It sounds like you have found a way to cope with multiple stressors. I never knew people listen to masking at night. I have a masker option with my hearing aids but of course take them out before I sleep. The best thing I learned about using a masker is it should not be louder than the tinnitus. The masker is actually a backedrop to the tinnitus. Because as your story tells me; tinnitus is in the brain, not in the ears. You write "all assaults all add up to a symptom that I will need to control and not eliminate in my lifetime...."

The psychological aspect of that experience is profound. If you find a supportive audiologist that is half the battle. I live with 4 autoimmune illnesses and all of it I cope with knowing they are going to last for a lifetime. We find what joy we can find in each day. I am also a former RN (poet, yogi, baseball fan)!