The Tinnitus Prison

It is common for the brain to concentrate on negatives in a person's life and cause the person to view their particular problem, or situation, in unrealistic or exaggerated circumstances. The bigger the negative or perceived problem, the more the mind focuses on the problem.

This increased focus can cause mental and physical problems, resulting in further isolation from friends, family and society. When this happens, your life has no enjoyment or fun and every minute of your existence revolves around your tinnitus. Thus you are confined and isolated in your tinnitus prison.

This not only affects you, it can affect everyone you care about and have contact with, as they suffer the results of your depression and your withdrawal from life. Inevitably you end up in a downward spiral where your tinnitus and self-imposed isolation builds a self-imposed 'brick wall' around you as impenetrable as any prison wall.

You must break out of this 'tinnitus prison' and start 'living life'.

To do this take planning: planning to enjoy yourself, planning to start living life, planning for the future - by building ladders of positive expectations to scale the walls of the prison you are in.

This can be in the form of a day-to-day plan to visit friends, go for a walk, etc., or it can take a more structured and long-term form.

You can plan in a formal way, and there are many personal planning documents available on the Internet that will help you do this, or your plan can be a simple written list detailing what you would like to achieve over the next week, month, or year. The level of planning is up to you, whether it is highly structured or very informal, as long as you work towards achieving your objectives, all types of planning documents are equally beneficial.

Remember: you are in control of your life. If you decide that you want more out of your life, you can have it. You only need to decide what you want and work towards it.

The planning process is about assessing the past, determining future objectives and identifying the intermediate steps necessary to reach those objectives with realistic time frames.

Remember that your objectives should be SMART: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Rewarding and Timely.

When you have gone over your Personal Planning Document and it is as good as you can make it, put it where you will see it each day, and review it and watch your progress towards the objectives each month.

Be pro-active, take charge of your own destiny. Nobody can or will do it for you: you must do it yourself.

By Ian Peterson, Vice-President of the Tinnitus Association Victoria.

Article reprinted with permission.