Geoffrey Bunstone of Chester, Cheshire, has been living with tinnitus for 10 years. He can’t escape the constant ringing in his ears; there is no cure to help the 64-year-old.
July 2, 2007 (Press Release) --
Geoffrey Bunstone of Chester, Cheshire, has been living with tinnitus for 10 years. He can’t escape the constant ringing in his ears; there is no cure to help the 64-year-old. Even his senses of smell and taste have diminished with the onset of tinnitus. As he tries to cope with the symptom, he is frustrated with the lack of awareness, support and treatment for sufferers and believes there is a shortage of funding for research.
Geoffrey was a member of a band in his younger days. He then moved on to career in construction. Added to the daily noises his ears were subjected to was the humming of air conditioners, a result of often working abroad in hot countries. Sometime in 1997, he realised in a quiet moment that the ringing in his ears refused to stop. “I knew it was tinnitus. I had a terrible sense of foreboding. I met a man many years ago who told me of his similar problem. I had felt truly sorry for him. Imagine always having sounds in your head that you can’t do anything about,” recalls Geoffrey.
Visits to the doctor led to several tests, which confirmed his worst suspicions. He was prescribed hearing aids a couple of years ago, but that only made matters worse. “It just made other sounds louder. Even my voice echoed in my head. So I took them off,” says Geoffrey.
An appalling lack of interest and concern for hearing impairments had meant little or no research into this field, which has left sufferers largely coping with it themselves, he laments. “It’s not like losing an arm or having your eye out. Blindness is an important condition, but deafness just seems to be far down the priority list. Tinnitus is even lower. No one seems to care. It’s not commercial or important enough to merit funding.”
Over the years, Geoffrey has come up with his own methods through trial and error to help him deal with this life-long symptom. Driving and tiredness worsen the tinnitus, while a good night’s sleep and a stress-free lifestyle improve it. “I don’t actively avoid going out, but I don’t enjoy going to pubs or restaurants anymore. I just can’t take loud noises any longer,” he explains.
Keeping busy is the key. “It’s difficult at first, when you realise you have to live with this symptom. How do I deal with it? I try not to think about it all the time and I keep active with other things. That is my only solace,” adds Geoffrey.
The UK-based charity Action for Tinnitus Research focuses on funding medical and scientific research in pursuit of a cure and raising awareness is a key part of its work. Operations director Nick Doughty said: “Not enough information is available about the very complex symptom and we are one of the few organisations determined to do something about it. We are committed to funding leading edge research and providing practical information to health professionals for the benefit of sufferers,” he added.
For more information on Action for Tinnitus Research, logon to the website at
www.tinnitus-research.org
Geoffrey was a member of a band in his younger days. He then moved on to career in construction. Added to the daily noises his ears were subjected to was the humming of air conditioners, a result of often working abroad in hot countries. Sometime in 1997, he realised in a quiet moment that the ringing in his ears refused to stop. “I knew it was tinnitus. I had a terrible sense of foreboding. I met a man many years ago who told me of his similar problem. I had felt truly sorry for him. Imagine always having sounds in your head that you can’t do anything about,” recalls Geoffrey.
Visits to the doctor led to several tests, which confirmed his worst suspicions. He was prescribed hearing aids a couple of years ago, but that only made matters worse. “It just made other sounds louder. Even my voice echoed in my head. So I took them off,” says Geoffrey.
An appalling lack of interest and concern for hearing impairments had meant little or no research into this field, which has left sufferers largely coping with it themselves, he laments. “It’s not like losing an arm or having your eye out. Blindness is an important condition, but deafness just seems to be far down the priority list. Tinnitus is even lower. No one seems to care. It’s not commercial or important enough to merit funding.”
Over the years, Geoffrey has come up with his own methods through trial and error to help him deal with this life-long symptom. Driving and tiredness worsen the tinnitus, while a good night’s sleep and a stress-free lifestyle improve it. “I don’t actively avoid going out, but I don’t enjoy going to pubs or restaurants anymore. I just can’t take loud noises any longer,” he explains.
Keeping busy is the key. “It’s difficult at first, when you realise you have to live with this symptom. How do I deal with it? I try not to think about it all the time and I keep active with other things. That is my only solace,” adds Geoffrey.
The UK-based charity Action for Tinnitus Research focuses on funding medical and scientific research in pursuit of a cure and raising awareness is a key part of its work. Operations director Nick Doughty said: “Not enough information is available about the very complex symptom and we are one of the few organisations determined to do something about it. We are committed to funding leading edge research and providing practical information to health professionals for the benefit of sufferers,” he added.
For more information on Action for Tinnitus Research, logon to the website at
www.tinnitus-research.org
Email
Print
SPAM
LEAVE A COMMENT
