I'm not entirely sure I didn't have tinnitus before, just that it was usually so quiet I didn't notice (I did have brief moments where I had the same ringing I

I'm not entirely sure I didn't have tinnitus before, just that it was usually so quiet I didn't notice (I did have brief moments where I had the same ringing I had as I do now, it just only lasted like 20 seconds and then I couldn't hear it again). And I think I remember a few times in the past that I noticed a very, very mild ringing when I was concentrating hard trying to hear it, but maybe that's a false memory I'm inserting after the fact that I know I've got it now? I don't know. But in mid 2019 I started noticing that it was loud enough and persistent enough I couldn't ignore it easily anymore (I can for periods of time, but I have to actively distract myself now, whereas before I didn't need to).