Welcome to The Buzz
A space for real stories, honest reflections, and small victories from life with tinnitus and hearing loss.
Here you’ll find comfort, perspective, and maybe even a laugh or two as we learn to live a little more peacefully with that damn noise.
The Power of Acceptance
By Marie
When I first heard that word acceptance, I thought it meant giving up.
Like I was just supposed to “live with it” and pretend the ringing didn’t bother me.
I pictured myself holding my hands over my ears saying, “la, la, la, la, I’m not listening.”
Like children do when they make it obvious they’re not listening.
Oh, who am I kidding? I still do that!
Tinnitus: "Oh, hi. It's me! Again."
Me: "La, la, la. I'm not listening."
To be honest, I’m not someone who believes in all this self-improvement, manifestation, enlightenment stuff. It has its place, but I find the modern twist of it, Insta / YouTube self-proclaimed guru side of it rather intoxicating and a bit pretentious.
However, when you dive deeper into where these concept originally come from, they make far more sense. That subject deserves its own space on this site. So I won't be covering it here.
I’m a firm believer that if you feel sad, be sad. If you’re angry, be angry. As long as you don’t hurt anyone. We have these emotions for a reason, and suppressing them will only stress us out. Which, of course, makes us notice our tinnitus more.
Acceptance isn’t surrender. It’s strength.
It’s the moment you stop waiting for silence and start living again.
Why Acceptance Changes Everything
When you reach acceptance, you stop fighting your tinnitus. You stop chasing a cure or relying on outside tools to make things better.
You learn that the peace you’re looking for doesn’t come from the absence of sound.
It comes from the absence of struggle.
Acceptance means you always have the tools you need, wherever you are. You’re not dependent on background noise, earbuds, or apps. You don’t panic if the batteries die or the Wi-Fi drops out.
You are the constant. You are the cure.
Once you understand that, your relationship with tinnitus changes completely. The sound might still be there, but it loses its power. It loses control over you. It goes to the background. It becomes something your brain can file under not important right now.
Why External Tools Aren’t Enough
There’s nothing wrong with using white noise or gentle sounds to take the edge off — especially at the beginning, or at night to help you sleep. But when those things become your only lifeline, it’s easy to slip into a cycle of dependence.
It’s like learning to ride a bike but never taking off the stabilisers.
Helpful? Yes.
Freeing? Not really.
You’ll never build true balance until you trust your own abilities. External tools can support you, but they can’t free you. That part comes from within.
Acceptance Is the Strongest Base
Acceptance isn’t the end of your journey, it’s the foundation for your future with tinnitus.
Once you stop fighting the noise, you can start building other coping strategies on top of it: calm breathing, getting out in nature, enjoyable activities, laughter, connection and so on.
When you accept tinnitus as part of your environment, not your identity, you take your power back. You decide how much space it gets in your life.
And the beautiful thing is, acceptance grows stronger with practice. The more you lean into it, the more natural it feels.
Our brains are brilliant at adapting to familiarity. Think about learning a new language. At first, the sounds make no sense. It’s all noise. But over time, just by hearing it regularly, your brain starts to recognise patterns. It begins to understand what once felt foreign.
Acceptance works the same way. At first, it feels uncomfortable, even impossible. But the more you sit with it, the more familiar it becomes. Your brain learns that it’s safe to relax. It learns that you don’t have to react every time the ringing appears. That’s when real calm begins.
A Little Gift For You
If you’re finding acceptance hard, that’s okay. It’s a process, not a switch.
Some days it’ll feel easier; other days, you’ll need a little nudge.
That’s exactly why I created my Affirmation Cards for Calm Acceptance. 10 simple reminders you can keep with you when the noise feels too loud.
You can print them, cut them out, and keep one nearby for those wobbly moments.
They’re my small gift to help you practise self-kindness on the tougher days.
No sign-up required. Just click to download.
Closing Thoughts
Acceptance doesn’t mean loving tinnitus. It just means not letting it run the show.
You can still hope for quieter days. You can still use sound when you need it.
But at the heart of it all, you’ll know that you are in control.
The sound is still there, but it’s no longer in charge of your peace.
That’s the real victory, when you realise you hold the key to simply getting on with your life.
Take care,
Marie
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I do not offer medical advice. I am not a doctor or a medical professional.
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