LIFE-CHANGING
Strictly legend Jamie Laing reveals devastating eight year health battle that left him screaming and in tears
Jamie was overwhelmed by the condition while filming a big reality TV show
JAMIE Laing has revealed a devastating eight year long health battle that has reduced him to tears and stopped him sleeping.
The Strictly Come Dancing and Made In Chelsea star, 35, is always energetic and upbeat on TV, but behind the scenes he's been dealing with a debilitating condition.
3
3
Jamie has opened up about living with tinnitus, admitting there are times when he wants to "rip his ears off", and the impact it has had on his everyday life.
In an Instagram video to raise awareness and money for the Royal National Institute for Deaf People, Jamie said: "I have't heard silence for eight years. The very first time I ever heard tinnitus, I woke up one morning and I got out of bed, and I could hear this ringing noise. This whooshing, ringing noise and I was thinking, looking around, thinking where the hell is this noise coming from.
"Then it suddenly dawned on me that it was inside my own mind, inside my head. That for anyone who has ever experienced tinnitus is a really scary moment."
An audiologist diagnosed him with the condition, which is effectively a constant noise caused from inside the body, leaving Jamie in disbelief.
READ MORE ON JAMIE LAING
The NHS says the condition isn't usually a sign of anything more serious and can get better on its own.
Feraz Ashraf, audiologist, explains: “When we hear sounds, the sound waves enter our ears and travel through the ear canals to the brain. With tinnitus, the sound is generated near the limbic system in the brain. This is the part of the brain which supports a number of our daily functions, such as our emotions, behaviour, long-term memory and sense of smell.
“In some cases, we don’t know the cause and it can occur without much prior warning. For others, it is triggered by an existing hearing condition like Meniere’s Disease, an earwax build up or an ear infection. Prolonged exposure to loud noises or listening to music at a really high volume can also lead to tinnitus."
Jamie believes his condition was caused from his time spent in loud nightclubs in his 20s combined with his anxiety.
Most read in News TV
"You cannot imagine how debilitating it is," he continued.
"So you think you're never going to sleep again. You think you're never going to hear anything again apart from this ringing and that's a pretty scary place to be."
Strictly Come Dancing star leaves fans devastated as he quits hit show after seven years
He said: "So my tinnitus sounds like a dog whistle but with a whooshing noise surrounding it as well.
"It takes me a lot to cry and I was shooting a television show called Hunted and in it my tinnitus was so bad. People were asking me questions and I couldn't hear what they were saying because the ringing was just so overbearing.
"You're always so scared that tinnitus is suddenly going to take over and your whole mind, all you're going to hear is ringing for the rest of your life and you won't hear anything else.
"And it was so loud, I was like, well this is the moment. This is the moment where tinnitus is going to take over. You want to scream. You want to literally rip your ears off."
Jamie is not alone with an estimated one in seven people suffering from some form of tinnitus.
New research at Newcastle University, funded by the Royal National Institute for Deaf People, hopes to analyse the brain and its relationship with the condition.
Keep up to date with the latest news, gossip and scandals on our celebrity live blog
3
Topics