The actual issue with chronic tinnitus is not just that you have a ringing in your ears. The real problem is that the ringing won’t stop.
The constant noise, possibly somewhat modest in volume, might begin as little more than an annoyance. But after a day or a week or a month, that ringing or buzzing can become aggravating, frustrating, even debilitating.
That’s why it’s crucial that if you are living with tinnitus you adhere to some tips to make life easier. When you’re lying in bed, having difficulty falling asleep because you keep hearing buzzing from your right ear, having a plan is going to help you a lot.
How You Can Worsen Your Tinnitus
It’s important to keep in mind that tinnitus is frequently not static. Symptoms manifest themselves in spikes and valleys. At times, your tinnitus may be an afterthought, hidden in the background of daily life. At other times the sounds will be screeching in your ears so loudly it’s impossible to dismiss.
That can leave you in a rather frightening place of uncertainty. You may be so concerned about your tinnitus flaring up while you’re in a meeting that you get a panic attack while you’re driving to work. And the very panic attack brought on by this worry can itself cause the tinnitus.
Tips For Coping With Tinnitus
You will be in a better position to prepare for and manage tinnitus the more you know about it. And management is critical since tinnitus has no known cure. With the appropriate management, there’s no reason that chronic tinnitus needs to negatively affect your quality of life.
Think About Tinnitus Retraining Therapy
Tinnitus retraining therapy (TRT) is a common strategy for tinnitus management. The analogy that gets floated around most often is the sound of rain on your roof: very obvious at the beginning of a storm, but you stop paying attention to it after a while and that rain-on-rooftops sound fades into the background. TRT uses the same concept to teach your brain to push the tinnitus symptoms into the background of your thoughts so you will have an easier time ignoring them.
It can take practice to master this method.
Get Your Brain Distracted
Your brain is continuously searching for the source of the sound and that’s one of the reasons why tinnitus can be so aggravating. So supplying your brain with more (and varied) stimulation to focus on can help. You could:
- Enjoy some time outdoors listening to the sounds of nature.
- Do some drawing or painting while playing music.
- Read a book while soaking in a bubble bath.
You get the point: Your tinnitus may be able to be decreased by engaging your brain.
Meditation, as an alternate path, helps you concentrate your attention on a mantra, or your breathing which helps take your focus away from your tinnitus. Some individuals have found that meditation decreases their blood pressure, which can also help with tinnitus.
Think about a Hearing Aid For Tinnitus Management
Numerous hearing aid companies have manufactured hearing aids that help minimize the ringing in your ear. This solution is really convenient because they are small and out of your way compared to other strategies. You can relax and let a discreet hearing aid deal with the ringing for you.
Have a Plan (And Follow-Through)
Making a plan for unexpected surges can help you handle your stress-out reaction, and that can help you minimize certain tinnitus episodes (or at least keep from worsening them). Pack a bag of useful items to take with you. Anything that can help you be ready for a tinnitus surge, even creating a list of useful exercises will be good because it will keep you from having a panic attack!
Management is Key
There’s no cure for tinnitus which is usually chronic. But that doesn’t mean that individuals cannot manage and treat their tinnitus. These everyday tips (and more like them) can help make certain you are living with tinnitus, and not suffering from tinnitus.
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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
