Hearing the ring or buzz of tinnitus while you’re trying to sleep, work, study or enjoy dinner with friends at the Thai Hut can significantly diminish your enjoyment of those activities. Tinnitus affects more than 50 million people in the United States. When tinnitus is severe, it can lead to stress, lack of sleep, irritability, anxiety and more. Finding ways to manage your tinnitus is key to improving your quality of life.
Why Does Tinnitus Arise?
Tinnitus is usually caused by underlying conditions like hearing loss, ear infections or head and neck injuries. In some cases, it is the result of taking ototoxic medications (medication that causes damage to the hearing mechanisms of the ear).
Treating the underlying cause or avoiding ototoxic medications can sometimes help manage tinnitus. However, some underlying causes, like hearing loss or Ménière’s disease, may not be able to be cured, and there are instances where ototoxic medications are unavoidable (such as when treating cancer). When this is the case, using the tools you have available to manage your tinnitus symptoms is an excellent way to improve your quality of life.
Tinnitus Management Tools and Techniques
A few effective tools and techniques for tinnitus management include:
- Hearing aids. Hearing aids amplify external sounds or play white noise to distract your brain from the internal ringing of tinnitus. If you already wear hearing aids for hearing loss, speak with your audiologist about how your devices can help you manage tinnitus.
- Sound machine. Sound machines play white or pink noise, nature sounds and more to help drown out the internal ringing. They are a great option to use while you sleep when you cannot wear your hearing aids. You can choose either a generic sound machine or a tinnitus-specific machine to try sound masking.
- Relaxation. Tinnitus causes stress. Unfortunately, stress can also trigger tinnitus, creating an unfortunately vicious cycle. Finding ways to relax is a crucial tinnitus management technique. Try taking a meditation class, drinking a cup of herbal tea or reading a book to promote a relaxed mindset.
- Therapy. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) are great tinnitus management tools. Both therapies focus on changing how you react to tinnitus’s internal ringing. Rather than causing stress and irritability, successful therapy will teach your brain to ignore the sounds.
To learn more about managing your tinnitus for improved quality of life, contact Audiology Associates of Redding today to make an appointment with one of our specialists.