

Samantha Baines can now add 

‘ambassador’ to her résumé of success, as 

she will be representing the BTA and 

supporting our mission of a world where 

no one suffers from tinnitus. 

As someone with tinnitus and hearing loss 

herself, Samantha has already used her 

voice to champion the BTA, supporting a 

number of our campaigns and speaking at 

our 2018 Annual Conference. 

Samantha told us, “I am really honoured to 

be asked to be the BTA Ambassador 2019. 

Tinnitus is a condition that affects so many 

people and can be overwhelming and 

frustrating. I have two types of tinnitus, as 

it was ‘buy one get one free’ and I love a 

bargain! I look forward to helping raise 

awareness and making those noises in my 

head count." 

Who is Samantha 

Baines? 

Samantha Baines is an award-winning 

comedian and actress. Her acting credits 

include The Crown, Silent Witness and Call the 

Midwife. She is also a broadcaster and works 

regularly with BBC radio stations including BBC 

Radio 4 and BBC Radio London. 

Samantha is currently starring in Magic Mike 

Live playing at the Hippodrome Casino in 

London. 

Sam was a Pun Championships Finalist in 

2017 and 2018, and had sold-out shows at the 

Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2016 and 2017. 

Sam discovered she had tinnitus when she went 

to the doctor because she thought she had a 

spider living in her ear. 

To find out more visit Sam's website www. 

samanthabaines.com and follow her on Twitter 

@samanthabaines 

4 www.tinnitus.org.uk 


One in ten One in eight 

The number of people living with tinnitus 

in the UK is higher than previously thought. 

Following a full review of all the available 

research over the last 35 years, we've 

increased our estimate of how many adults 

are suffering from tinnitus from 10% of 

people (1 in 10) to 13.2% (more than 1 in 8). 

As previously covered in Quiet, we also think 

that the number of adults living with 

tinnitus is set to increase even further - by 

more than half a million over the next 

decade, due to an increasing and ageing 

population, and the new 1 in 8 figure doesn't 

include these people. 

A recent study from Statistics Canada 

however, shows young adults — who report 

higher use of headphones and earbuds 

— are experiencing rates of tinnitus over 

one third higher than for older adults. If 

similar trends are discovered in the UK, this 

could further increase the number of 

people living with tinnitus here. 

Our new figures are significant because 

trusts and hospitals will have been using 

the one in ten numbers to calculate 

provision for tinnitus services. This could 

explain why we have been regularly hearing 

from you about long waits and 

dissatisfaction with audiology and ENT 

services. In addition, the burden on the NHS 

and wider UK economy is even greater than 

we previously thought. 

We need the Government to listen to the 

voices of people with tinnitus and act now 

to provide more research into the 

prevalence of the conditionand towards a 

cure. We also need more resources to help 

cope with the true number of adults for 

whom tinnitus is a serious burden which 

affects their quality of life. The healthcare 

system has to be ready to manage the 

challenges that the increased tinnitus 

population now, and in the future, will bring. 

We will be pressing our case wherever and 

whenever we can, and we will keep you 

updated on our progress. 

Fact box 

Currently there are 7.1 million adults 

living with tinnitus in the UK. 

We expect this figure to rise to 7.7 

million by 2028. 

These figures don't include children - 

at least one child in 30 has 'clinically 

significant' tinnitus. 

There are over 1.05 million tinnitusrelated 

GP consultations in the UK 

every year. 


#TINNITUS WEEK 

reaching out in new ways 

During Tinnitus Week, we tried as hard as 

possible to reach even more people in new 

ways. It seems to have worked, as more 

people reached out to us during Tinnitus 

Week via our website, email, social media 

and helpline. 

The popular social media poster 

@allontheboard shared facts about 

tinnitus with London commuters and 

on social media, making it one of 

their most liked and shared posts for 

February. 

For the first time, we opened our 

Helpline overnight, and we were able to 

offer information and support to people 

with tinnitus outside of usual office 

hours. 

Shakeela Rashid, Tinnitus Support Manager 

Channel 5's News at 5 programme 

approached us to work with them for 

a feature for Tinnitus Week. Isobel 

Anderson shared her experience of 

living with tinnitus, and Quiet editor Nic 

was also interviewed. 

6 

Some numbers! 

During Tinnitus Week: 

33,459 people visited our website 

We reached 314,482 people through 

Facebook 

Our most popular Facebook post 

received 200 comments 

Over 342,800 people saw us on Twitter 

We answered 33% more calls than in an 

average week 

6 



Our first ever podcast focused on the 

impact of tinnitus on relationships. 

Steve and his partner Sarah gave a 

frank account of how Steve's tinnitus 

affected them both. Psychologist 

Dominic Bray and audiologist Cheryl 

Thompson were on hand to give advice 

and tips. 

If you would like to listen to the 

podcast, it can be found at https://bit. 

ly/2RAvziF 

Goodbye, 

Krys! 

February 

marked the 

retirement of 

one of our 

longestserving 

members of 

staff. 

Krys Klytta 

joined the BTA 

in August 

1994 and 

worked for us for nearly 25 years. 

What is a podcast? 

A podcast is a free audio file which 

you can download to listen to on your 

computer, tablet or smart phone. The 

name comes from a combination of the 

words iPod and broadcast. 

OUR TOP TIPS 

Knowledge is powerful. Find out as 

much as you can about tinnitus, from 

reputable sources. 

Avoid saying “can’t you just…” 

Try to be patient and understanding. The 

impact of tinnitus can be tough at times. 

Practice kindness towards yourself and 

the other person 

Her first role was as Membership Secretary, 

but given the size of the organisation at the 

time, she was often involved in many other 

areas. Krys continued to develop her key 

skills and took responsibility for the 

organisation of BTA events from 2008. For 

many years Krys was very much the public 

face of the BTA through her stewardship of 

the BTA annual conference and other 

events. Recently, Krys stepped back into an 

administrative role providing vital support. 

Krys's career very much mirrored the 

development of the BTA from a small 

organisation to one with an international 

reach. Much has changed during the time 

Krys has been with us but her enthusiasm 

and commitment have remained constant 

throughout. We will continue to be inspired 

by the contribution she has made. 

Krys is not cutting her ties completely and 

plans to continue supporting the BTA as a 

volunteer. 


EUROPEAN TINNITUS COURSE 

8 

The European Tinnitus Course took place in 

Birmingham on March 7-9. Delegates from 

across the world and from as far away as San 

Francisco, California came together to receive 

comprehensive training covering the science of 

tinnitus, physiological processes and why and how 

it occurs. 

The course was designed for those with 

audiological training that wish to specialise in 

tinnitus; it covered the medical assessment and 

measuring of tinnitus 

as well as extensive 

exploration of tinnitus 

treatments across a 

variety of disciplines. 

The BTA is committed 

to the provision of 

sufficiently trained 

tinnitus professionals, 

and the success 

of courses like this 

one show that there 

is a need for more 

professionals with 

better tinnitus training 

not just in the UK but across the world. 

The 2019 course delegates came from 

across England, Scotland and Wales but also 

internationally, with four from across Ireland 

and Northern Ireland, four from Belgium, two 

from Slovenia, one from Denmark and the 

aforementioned Californian. 


8 

Thomas Tubbax, one the Belgian delegates said: 

[I’m] very grateful to have this 

experience ... I acquired a deeper 

understanding of tinnitus and 

hyperacusis and their possible 

treatments. [I] hope to share and apply 

this information with my future patients 

in the pursuit of becoming a better 

tinnitus expert. 

Audiologist and 

hearing therapist 

Beth-Anne Culhane, 

one of the teaching 

faculty on the 

course, said: “The 

course is a great 

opportunity to hear 

the latest evidence 

and how it informs 

clinical practice. 

We encourage an 

environment where 

we all learn from each 

other through sharing 

our experience and problem-solving – having 

such a variety of experience from international 

backgrounds makes this a really unique experience 

for those attending.” 

Pictured: L-R: Thomas Tubbax, Beth-Anne Culhane, Charlotte 

Gielis, Sofie Wuyts, Lieselot Bolle — audiologists at 

Aurilis in Belgium 


The British Tinnitus Association’s Annual Conference 

is taking place on Friday 13th September at the 

magnificent Goldsmiths, University of London, situated 

in the borough of New Cross, South East London. 

With a venue internationally known for creativity and 

innovation we have designed a programme of content 

to match and look forward to sharing details with you in 

the near future, check the 

website for the latest info 

and updates and register 

early to ensure you don’t 

miss out. 



Occupational 

Hearing Loss 

and Tinnitus 

Bars 

ilitary Nightclubs 

ineering 

If you have worked in noisy 

environments such as factories, 

workshops, garages, construction sites, 

nightclubs or the military, you could be 

eligible for compensation. 

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On average our Occupational Hearing Loss 

clients have been awarded over 

£10,000 

Call us now for a free 

no obligation chat— 

we represent clients nationwide 

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Where in the world would you like to walk? 

Virtual Step Challenge 

NEW! 

What is the Step Challenge? 

It's a fun way to Increase your steps, improve 

your wellbeing, and raise funds to help the BTA. 

Simply select your virtual route, choosing start 

and finish points that mean something to you 

or a route you could imagine walking. Set your 

step counter to zero. Get walking and count 

your steps. 

Ask friends, family and colleagues to sponsor 

your challenge and raise money to support our 

work in the world of tinnitus. 

How it works 

1. Select your virtual route 

Decide where you are going to walk from and to. Be 

adventurous - you can pick anywhere in the world! 

Walk from Barcelona to Berlin or Los Angeles to 

Las Vegas. 

LObs 

Use our online guide to work out the distance in 

miles, how many steps that would mean per day, 

and how long it will take you. 

2. Set your step counter app to zero 

Select an app for your phone or use a wrist 

pedometer or activity tracker to count your steps. 

Count your steps — keep a track of your steps on 

a daily, weekly and monthly basis. Update your 

blog on our website and share your Step Challenge 

story. 

3. Get walking! 

Challenge yourself. Challenge your friends and 

family. Challenge your work colleagues. 

Try to add a few more steps onto your daily 

average and reach your destination quicker! 

You could add to your usual daily total by going for 

a walk at lunchtime, a stroll in the evening, and a 

wander over the weekend. 

4. How to fundraise for the Step 

Challenge 

Our Fundraising Pack has everything you need to 

hit your fundraising target. 

There's no registration fee, simply set your 

fundraising target and away you go! You can set 

your own target or ask for a £ per mile. 

Sheffield to London 

158 miles (333,696 

steps) = £158 target 

Munich to Vienna 

249 miles (525,888 


Paris to Toulouse 

409 miles (863,808 


Lands' End to John 

O'Groats 

811 miles (1,712,832 


You could work 

together with your 

friends, family and 

work colleagues to 

reach your destination. 

You can work as a 

team to collate your 

steps and walk so 

much further! 

To sign up, please visit 

www.tinnitus.org.uk/ 

step-challenge or for 

call 0114 250 9933 or 

email fundraising@ 

tinnitus.org.uk 


Understanding children’s experience of 

tinnitus 

Harriet Smith, a BTA-funded PhD student at the NIHR Nottingham Biomedical Research 

Centre, discusses her research. 

Tinnitus is often mistakenly thought to be a 

problem that only affects adults. In fact, it 

is estimated that one child in every class of 

30 experiences tinnitus that has a 

significant effect on their life and wellbeing. 

Despite this, tinnitus in children is a 

relatively unrecognised and underresearched 

issue. 

What is the problem we are trying 

to address? 

So far, there has been very little 

investigation into how children experience 

tinnitus and the day-to-day problems they 

face. To be able to care for a child with 

tinnitus, health professionals need to 

understand, identify and measure their 

problems. By doing so they can determine 

how severe the tinnitus is and assess 

whether treatment has had an effect. 

Clinical questionnaires are used by health 

professionals to measure tinnitus problems. 

Whilst there are several tinnitus 

questionnaires available for use with 

adults, none are suitable for use with 

children. This means that health 

professionals are missing a valuable tool 

that could support them in understanding 

the needs of children who have tinnitus. 

My BTA-funded research project will 

address this issue by developing a clinical 

questionnaire to measure the impact of 

tinnitus on children. My research will first 

investigate all possible ways in which 

tinnitus can affect children. These findings 

will then be used to create a new 

questionnaire, which will then be tested in 

clinics. The project is exciting, as the 

questionnaire will be the first of its kind to 

be developed! 

What is already known about 

children’s experience of tinnitus? 

The first stage of my research involved a 

review of all published records of tinnitus 

problems in children aged 18 or younger. 

The review found children to experience 

problems related to: 

• Physical health — e.g. sleep difficulties, 

headaches 

• Cognitive health — e.g. concentration 

difficulties at school 

• Hearing and listening — e.g. hearing 

difficulties at school 

• Emotional health — e.g. feeling annoyed, 

feeling frightened 

• Quality of life — e.g. disruption of leisure 

activities 

• Feeling different or isolated — e.g. feeling 

unable to talk to someone about tinnitus 



The range of problems identified shows 

that tinnitus can have a significant and 

wide-ranging impact on children’s lives. If 

not addressed, these problems may 

increase the risk of long-term impairments 

in children’s learning and development. 

The review also found differences in the 

way tinnitus in children was investigated 

across records. For example, there were 

different questions and techniques used to 

ask children about their problems. Some 

articles included problems mentioned 

directly by children, and others included 

problems observed by clinicians, parents or 

teachers. Many of the records reported 

problems in limited detail without fully 

exploring the impact of these issues. This 

lack of consistency means that the findings 

from the review are unlikely to provide the 

complete picture of how children are 

affected by tinnitus. There is therefore a 

need for more in-depth and dedicated 

research to investigate children’s 

experiences. 

New research 

My current study is exploring children’s 

experience of tinnitus in detail by inviting 

them to share their experiences in 

individual and group discussions. The 

sessions explore how tinnitus can affect 

feelings, thoughts, activities and 

relationships, at home and at school. To 

encourage children to share their 

experiences, the sessions involve fun and 

interactive activities, such as drawing and 

game play. 

As part of the study, I am also inviting 

parents and clinicians to share their 

experiences in telephone discussions. As 

well as working towards the development of 

the new questionnaire, the findings will 

improve our overall understanding of the 

impact of tinnitus in children. 

If you are a parent or carer of a child 

with tinnitus (aged 8-16) we would love 

to hear from you. For more information, 

please visit https://bit.ly/2V6ozN4 or 

email harriet.smith@nottingham.ac.uk. 

Tinnitus and 

insomnia 

Some people with tinnitus may find 

they have greater difficulty getting 

off to sleep, or going back to sleep if 

they wake during the night. 

A research project, supported by the 

BTA, is looking for volunteers to take 

part. The research is looking into 

ways of managing tinnitus-related 

insomnia, and will use psychological 

approaches to managing insomnia. 

The approach to insomnia in this 

study does not involve the use of 

medicines. If you are already taking 

medicine to help you sleep you might 

still be suitable for the study if you 

are able to leave your medicines 

unchanged for the duration of the 

study. 

To take part in the study, you will 

need to attend regular appointments 

over a six-month period at the Royal 

National Throat, Nose and Ear 

Hospital in London. 

If you are interested and would like to 

find out more, please visit https:// 

bit.ly/2OLFBOk or email the 

research team at uclh.tinnitus@nhs. 

netac.uk. 

QUIET 2019 Issue Two www.tinnitus.org.uk 

13

Prioritising 

hyperacusis 

Dr Kathryn Fackrell, NIHR Nottingham Biomedical Research Centre 

Some people have real difficulty coping with 

everyday sounds such as car noise, 

dishwashers or people talking. They report that 

these sounds are overwhelming, frightening or 

painful. This is a hearing problem called 

hyperacusis. It affects about one in ten adults 

and children. It can have a significant effect on 

life. Hyperacusis is also commonly associated 

with other conditions including tinnitus, head 

trauma, depression, post-traumatic stress 

syndrome and fibromyalgia. 

Research has shown that hyperacusis can 

interfere with the ability to work, go to school, 

or even socialise with friends and family. For 

children who have hyperacusis, the classroom 

can be a very challenging place, and strategies 

need to be in place to ensure that their 

wellbeing and educational needs are met. 

Despite it being a common problem, there has 

been little research on hyperacusis and priority 

research questions have yet to be identified. 

Research priorities have traditionally been 

decided by funders and researchers 

themselves, with the result that sometimes the 

research undertaken was completely irrelevant 

to patients and health professionals. 

Pictured: Attendees from the priority setting workshop 

The James Lind Alliance priority setting 

partnership (JLA PSP) is an initiative that 

brings together patients, carers and healthcare 

professionals to provide real life insights into 

the most important unanswered questions for 

research. These PSPs are hugely successful in 

changing and shaping research priorities and 

funding. For example, the tinnitus PSP 

conducted in 2011 led to new research projects 

being funded and new national guidelines on 

the treatment of children with tinnitus. Hoping 

to have the same success and impact, a PSP 

for hyperacusis was formed in August 2017, to 

identify a set of priority questions about 

hyperacusis that are most important to 

patients, and healthcare practitioners involved 

in the care of adults and children who have 

hyperacusis. 

The first step to this project was to establish a 

steering group for the project to oversee and 

contribute to the PSP process, which included 

people with lived experience of hyperacusis 

(patients and parents), adult and paediatric 

healthcare practitioners, researchers, and 

representatives from organisations involved in 

supporting people with hyperacusis, funding 

hearing research and communicating science. 



The whole process was chaired and facilitated 

by expert advisers from the James Lind 

Alliance. 

The project followed methods established by 

the James Lind Alliance using online surveys 

and a final prioritisation workshop to identify a 

shortlist of questions that are considered 

priorities for research in the UK and which are 

relevant and important to people with lived 

experience and healthcare professionals. 

Our first survey successfully received 2370 

questions about hyperacusis from 312 

respondents worldwide. The majority of the 

respondents were people with lived experience 

(179), followed by healthcare professionals 

from a range of disciplines (86). A number of 

parents/carers, family and friends and 

educational professionals also submitted 

questions. 

We then checked that the submitted questions 

were truly ‘unanswered’ by thoroughly 

checking all available research literature on 

hyperacusis. The unanswered questions were 

then grouped according to similarity, creating a 

list of 85 which were used in the second 

survey. In our second survey, 327 respondents 

voted for their individual ten priority questions 

from the list of 85. We identified the top 28 

questions that received the most 

representative votes from both people with 

lived experience and professionals. From these 

questions, the ten priority questions were 

agreed during the final workshop involving 21 

participants including people with lived 

experience, parents and healthcare 

professionals, held in Nottingham in July 2018. 

We are now sharing these priorities as far as we 

can, across researchers, funding bodies and 

the health-care sector so that we can ensure 

that future research focuses on the questions 

that are important to healthcare practitioners 

and people with lived experience of 

hyperacusis. 

We would like to thank everyone who took part 

in the process. We had an amazing response 

from people to both online surveys and the 

Top 10 research 

priorities for hyperacusis 

1. What is the most effective treatment 

approach for hyperacusis in children? 

2. What is the prevalence of 

hyperacusis in a general population and 

other specific populations (e.g. people 

with autism, mental health issues, 

learning disabilities, hearing loss)? 

3. Are there different meaningful types 

of hyperacusis? 

4. What is the essential knowledge/ 

training required for health professionals 

to appropriately refer or effectively 

manage hyperacusis? 

5. Which treatment approaches are 

most effective for different types or 

severities of hyperacusis? 

6. Is hyperacusis due to physical 

or psychological issues or is it a 

combination of both? 

7. Which psychological therapy (e.g. 

counselling, Cognitive Behavioural 

Therapy, mindfulness) is most effective 

for hyperacusis? 

8. What management approach for 

hyperacusis is most effective for adults/ 

children with autism? 

9. What is the best way of using sound 

in therapy for hyperacusis? 

10. Which self-help interventions are 

effective for hyperacusis? 

final prioritisation workshop. We could not have 

successfully identified the research priorities 

for hyperacusis without you. Thank you again! 


EMDR as a treatment 

for tinnitus 

John Phillips, Sally Erskine and a team 

from the Norfolk and Norwich University 

Hospital recently published their research 

study Eye movement desensitization and 

reprocessing as a treatment for tinnitus, 

which was funded by the British Tinnitus 

Association. This small-scale study 

followed encouraging work completed in 

Germany, Canada and the Netherlands. 

There were 14 participants in the study. 

What is EMDR? 

Eye movement desensitization and 

reprocessing (EMDR) is a psychotherapy 

that involves various elements and 

attention to the past, present and future. 

Part of the treatment includes bilateral 

stimulation, such as rapid movements of 

the eyes from side to side. 

EMDR is gaining popularity as an effective 

treatment for an increasing number 

and broad range of conditions. Since its 

introduction in 1989, numerous controlled 

studies have been conducted to evaluate 

the use of EMDR as a treatment for various 

forms of trauma-related conditions, 

particularly post-traumatic stress disorder 

(PTSD). 

The study 

The aim of the Norfolk study was to 

determine the effectiveness of EMDR 

as a treatment for tinnitus. Participants 

undertook a maximum of 10 sessions of 

EMDR. This was a bespoke EMDR protocol 

(tEMDR) that was developed specifically 

to treat individuals with tinnitus. Outcome 

measures, including tinnitus questionnaires 

and mood questionnaires, were recorded at 

the start of the study, discharge, and at six 

months post-discharge. 

Tinnitus Handicap Inventory and Beck 

Depression Inventory scores demonstrated 

a statistically significant improvement at 

discharge after the EMDR intervention. This 

improvement was maintained at six months 

post-discharge. There was also a moderate 

but not significant improvement in Beck 

Anxiety Inventory scores. 

However, as a small uncontrolled 

study, these results do not consider the 



significant effects of placebo and therapist 

interaction. Larger high-quality studies will 

be essential to see if these results can be 

reproduced. 

Meet the researcher: 

Jorge Simões 

Unusually, the study protocol was designed 

to be inclusive of a diverse range of 

tinnitus patients. Despite the limitations 

in the study outlined above, the degree 

of improvement in symptoms in a group 

of individuals, some of whom had been 

suffering from tinnitus for a very long time, 

should not be overlooked. 

This current study builds on a foundation 

of scientific evidence that is evolving. 

From a pathophysiological perspective, if 

EMDR is eventually found to be an effective 

treatment for tinnitus, this will further 

our understanding of the pathways that 

initiate, propagate, and maintain tinnitus 

perception, stimulating further research to 

explore these pathways in more detail. 

For more information about the study, visit 

https://bit.ly/2T4J76E 

Reference 

Phillips J, Erskine S, Moore T, Nunney I, Wright C. 

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing 

as a Treatment for Tinnitus, The Laryngoscope, 29 

January 2019. 

Thank you! 

Research such as this is paid for by 

the generosity of members and 

supporters like you. We want to say a 

big thank you to all our supporters. 

If you would like to make a donation 

for further tinnitus research, you can 

do so by calling 0114 250 9933 or 

visiting www.tinnitus.org.uk/donate 

Jorge (L) with BTA Research Officer Georgie Burns-O'Connell 

Hello Jorge! Shall we start by you 

telling us a bit about yourself? 

Sure! I am originally from Rio de Janeiro, where 

I lived for most of my childhood. Then, my 

family and I moved to Salvador da Bahia, also 

in Brazil, where I later obtained my Bachelors’ 

degree in Psychology with an emphasis 

in Clinical Psychology. For my Master's 

degree, I moved to the Netherlands to study 

Neurosciences. I am currently a PhD student 

at the University Hospital Regensburg, in 

Bavaria, in the department of Psychology and 

Psychiatry. Professionally, I am interested in all 

neuro-related stuff and statistics. Personally, I 

enjoy reading books, cooking, and running next 

to the River Danube. 

What is the ESIT programme? 

ESIT stands for the European School of 

Interdisciplinary Tinnitus Research. It is a 

programme funded by the European Union 

to train the next generation of tinnitus 

researchers. We have 15 PhD students all 

across Europe working in different fields of 

tinnitus research. For example, we have some 

students studying the genetics of tinnitus, 

while some are trying to improve current 

treatments such as hearing aids, cochlear 

implants, neurofeedback, transcranial 

magnetic stimulation and acoustic 


stimulation. There are also students doing 

basic science, searching for the 'fingerprints' 

of tinnitus in the brain. 

What is your PhD about? 

My PhD aims to firstly establish the first 

pan-European tinnitus database, and then to 

perform statistical analysis of this and other 

large datasets with information on tinnitus 

patients. 

Establishing such a database is important 

because all the different centres across 

Europe are collecting a lot of data about 

patients and treatments, but sometimes 

such data is not comparable due to the 

way the information is collected or stored. 

Overcoming these difficulties may allow us to 

gain novel insights about tinnitus, such as how 

it is manifested across different countries, 

or factors associated with higher distress, 

for example. That is where the statistical 

analysis part comes in: these datasets are 

very complex and sometimes some important 

patterns in the data are invisible to the human 

eye. However, rigorous statistics may detect 

patterns invisible to us, and they may lead to a 

better understanding of tinnitus. 

What do you want to find out, and 

what difference will your research 

make to those who have tinnitus? 

I can give an example. Recently we sent 

questionnaires to previous patients from our 

clinic asking about their tinnitus. We wanted 

to find out how tinnitus develops in the long 

run. We observed that patients who came to 

us highly distressed were doing significantly 

better than before. Tinnitus habituation is 

not a new concept, but we know very little 

about the factors influencing habituation. 

Does age play a role? What about severity 

of hearing loss? Or perhaps the presence of 

hyperacusis? I could go on and on here, but 

the idea is straightforward: Can we identify 

predictors of tinnitus coping? Stretching this 

idea a little further: Can we use personal 

characteristics (age, gender, life habits, etc.) 

and tinnitus characteristics (presence or 

absence of hearing loss, type of perceived 

sound, severity of hyperacusis) to predict an 

outcome of a treatment? That is the key point 

of my research: whether we can predict who 

will benefit from a certain treatment. 

If so, clinicians could use these personal and 

tinnitus characteristics to define what would 

be the best treatment for each person. In a 

certain way, it is a little bit like going to a tailor 

and ordering a suit based on your dimensions. 

Following this analogy, the challenges of my 

research become clearer: The size of your 

fingers or your eye colour are not relevant for a 

tailoring a suit, but the width of your shoulders 

and the length of your legs are. 

We do not have good biological markers 

explaining why someone is suffering from 

tinnitus while others are not, nor do we have 

any good marker of why certain people 

are responding very positively to certain 

treatments, while others are not responding to 

treatments at all. 

How long will you be doing the 

research for? 

I started my PhD studies in October of 2017 

and they will last until October of 2020. My 

goal is to start my post-doc afterwards, also in 

Regensburg, so I guess I will continue with this 

research in the foreseeable future. 

What do you hope to do with the 

findings? 

Although we would all like to find a cure for 

tinnitus, it is very important to reach those 

who are suffering from it today. My PhD is not 

focused on developing a new treatment, but 

rather it is focused on trying to improve current 

care. I hope that the findings of my research 

bring us closer to a world where tinnitus is no 

longer a burden. 

Thanks for taking the time to chat 

with us about your interesting 

research! 



You’ve been holding your Tea for Tinnitus 

tea parties for the last four years and we 

wanted to say a huge thank you to all those 

who have raised so much money along the 

way. 

In 2019 we're refreshing our Tea for Tinnitus 

fundraiser to include some new and 

exciting activities to help you with your 

fundraising both at home and at work. 

Tea Tally 

New for 2019 we are launching our Tea Tally 

fundraiser! A great way to fundraise for us 

at work or at home. 

Fancy trying 

a new brew? 

Tea Types 

What's your tea type? 

We all take our tea a certain way. We all 

hear our tinnitus in our own way. 

Let the world know how you take yours and 

raise awareness of tinnitus. 

Cream tea Beige before beauty Perma-tan Builder’s brew The Teak District Ran out of milk 

Tea for Tinnitus - Tea Tally 

Fill in your name, choose your tea type, set your donation per cup amount. 

Each time you have a cuppa (that includes coffee!) mark the chart and at the end of the week calculate your donation. 

Name Tea Type Donation per cup Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Total cups Amount raised 

e.g. Tina Pott Perma-tan 50p llll lll llll lll llll 20 £10.00 

e.g. Cam O’Mile Builder’s brew 25p llll l llll llll llll llll l 26 £6.00 

Total raised £ 

Support our work in the world of tinnitus by making a donation for each cup you drink. Encourage your friends and colleagues to join in. For more information go to our website below. 

#MyT tinnitus.org.uk/MyT Registered charity no: 1011145 

Support our work in the world of tinnitus by 

making a donation for each cup you drink, 

and encourage your friends and colleagues 

to join in too! 

Each time your have a cuppa (that includes 

coffee!) mark the tally chart and at the end 

of the week calculate your donation total. 

To make life easier for the person making 

your tea we've created six tea types! Your 

tea = #MyT 

So, simply fill in your name, choose your tea 

type and set your donation per cup. 

Did you know... that the tea bag was 

invented in 1908? 

Use our tea types to create a post on social 

media and tag it with #MyT 

Download your tea type at www.tinnitus. 

org.uk/tea-types 

Tea Party 

Alternatively you could hold a Tea for 

Tinnitus tea party. The idea behind it is 

simple. Put the kettle on and hold a tea 

party for your friends, family and/or work 

colleagues. Offer tea and cakes in return 

for a donation, and help us raise much 

needed funds. 

For more information or to sign up, visit 

www.tinnitus.org.uk/myt or call 0114 250 

9933. 


Noise and the 

nightclub worker 

Tim Fieldhouse, Head of Industrial Disease, Oakwoods Solicitors 

Loud music and noise are seen an essential part 

of the events industry. This inevitably will lead 

to staff working within that sector being at a 

significant risk of being left with permanent 

hearing problems. How are the employers within 

the entertainment sector working to protect the 

health and safety of their employees? 

In a study published in the International Journal 

of Noise & Health, a Dublin researcher analysed 

noise experienced by nightclub employees at 

nine different nightclubs in Ireland. A sound level 

meter was placed at the bar closest to the dance 

floor and a dosimeter was attached to the shirt of 

each participant. It was found that the average 

daily noise exposure of the participants working 

20 hours per week was 92 decibels. 

Over time, noise exposure greater than 85 

decibels for eight hours can lead to permanent 

hearing loss. Work safety laws in the European 

Union require hearing protection to be provided to 

workers exposed to more than 85 decibels. Only 

two clubs in the study provided this protection 

and only one required employees to wear the 

protection. 

A number of studies have developed methods 

which can be adopted to protect bar workers from 

noise. Further, a number of research papers have 

also suggested methods which, if adopted, may 

help in the control of exposure levels : 

A number of loudspeakers should be used to 

ensure that the level is uniformly distributed 

over the dance floor and to prevent ‘hot spots’ 

where excessively high levels may occur close to 

speakers. Loudspeakers should be directional 

and located so that they concentrate their 

radiation onto the dance floor and away from the 

staff working locations. Staff's work areas should 

also be positioned away from the dance floor. 

Staff/job rotation could also be used to limit the 

time employees are working in the excessively 

noisy areas. 

The venue could be zoned into a number of areas 

depending on the sound pressure level. The daily 

noise exposure of employees is influenced by the 

amount of time spent in the noisy areas and it 

is therefore imperative that this is countered by 

employees spending time in the quieter zones of 

the venue. 

Hearing conservation programmes can also be 

developed for employees within clubs. These 

could include routine audiometry, to conduct a 

noise assessment, notify employees of the risk 

to their hearing, supply hearing protection and 

training on their use and conduct regular sound 

level measurements. 

In another survey commissioned to look into the 

noise around workers at live concerts it was 

found that, in general, personnel employed in the 

live entertainment industry are exposed to noise 

levels above the upper exposure action level and 

as such should be provided and enforced to wear 

hearing protection. 

If you have been working in a nightclub, bar or 

live entertainment industry, you could find that 

your hearing is much worse than others your age 

or that you are experiencing tinnitus. As well as 

managing your hearing loss and tinnitus, you 

may also want to investigate making a claim 

against your employer. There are strict time limits 

in making claims and you should look to make a 

claim as soon as you are aware of the potential 

link with your work. 



Flying & tinnitus 

It's coming up to the holiday season, and you're 

probably making plans to get away. If you are 

thinking of jetting off abroad, you might be 

worried that the noise on a flight will make your 

tinnitus worse. Actually, most people find that the 

background noise in the plane means their tinnitus 

is hardly noticeable. Occasionally you might find 

your tinnitus getting louder during the journey. But 

this won’t last long, and there are things you can 

do to minimise this. 

Engine noise 

People with tinnitus aren’t usually disturbed by the 

engine’s noise. But if you are worried that it might 

make your tinnitus worse, reserve a seat near the 

front of the plane, where the engines aren’t as 

loud. Don’t use earplugs unless the background 

noise is unbearable, because blocking outside 

sounds might actually make you notice your 

tinnitus more. If you normally wear hearing aids, 

keep them in during the flight so that you won’t 

have to strain to hear. Straining can make tinnitus 

louder. 

The plane’s descent 

When the plane is descending, your ears might 

feel painful and your tinnitus may be louder. This is 

caused by the air pressure in the cabin becoming 

higher than the pressure within your ear. To help 

solve this, swallow, yawn, and move your jaw 

around by chewing gum or sucking on a sweet. 

Doing this will open the Eustachian tube in the 

middle part of your ear, allowing the air pressure in 

the ear to equalise with the pressure outside. You 

will know this has happened when you feel a 'pop' 

in your ears. 

The air pressure can’t equalise when your 

Eustachian tube is blocked. So if you have a cold or 

sinusitis, use a nasal decongestant to help open up 

your airways and tubes. 

Coping with stress 

Stress and anxiety can make tinnitus worse. If 

you find flying stressful, think about ways to calm 

yourself down. Listen to music, read a magazine, 

or watch a film during the flight. These will take 

your focus away from whatever is making you 

anxious. Relaxation and breathing exercises can 

also be very helpful, especially if you practise them 

before your flight. If you know you have a fear of 

flying, talk to your GP, who might suggest a small 

dose of tranquiliser. Some airlines offer courses to 

help people overcome their fears. 

Flying & middle ear surgery 

If you’ve recently had surgery on your middle ear, 

check with your ear specialist before booking a 

flight. You might need to avoid flying while your ear 

is still healing. 

For more information and our top tips, visit www. 

tinnitus.org.uk/flying-and-the-ear 


Ride for tinnitus 

The Prudential RideLondon is an annual 

festival of cycling. It's the biggest annual 

charity bike ride in the world and an 

extremely important fundraising event for 

us. 

Celebrating the legacy for cycling 

created by the London 2012 Olympic and 

Paralympic Games, Prudential RideLondon- 

Surrey 100 starts in the Queen Elizabeth 

Olympic Park, then follows a 100-mile route 

on closed roads through the capital and 

into Surrey’s stunning countryside before 

finishing on The Mall. 

The details 

Date: 4 August 2019 

Distance: 100 miles 

Location: London 

Entry fee: Free 

Suggested minimum sponsorship: 

£300 

2018 Prudential Rid 

The Riders’ Stories 

Jon Wylson 

Lena Stranks 

Supporting you 

Simon Connellan 

We’re here to help make fundraising as 

easy as possible for you. We'll send you 

our Fundraising Pack , which contains 

lots of fun ideas for Steve how to Metcalfe 

raise money, 

plus useful practical support like 

information on how Maria to publicise Keen your 

event and set up an online fundraising 

page. 

Jonathan Clarke 

Laura Griffin 

Sara Abbott 

All our fundraisers receive a FREE sports 

vest or t-shirt — just let us know your 

preferred size and Steve colour! Walford 

To apply: 

To apply for one of our guaranteed places for the Prudential RideLondon 100 in 2019, 

please complete our application form by visiting www.tinnitus.org.uk/prudentialridelondon-surrey-100. 

Good luck! 

Scroll down for full biog 



REAL 

LIVES 

Readers share their experiences of living with tinnitus. 

Focus and the 

vicious cycle: Steve's 

story — part four 

Quiet reader Steve has written a book 

about his experience with tinnitus which 

he has kindly allowed us to share. We will 

be following Steve's story through future 

issues of Quiet. 

There is a video I’ve seen on the internet 

where you are asked to count the number of 

times a group of people catch a ball. It’s an 

old psychological experiment. At the end of 

the video you are asked whether you saw a 

man dressed as a gorilla walk past the back 

of the group of people. Most people don’t 

spot the gorilla walk past as their brains are 

too preoccupied counting the number of 

catches. 

Years ago when I was a kid, I loved playing 

football. After a particularly tough game I 

remember looking down at my knee to see 

blood pouring out. It was only at that point 

I noticed the pain. Why didn’t I feel the pain 

earlier? The answer is focus. When we are 

engaged in something we enjoy doing we 

tend not to notice other things going on. 

Sometimes our brain's inability to multitask 

very well can be an advantage to us 

when we have an ailment. 

Steve Haynes 

Our hearing is also very selective. We can 

pick out a particular conversation in a room 

where a number of conversations are taking 

place. I don’t know if you are old enough to 

remember old-fashioned tube televisions. 

They made quite a loud very high pitched 

whistle. However after getting absorbed in 

the programme I soon stopped noticing it. 

So if we are able to move our focus 

away from the tinnitus, the brain is quite 

capable of letting the tinnitus leave our 

conciousness. The hard bit is training 

our brain to do that. I remember in the 

early stages I would listen to sounds like 

waterfalls and babbling brooks though my 

smart phone just to train my brain to listen 

to nice sounds. One of the tools used in 

tinnitus therapy is a tinnitus masker. It’s 


designed to do exactly that, help our brain 

focus away from the tinnitus sound. These 

devices should be used carefully though 

and should be set to a level which doesn’t 

totally mask out the tinnitus sound. 

John's story 

I however realised later that dependancy 

on such masking just reminded me I had 

tinnitus. I believed the whole aim in the end 

was to forget I had it in the first place. They 

are a very useful aid in the early panic stage 

of tinnitus though. 

The biggest hurdle for me was trying 

to break away from my obsession with 

the tinnitus. I noticed, even in the early 

days, that minutes would go by without 

any thought of my tinnitus. Maybe over 

time minutes would become hours, 

hours would become days, days would 

become weeks. Who knows, I might stop 

noticing it for good eventually? It was the 

confidence gained each time the ‘silence’ 

period got longer which was another major 

breakthough in my journey. Have you 

noticed your tinnitus whilst reading this 

article? 

Another hurdle was succumbing to the 

temptation of ‘listening’ for the tinnitus 

when I realised I hadn’t noticed it. Sure 

enough, seconds later it would be there like 

a bad friend. My advice is not to listen for it, 

not ever. What is the point of listening for it 

anyway when you're trying to train the brain 

to ignore it? 

In my next— and final — article, I will try 

to break down the stages which I believe I 

went through to reach the point I’d finally 

let go of that bad friend, tinnitus. Obviously 

they aren’t actually stages in a straight line 

like a graph, more like a succession of hills 

which go up and down but gradually got me 

home. There were setbacks, but by sticking 

to the plan, I got there in the end. 

John Bishop at work 

I lie on the bed looking up at an air con vent. 

It makes a constant noise uncannily similar 

to one of the components of my tinnitus. 

It’s about the same volume, too. The only 

difference is how close they sound: one 

is five feet away, the other right there 

inside my ear. In the bathroom there is 

an extractor which is constantly on. Even 

with the door shut it is audible. There are 

creaking and grinding noises and some 

of the time swishing sea noises. There is 

constant movement. People pass the cabin 

door at all hours chatting. Despite this 

ambient cacophony I sleep the sleep of the 

innocent. For nine hours or more if I have 

had no need to set an alarm. 

I have the perfect solution for the tinnitus 

problem, it is not a cure but very good 

mitigation: a sea cruise! Regular or even 

permanent cruises for all tinnitus sufferers! 

Somehow I suspect that the NHS will 

not wear it. This reflection does illustrate 

how important to the sufferer the context 



and circumstances are. At home, I have 

wonderful silence. I’ve tried white noise 

and other distraction sounds but they don’t 

work. They are fake noise. If I have to get 

up for work in seven or eight hours and all 

I can think about is this noise in my head, 

sleep is impossible. Worse still is if it wakes 

me around 4am, as there's not much hope 

of getting back to sleep. My GP suggested 

a tiny dose of amitriptyline. It's the only 

treatment other than the cruise that has 

helped. 

It all dates back, I think, to my early teens. 

I had had piano lessons from the age of 

seven. After the earthquake of The Beatles, 

all youngsters had to play in a group. All 

my pals bought cheap nasty guitars but 

oh dear, they couldn’t tune them. I found 

it easy. I couldn’t see why they couldn’t 

do them. After The Animals’ House of the 

Rising Sun I bought a Vox Continental just 

like Alan Price’s. Everyone wanted me in 

their band. 

Printing technology as it was meant that 

it was not easy to get sheet music for hit 

tunes. They would not print until it was 

a definite hit and by the time the music 

reached the shops, the number had left the 

charts. The solution was to stick my left ear 

on the speaker of a tape recorder and write 

down the chords, then the bass line, then 

the words. Voila! Next rehearsal and it was 

in the repertoire. 

I played for years in bands of one sort or 

another. In those days, the PA system was 

for vocal and acoustic instruments only. For 

guitars and keyboards the performers had 

a huge amplifier behind them. 

able to hear the harmonic components of 

sound. It takes some doing. I relied mostly 

on my left ear. Somehow I think I turned the 

amplifier in my left ear up. 

I knew that I would have to write this some 

day having read so many contributions 

from others in Quiet magazine. Trouble is, 

even thinking about it makes it get louder! 

A dear friend and fellow sufferer and I had 

to make an agreement never to mention it. 

The more we talked about it, the louder it 

became. 

So here I am sitting at my computer and 

facing the noise. I’m afraid I don’t have 

much good news, another inhibiting factor 

in my writing this. But let me try. I have 

had this for over 20 years and it has been 

progressively worsening. I have had a 

normal and enjoyable life. It has affected 

mainly me. (I suppose my partner has 

suffered too, much of the time, and my 

deafness must make it hard work. Bless 

her.) But to everyone else around me, 

friends, customers, musicians I work with, 

my problem is nothing to them. Only I am 

fully aware of it and only I can deal with it. 

It doesn’t surprise me that some sufferers 

consider suicide, but that thought has 

never crossed my mind. It isn’t as bad as 

pain, and some people live with very painful 

conditions. So, my advice is, just get on 

with it. Stop thinking about it and live a 

normal life. Oh, and if you can, take that 

cruise. 

I wasn’t aware of any damage that all this 

did until around 20 years ago. I moved on 

from playing and became a piano tuner 

about 40 years ago. I think this did the 

most harm. To tune a piano one has to be 


Alex's story 

It started in 2008. I was 22 years old and, to 

be honest, I had never really thought about 

tinnitus before. 

I’d heard of people having it and that it 

could be pretty horrible, but I figured it was 

an ‘old person’s disease’ and so I didn’t 

expect it to ever happen to me. I wasn’t 

really aware that it could be caused by 

noise damage. 

It all began one night at 

a gig, which was — to be 

frank — ludicrously loud. 

The music was hurting my ears and I 

wanted to leave, but at the time I was 

having therapy for anxiety and I assumed 

what I was experiencing at the gig was part 

of a panic attack rather than because my 

ears were becoming damaged. So I decided 

to stay in order to ‘beat’ my anxiety. When I 

left the club I was almost completely deaf. 

Fortunately my hearing returned, but the 

ringing didn’t go away. About a month later 

I experienced an extreme feeling of fullness 

in my ears, followed by hyperacusis 

(heightened sensitivity to normal sounds) 

in my right ear. This lasted for about two 

weeks before both symptoms dropped back 

down to manageable levels, but they never 

truly went away. 

Then, the ringing got even louder. I now 

know what the ‘acute’ phase of tinnitus is 

all about — for the first four to six months 

you have massive fluctuations in hearing 

sensitivity and in the different sounds you 

hear. 

My GP told me that tinnitus is a chronic 

condition with no cure. I was stuck with this 

forever and I had to learn to live with it. 

But I was 

struggling to 

sleep and I 

couldn’t stop 

focusing on 

the ringing. 

It was 

constant and 

I had to wear 

earplugs 

too, which 

affected 

my job in a 

call centre 

at the time. 

Eventually 

I ended up 

losing the job 

Alex Rose 

due to the drop 

in my performance. I also stopped going 

out with my friends. I become isolated, 

depressed, sleep-deprived and more 

anxious than ever. 

My tinnitus was relatively stable for about 

five years, other than alarmingly going deaf 

for three days in one ear with seemingly no 

explanation when I was about 24 years old. 

By the time I hit 27 I was barely noticing my 

tinnitus, even when it was quiet. I had to 

‘tune in’ by concentrating on it. 

Then, in 2013 my tinnitus got worse. On top 

of everything, I also developed a condition 

where the muscles in your ears that control 

your eardrum spasm for no reason. When 

it happens there’s a loud whooshing sound 

and I can physically feel the muscles 

inside my head throbbing. It’s thoroughly 

unpleasant, but thankfully I don’t get it as 

often as my other symptoms. Some people 

have it all the time. 

After another six-month acute period, my 

tinnitus returned to more monotonous 

tones and I was able to adapt again over 

a period of several years, with some 



adjustments. 

For example, I would wear earplugs to loud 

functions such as weddings, the occasional 

club and I even attended a festival or two 

by making sure to wear my earplugs and 

staying far, far away from any speakers. I 

would spend a lot of time outside with the 

smokers to avoid the noise — even though I 

don’t smoke! 

But then, in December 2017 my ears got 

inexplicably worse again. Everything was 

louder, more sensitive and more frequent. 

I’m only now finally coming out of the other 

side. 

Sadly, my ears are so sensitive now that 

I don’t think I’ll ever be able to enjoy live 

music or nightclubs again. I used to do 

swing and salsa dancing, but I’ve not done 

either for over a year now. I have to wear 

earplugs when I’m working and I still often 

find it difficult to sleep. 

Isolation comes hand in 

hand with tinnitus. 

I am very positive that there will be a cure, 

or at least an effective treatment, in the 

near future and this gives me hope. In the 

last ten years alone, various devices, drug 

trials and other potential treatments have 

been explored by researchers, with very 

promising results. 

With adequate funding and the vital work of 

the BTA we may see effective treatments 

and maybe even a cure for tinnitus one day. 

Until then, we need to open up and talk to 

others about the condition, reaching out 

for help so that those around us, from GPs 

to our nearest and dearest, understand 

what we go through and just how isolating 

tinnitus can be. 

Do you have a 

story to tell? 

Would you like to help raise the 

profile of the British Tinnitus 

Association and the vital work we 

do? 

If you are living with tinnitus and would 

like to support our awareness-raising 

activity by sharing your story, we'd love 

to hear from you! 

Whether you're new to tinnitus, or have 

had it for many years, whether you are 

managing it well and have tips to pass 

on or if you are still struggling with it, 

your story could help us reach more 

people, and potentially make a 

difference to their lives. 

Your story could be shared in Quiet, 

local or national newspapers, 

magazines, local or national radio as 

well as across BTA social media 

networks. 

Don't worry — we'd never ask you to do 

anything you feel uncomfortable with, 

and no details or photos are ever used 

without your consent. 

If you would like to tell us your tinnitus 

story, please get in touch with Nic Wray 

on nic@tinnitus.org.uk or 0114 250 

9933. 

You can also send your story to me at 

Nic Wray,FREEPOST BTA (no stamp 

needed) 

I look forward to hearing from you. 


FEEDBACK 

Triggering tinnitus 

I have had loud high-frequency tinnitus 

for most of my life; I'm now 90 years 

old. The tinnitus has become so much 

a 'part of me' that for long stretches 

of time I'm not conscious of it, by 

which I mean I'm not hearing it. But 

it immediately 'switches on' at its 

full volume if it is 'triggered' into my 

consciousness. 

This happens quite frequently in a 

variety of ways, for example if the word 

tinnitus enters into a conversation or 

if I read about it. It is triggered by Quiet 

magazine arriving in the mail (even 

before I open it). Right now, as I write 

to you, it is, of course, shrieking away 

in my head, a disturbing distressing 

damaging experience. 

I suppose that if I were to resign from 

the BTA, the number of triggers would 

go down, but that I will not do; my 

membership is too important to me, as 

is my hope for a cure. But I would very 

much like to know if others are similarly 

effected, and what their views/ 

approach to this phenomenon are. 

Tom Jacobs 

Get in touch! 

Send your comments, feedback and 

questions to me at nic@tinnitus.org. 

uk or send your letter to Nic Wray, 

FREEPOST BTA (no stamp needed) 

28 

A fishy tale 

Can I share some helpful advice? I've 

had tinnitus for over 30 years and I 

have found the perfect way to cover it 

indoors. Fishtanks! If you get a quiet 

pump and a good ceramic airstone with 

a variable airvalve, you can get great 

white noise cover and can turn it up or 

down to suit you. It's always on so no 

worries about quiet intervals, unlike with 

TV or music. You can even get some fish! 

Jim Walker 

Full steam ahead! 

Chronic tinnitus is something I have had 

to endure. After five minutes in a hot 

steam room at my local health club, I 

was aware that it had gone completely. 

What a relief ! Unfortunately this was 

short-lived as it returned afterwards. 

I was wondering if the conditions could 

be simulated with the aid of medication? 

T Williams 

28 



Support groups 

Reducing isolation 

GP and radio presenter Dr Sarah Jarvis 

encourages people with tinnitus to check 

out their local support group. 

Tinnitus and isolation. The two so often go 

hand-in-hand and so it was unfortunately 

no surprise to me that the BTA’s recent 

survey revealed more than 60% of people 

with tinnitus feel isolated. It’s a condition 

you can’t see and which all too often, those 

around us don’t understand the true impact 

of. 

If you’re living with tinnitus, reaching out 

and talking about how you’re feeling is vital, 

and support groups play a crucial role in 

allowing those with tinnitus to do just that. 

Meeting others who are going through the 

same experiences as you can be incredibly 

rewarding and can reassure you that you 

really are not alone. 

Equally, speaking to 

your GP is important. 

The BTA is working hard to ensure GPs are 

better equipped with the knowledge they 

need to help tinnitus patients — it’s so 

important that people feel empowered to 

share with their GP the impact their tinnitus 

is having on their lives. 

Additionally, it’s important to recognise that 

if your GP says your tinnitus isn’t ‘severe 

enough’ to warrant referral, you still have 

every right to feel isolated and to reach 

Dr Sarah Jarvis 

out for support from those around you and 

organisations such as the BTA. 

If you’re living with tinnitus and feeling 

isolated, remember you are not alone. 

Support is available, in a variety of places. 

You can find your local tinnitus support 

group by visiting www.tinnitus.org.uk/ 

find-a-support-group or you can speak to 

someone about your tinnitus in complete 

confidence, by calling the BTA’s confidential 

helpline on 0800 018 0527. In September 


Wales Support Group Project 

Last year BigLotteryWales awarded us a grant 

of nearly £9,000 to run tinnitus support group 

facilitation training for 27 people in order to set up 

nine new tinnitus support groups across Wales. 

With the help of Wales Council for Deaf People 

Colette Bunker, Groups Manager, has so far 

delivered four training sessions in Wrexham, 

Colwyn Bay, Swansea and Aberystwyth for 25 

people (and one gate-crashing cat … don’t ask!). 

Human attendees have included local audiologists, 

people from local and national hearing/sensory 

impairment charities, hard of hearing groups, 

hosts of large Facebook support groups, lipreading 

tutors, local volunteers, community agents 

and people working with deaf students. 

Two of these four sessions took place during our 

isolation-themed Tinnitus Week: a rather fitting 

time to do it since support groups are a great way 

to meet and learn from others who experience the 

condition. 

Attendees were asked how confident they were to 

speak with people about their tinnitus before and 

after the training and on average their confidence 

raised from a 5 to a 9 out of 10. 20% of them have 

said they would like the BTA’s help to set up a 

tinnitus group in their area. 

Attendees also shared other ways that they would 

use the training going forward: 

“I feel we are now part of a bigger network — our 

own sense of belonging.” 

“I will use the knowledge within the school 

classroom. It will help children to manage and I can 

help to provide support.” 

“I will use the training as part of my job with blind 

veterans. I will be able to offer helpful advice 

regarding signposting. Also relaxation sessions.” 

“Information I've learnt from today’s training will 

help me when clients visit out resource centre e.g. 

equipment, signposting” 

“[I] will read up more and look into alternative 

therapies” 

So far two new tinnitus groups have formed as 

a result of the training, in Barry and Swansea, 

with two more on the horizon in Aberystwyth and 

Cardigan. 

Do you live in Wales? We would love to speak 

with you if you might be interested in setting up a 

support group where you live! Please get in touch 

at colette@tinnitus.org.uk or 0114 250 9933 

30 

30 



SUPPORT GROUPS 

Scotland 

Edinburgh and SE Scotland 

Glasgow 

Northern Ireland 

Armagh and Dungannon 

Belfast 

Craigavon 

Derry 

Enniskillen 

Newry and Mourne 

Omagh 

North-West England & 

Isle of Man 

Blackpool 

Bolton 

Bury 

Garstang 

Isle of Man 

Liverpool/Aintree 

Manchester 

Prestwich 

Runcorn 

Sandbach 

St Helens 

Warrington 

Widnes 

Wales 

Barry 

North Wales 

Pontypridd 

Pontyclun 

Rhondda 

Swansea 

South-West England 

Bournemouth and District 

Bristol 

Gloucester 

Kingsbridge and District 

Mid-Somerset 

Taunton 

Torbay 

Truro NEW! 

South-East England 

Aldershot and District 

Amersham 

Ashford, Kent 

Brighton 

Canterbury 

Crowborough 

Dover 

Faversham 

Harpenden, Luton, St Albans 

Haywards Heath 

Hitchin and Stevenage 

Lyndhurst/New Forest 

Maidstone 

Margate 

Marlow/Farnham Cmn 

Oxford 

Ramsgate 

Rochester 

Rye NEW! 

Salisbury 

Southampton 

Watford 

West Kent 

Worthing 

West Midlands 

Birmingham and District 

Newcastle under Lyme 

Shropshire 

Stoke on Trent 

Telford 

Warwick 

Whitchurch 

Meeting dates & venues 

Find out when and where these groups 

meet by checking the Support Groups 

Directory online at www.tinnitus.org.uk/ 

find-a-support-group or contact us on 

0800 018 0527 or helpline@tinnitus.org. 

uk. For support in the Republic of Ireland, 

the Irish Tinnitus Association will be happy 

to help on (0)1 817 5700. 

North-East England 

Chester-le-Street 

Darlington 

Durham 

Newcastle 

Peterlee 

Yorkshire & Humber 

Bradford 

Keighley 

Rotherham 

Rotherham Central 

Sheffield 

Wakefield NEW! 

York 

East Midlands 

Chesterfield & N Derbyshire 

Derby 

Leicester 

Lincoln 

Northampton 

Nottingham 

East of England 

Bury St Edmunds 

Cambridgeshire 

Chelmsford 

Colchester 

Ipswich 

King's Lynn 

Lowestoft 

Norwich/Norfolk 

Southend-on-Sea 

London (within M25) 

Bexley 

Borehamwood 

Bromley 

Chiswick 

Greenwich 

Hornchurch 

Isleworth (West Middlesex) 

Kingston 

North London 

Orpington 

Redbridge 


2019 

ANNUAL CONFERENCE 

Wednesday 5th June 2019 

Molineux Stadium, Wolverhampton 

TRANSLATING RESEARCH 

INTO PRACTICE 


REGISTER NOW 

www.thebsa.org.uk

Quiet Issue 2 2019

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