How to treat tinnitus

 

Tinnitus treatment options

1. Hearing aids
2. Sound therapy
3. Tinnitus retraining therapy (TRT)
4. Habituation
5. Cognitive behavioural therapy

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Although there is no cure or approved medication for tinnitus, there are many treatment options that can help you manage the ringing in your ears.

If the ringing in your ears lasts at least five minutes and occurs more than once a week, you may have tinnitus.

If the sound comes and goes, you may have temporary tinnitus. Most likely no treatment is needed.

However, if your tinnitus does not go away, speak to a tinnitus specialist near you. Your clinician can provide a tinnitus assessment and recommend the best treatment.

 

Hearing aids

Tinnitus is common, and often connected to hearing loss and noise exposure. If you have tinnitus and hearing loss, a hearing aid could treat both your conditions.

Some people report they experience tinnitus more frequently when listening in a challenging environment. By reducing listening effort, your perception of ringing noises can be reduced. Hearing aids reduce your effort to hear, so you spend less time focusing on the act of listening.

Some hearing aids also have built-in sound therapy. The sound therapy uses a “masking” effect. It hides the ringing in your ear, allowing your brain to concentrate on hearing other real sounds.
 
With hearing aids, changes in your perception of tinnitus won't occur overnight. The goal with properly-fit hearing aids is long-term adaptation.

Initially, you may feel like your tinnitus is less loud. Long-term hearing aid use, paired with appropriate auditory counselling, may eventually reduce tinnitus. If hearing loss is severe, cochlear implants are an option, too.

 

Tinnitus sound therapy

You can use sounds like crashing ocean waves, falling rain and instrumental music for sound therapy. Even white noise like the sound of a fan or running water can provide tinnitus relief.

Sound therapy apps

Sound therapy apps can help you target the frequency of your tinnitus and mask it with a soothing sound. These apps may reduce tinnitus loudness and make it feel less intrusive. Some options include:

• Tinnitus Aid: ringing relief for iPhone 
• Tinnitus relief. Sound therapy for Android

 

Tinnitus retraining therapy

Tinnitus retraining therapy (TRT) uses a strict framework of sound therapy and counselling to treat tinnitus. More studies are needed to prove its effectiveness. Speak to your hearing professional to learn more about this option.

 

Tinnitus habituation

Tinnitus habituation is a treatment focused on mental health in which you learn to get used to the sound. It addresses the anxiety and fear cycle that worsens tinnitus. With it, you learn how to deal with tinnitus spikes and other stressors.

Meditation can be a useful tool to "habituate." With practice, the brain forgets about the sound, so it is less distracting and intrusive. 

 

Cognitive behavioural therapy 

Cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) is conducted by a mental health therapist or psychologist. CBT focuses on reducing your negative reactions to tinnitus.Through a series of appointments, a trained professional attempts to reduce tinnitus-related stress and anxiety.

More studies are needed to prove the effectiveness of CBT as a tinnitus treatment. For many people, a combination of sound therapy and counselling are most helpful.

Signs that tinnitus is going away

In addition to the sound going away or becoming less noticeable, signs that your tinnitus may be going away include quality of improvement markers, like these:

• A reduction in emotional distress
• An improvement in concentration
• An increased sense of control
• Improved sleep

Tinnitus is linked to a decline in mental well being and sleep deprivation. An improvement in one or more of these areas could be a sign that your tinnitus is gone or more manageable.

Tips to reduce your risk of tinnitus

If you have tinnitus, you likely have another issue to address. This is because tinnitus is a symptom. It is not considered a disease on its own. For example, if your ears are ringing when you are sick with the flu, the ringing will likely go away once you recover from the flu.

Here are some ways you can reduce your risk based on what the underlying issue could be.

Limit noise exposure

The biggest culprit is noise. A loud concert, a table saw, a gunshot blast – these can lead to tinnitus and noise-induced hearing loss. Excessive noise can damage the hair cells of the inner ear that detect sound waves. This malfunction of the inner ear can cause tinnitus.

Use hearing protection, like ear plugs or ear muffs, to protect your hearing. Also, try to limit your exposure to loud noises by choosing quieter appliances, minimizing the sound sources in your environment and avoiding loud sounds when you can.

Treat an underlying health condition

The following health conditions are linked to tinnitus. Your tinnitus may go away once they are treated:

• Meniere’s disease: An inner ear disorder that causes vertigo and tinnitus. It may also affect your balance.
• Acoustic neuroma: A benign brain tumour that develops on a nerve that’s responsible for hearing and balance
• Heart disease: Abnormal blood vessels, narrow and/or hardened arteries and other related issues may cause pulsatile tinnitus, which is tinnitus that pulses.
• Ototoxic drugs: High blood pressure medications, some pain relievers and some diuretics and diabetes drugs can cause hearing loss.

This is not an exhaustive list. Your tinnitus specialist can help you identify which health condition may be causing your tinnitus and provide the appropriate solution.

Exercise

Exercise can reduce stress-related tinnitus. Try an exercise that incorporates relaxation and meditative breathing, like yoga, walking or tai chi.

Regular exercise can also lower blood pressure, a condition that can worsen tinnitus.

Healthy eating habits

Foods rich in B vitamins, carotenoids, omega-3 fatty acids, zinc, and magnesium may help reduce tinnitus. If you have a deficiency in these vitamins and minerals, increasing your intake through supplements or different foods can be helpful.

A Mediterranean diet incorporates a lot of fruits and vegetables, beans, lentils, nuts, extra virgin olive oil and fish. These foods provide much of the vitamins and minerals listed above.

There are many different factors that can influence which tinnitus treatment you choose and which will ultimately be the best one for you. 

^Sources:

^{Healthy Hearing. Vitamins, minerals and supplements for hearing problems.}

^{Healthy Hearing. Does diet affect tinnitus?}

^{Frontiers in Neurology. Unilateral cochlear implantation reduces tinnitus loudness in bimodal hearing: a prospective study}