Susanna Reid admits her incurable illness has been triggered live on GMB

07 February 2024 , 09:05

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Susanna Reid admits her incurable illness has been triggered live on GMB

Susanna Reid revealed her tinnitus had been triggered live on Wednesday's Good Morning Britain.

The ITV presenter was discussing her condition with co-host Richard Madeley and reality TV star Jamie Laing, who joined the show to open up on his own tinnitus diagnosis. Jamie recently spoke out on his condition in a bid to raise awareness about the incurable illness.

At the beginning of the interview, GMB played a ringing sound to mimic what tinnitus sufferers hear for those viewers who don't have the illness. Jamie revealed he was left incredibly anxious when he first realised he had the condition and admitting fearing he'd "never sleep or hear again".

Susanna revealed she has been suffering from the condition for 20 years and manages it by making a conscious effort to "tune it out". Richard then asked his co-host if she suffered from anxiety when she first suffered from the condition.

Susanna shared her experience with Jamie, who also suffers with tinnitus (ITV)

"No I didn't because I went very quickly to the doctor who said there is no cure but you can talk yourself out of it. Now I know that doesn't apply to everybody," Susanna replied. "It's really interesting, the ringing sound we rang just now has triggered it in my ears so now I can hear it again because you have to make a conscious effort to tune it out. Reminding myself of it [has triggered it] but it's fine, I'm just not going to worry about it, I will just end up tuning it out again."

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Susanna went on to tell viewers to seek help if they experience symptoms and to not be afraid of the incurable condition. "It's really important to get across that although there's no cure, there are numerous therapies so please if it something you are experiencing, don't think there's no point in seeing a doctor."

The ITV presenter was diagnosed with tinnitus in 2004 after the birth of her second son Finn. People with tinnitus may hear a buzzing or ringing in one or both their ears, or sometimes in their heads. The sounds can come and go or they might stay with the person all the time.

Susanna previously revealed on GMB that she believes the birth of her second son triggered the condition. She said: “When I first started hearing it, which was probably about ten years ago, I became quite distressed that I would never hear silence again."

In 2018, the presenter shared an insight into her incurable condition on X, formerly known as Twitter. She wrote: "My tinnitus is so loud right now. The noise you used to hear when TV programming finished at the end of the day? That. In my head."

Charlotte McIntyre