I have tinnitus from years of loud music and unprotected shooting. I deal with it but it can be annoying, debilitating in bad cases.
I always use protection when shooting. When bird hunting I try to keep at least one foam plug in my forward facing ear (RH shooter, left ear faces forward). I'm not a snap shooter on big game, I keep a plug handy (usually in my mouth) and have time to put it in before taking a shot.
My audiologist says my hearing has not gotten worse since I started this but the tinnitus varies.
