First of all please know there are 100s of 1000s of people who experience loud tinnitus that severely affects their life in numerous ways, every day all day and night. I am 77 years old and I have had this condition for a great many years, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. I am still young enough to hope that a cure or at least a treatment will be discovered before I die. Might it be possible? I sincerely hope so. In the meantime I have developed some coping mechanisms that help some times. I have a few very good tinnitus masking sounds by Petroff technology. I am not sure if they are still in business but their sounds helped me and I succeeded in putting them on a Sony Walkman which I take to bed with me every night. I have other pleasant nature sounds that I use during the day that does not mask, but tends to distract from the tinnitus. I consider my tinnitus as LOUD, and also multifaceted in that I hear many sounds, some of them at the same time. Some are easier to mask than others. One of the hardest sounds for me is in the low range. It sounds like a tractor trailer idling next to me. I have not fond a sound to mask this particular one unfortunately. Another thing that helps me, I believe, is some medication prescribed for another condition that I have. This is pregabalin (max dose) along with 25 mg of amitriptyline and 10 mg of metoprolol (controls irregular heartbeat). There is no scientific evidence that these medications have any effect on tinnitus and I would not recommend them, I am not a medical person, I just feel that help me when my tinnitus gets worse.
One of the most aggravating things about tinnitus for me, personally, is that it gets louder when I physically move around or do activities involving bending over. Obviously it’s not possible to be inactive, nor is it good for overall health, so I try to pace myself. I plan what housework I will do in a given day rather than do everything at once. My husband helps with the housework which gives me more free time to engage in reading, listening to music and meditation (it’s worth taking a course if you have never done it), and yes, going to the gym. I try to do my thing, so to speak, and also do things with my husband that we enjoy. It’s not fair to burden him with my problems, he has a life to enjoy like anyone else and he has a wife who tries to participate as much as possible. He feels sorry for me, and respects the fact that I can’t always join him. Together we move forward as best we can. Stress and anxiety can make my tinnitus louder and more aggressive. It’s hard to control these things. Something that I am sure would help me is to have a cat or dog but since both my husband and I have asthma we cannot have a pet. In the end everybody with tinnitus has to find their own coping mechanisms. It’s a hard road to travel, dealing with this condition, not for the faint of heart. I hope that you are able to discover what coping mechanisms help you deal with tinnitus.