After that day, I went on a mission. Called every specialist I could find:
Lipo-Flavonoid supplements for 6 months straight — $340. The ringing didn't move.
Ginkgo biloba, zinc, magnesium, B12 — every pill the internet recommended — $280. Nothing.
The VA gave me hearing aids. They amplified everything INCLUDING the ringing. I returned them after a month.
Sound therapy apps. A white noise pillow. A $400 "sound enrichment" program. All they did was pile more noise on top of the noise I was already drowning in.
Acupuncture — 8 sessions at $85 each. Temporary distraction, zero lasting relief.
A cognitive behavioral therapist who told me to "change my relationship with the sound." $150 per session. The ringing didn't care about my relationship with it.
Total spent: north of $5,000 on a military pension.
Total relief: ZERO.
And every single doctor, every specialist, every audiologist at the VA — they all said the same five words:
"You'll just have to learn to live with it."
As a retired sergeant who did 24 years, I know how to endure. But nobody should have to endure a sound that doesn't exist for the rest of their life.