Long time, no blog

I haven’t had much to say on here recently, as my post-MRI review is not until the 20th December. I think that is good news, and am assuming that they would have asked me to come in earlier if there were any major changes.

My tinnitus appears to be vaguely the same as it always has been, so I don;t have too many concerns there.  I’ve even been to a club (shock horror!) twice in the last month, and although my ear felt pretty horrible when I got home, it certainly hasn’t had any lasting effects. I know, I know, I probably should be avoiding loud 80s music, but I only go once in a blue moon.

Unhappily, I have also discovered that alcohol makes my tinnitus temporary worse! VERY much hoping that the consultant does not ban me from wine and dancing….

 

Well, enough about all that. Christmas is coming! Cannot WAIT 🙂 I love Christmas – it has always been a really big deal in my family, particularly as it is also my brother’s birthday. He has his birthday in the morning, whilst we kill ourselves trying not to open our Christmas presents, then we all celebrate Christmas after lunch.  Recently, I have been cooking most of the dinner – I don’t do a lot of cooking at home, but really enjoy the task of turkey with all the trimmings (e.g. bread sauce with extra bread sauce).

The other great thing about Christmas is being able to go home and celebrate with the family. Since my middle brother and I have moved away and set up homes ourselves, it is not often that we get to sit around a table together.

You may find it interesting to hear that none of my family know that I have an acoustic neuroma. I am not necessarily hiding it from them, but I remember how horrified I was when I first googled it, and have decided that it would perhaps be better for them to learn about it if/when I ever have to have something done about it.  It shouldn’t be something that scares them, but as soon as you hear ‘brain tumour’ you automatically imagine something bad. It will be important to explain that I have a sort of fake brain tumour named Pinky that is trying to con its way into existence… That pesky Pinky.

Well, dear readers, that’s a wrap, for now.

Win, lose or draw

Remember that tv programme that used to be on in the mornings, “Win, Lose or Draw”? Celebrities used to sit on a sofa and play Pictionary on a big flipboard, but the audience couldn’t even have a guess because the answer always popped up on the bottom of the screen. It reminded me of my little brother always desperate for me to watch him play computer games.
Anyway, just before the adverts, the presenter always did a “special” drawing for everyone to guess. He was left-handed so had to do a nifty little spin to get over to the other side of the board. This nifty move always got him great applause.
Well I have developed my own nifty little spin. You see, the AN means that I can’t hear as well in my left ear, but it’s particularly bad if I’m chatting whilst walking next to a busy road, as the background noise plays havoc on my poor 8th cranial nerve. The other person is loud enough, but somehow the words become garbled before they reach my brain and it can be tiring to discern what they are saying. This is most embarrassing if I’ve been nodding and making ‘hmmm-ing’ noises when they have actually been asking me a question.
It’s the same when I use the phone. I always thought that everyone must have a dominant ‘phone ear’ and was incredulous when I saw characters in movies switching ear willy-nilly. For me, using the phone with my left ear is like having a handy Klingon translation device – they might as well be speaking in a different language for all that I can make out.

So back to “Win, Lose or Draw”. As I said, I too have my own nifty little spin that I use when walking along, to make sure that whoever I am with is speaking into my right ear. So far I get more funny looks than actual applause – but it is a definite improvement on my owl impression.  Human necks just don’t swivel around that far… and there is a far greater risk of walking into lamp posts.

Ring a ling

Having a bit of tinnitus trouble today. I have to be careful talking about such things – the last time that I complained that my tinnitus had got worse, my loving boyfriend pointed out that what I could actually hear was the fridge buzzing…
Really now, not my fault that my brain makes the same noise! 🙂

So anyway, my headphones are replacing the buzzing with The Killers (some might suggest no difference) as I make my way to a pal’s house on the train.

I have to say, I’m pretty lucky that tinnitus is really my only symptom at the moment, and it’s not even that annoying – more of a quiet buzzing that occasionally changes in volume.

Sometimes I get a bit of a squelching noise, which is more… interesting to listen to, but happily only happens once every few weeks.

There does seem to be a correlation with stress levels. A tough day at work coupled with a noisy room can result in a really irritating squeal. But with my job, I would quite like to make that squeal myself sometimes!

In other news… My Comparethemeerkat Meerkat arrived today. Happy days!! (Perhaps the squeaking is him.)