With chronic tinnitus, it’s not the ringing in your ears that’s the actual issue. The real problem is that the ringing won’t stop.
The continuous noise, perhaps rather modest in volume, might begin as little more than an annoyance. But after a day or a week or a month, that buzzing or ringing can become irritating, frustrating, even debilitating.
That’s why it’s essential to have some tips to fall back on, tips that make living with tinnitus less difficult. It can make a big difference if you have a plan when you’re lying in bed unable to fall asleep because of the buzzing or ringing in your ear.
How You Can Worsen Your Tinnitus
It’s important to remember that tinnitus is commonly not static. Symptoms manifest themselves in spikes and valleys. At times, your tinnitus might be an afterthought, hidden in the background of everyday life. In other moments, that ringing could be as hard to ignore as a full-blown, personalized symphony.
This can be a very uncertain and scary situation. You might be so concerned about your tinnitus flaring up during a meeting that you have a panic attack while you’re driving to work. And the very panic attack caused by this worry can itself trigger the tinnitus.
Tips For Living With Tinnitus
The more you know about tinnitus, the better you can prepare for and control the effects. And management is the key since tinnitus doesn’t have a known cure. With the proper management, there’s no reason that chronic tinnitus needs to negatively affect your quality of life.
Tinnitus Retraining Therapy is One Approach
Tinnitus retraining therapy (TRT) is a common strategy for tinnitus management. The sound of rain on a roof is a common analogy: very obvious at the beginning of a storm, but you stop focusing on it after a while and that rain-on-rooftops sound fades into the background. It’s the same basic idea with TRT, training your brain to move that ringing into the background of your thoughts where it’s easier to dismiss.
It can take training to master this method.
Get Your Brain Distracted
One reason tinnitus can be so frustrating is because your brain is constantly looking for the source of that noise, trying to signal you to its presence. So supplying your brain with a variety of different sounds to concentrate on can be really helpful. You could:
- Enjoy a book while taking a bubble bath.
- Enjoy some time outdoors listening to the sounds of nature.
- Do some drawing or painting while playing music.
You get the gist: Your tinnitus might be able to be decreased by engaging your brain.
Meditation, as an alternate approach, helps you concentrate your attention on a mantra, or your breathing which helps take your focus away from your tinnitus. Another benefit of meditation, at least for some people, is that it can lower blood pressure which is a common cause of tinnitus symptoms.
Manage Tinnitus With a Hearing Aid
Numerous hearing aid companies have developed hearing aids that help decrease the ringing in your ear. Hearing aids are a great solution because you put them in and can forget about it the whole day, you don’t need to carry around a white noise generator or constantly listen to an app. The ringing will be managed by the hearing aid and you can relax and enjoy your life.
Have a Plan (And Stick to it)
The effect of some tinnitus episodes can be lessened, and your stress reaction can be managed if you have a good plan for any surges in your symptoms. Pack a bag of practical items to bring with you. Anything that can help you be prepared for a tinnitus surge, even making a list of useful exercises will be beneficial because it will keep you from having a panic attack!
Management is Key
Chronic tinnitus is an affliction that has no known cure. But that doesn’t mean that individuals can’t manage and treat their tinnitus. Make certain you are managing your tinnitus not suffering from it by utilizing these tips and any others that you find helpful.
References
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3303565/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5050200/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17956798/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4447068/
https://journals.plos.org/ploscompbiol/article?id=10.1371/journal.pcbi.1008664