Tinnitus treatment. Check what to do when you hear ringing in the ears

What is tinnitus?

A sudden ringing in the ears can be startling. And if it does not disappear, it can be confusing and sometimes even life changing. Tinnitus is not a condition, but rather a symptom which can result from many causes.

The tinnitus people experience, which they can only hear, is different for everyone. For some people, it is a ringing in the ears, but for others it may be a buzzing, a whistling, even a hissing, a roar, a cicada whine, a chirping or a squeal. It may appear in one ear, or both.

Sometimes it goes away; say, in the first few days after a loud concert. Sometimes it does not. And many people live with tinnitus until it becomes too severe to handle. Some live with it for upwards of a decade, slowly reshaping their daily life around a sound which won’t go away.

Tinnitus is more common than you might think – as many as 1 in 5 Americans are affected –and it can take many forms.

There are at least four types of tinnitus.

• Acute tinnitus: This type is sudden and almost inexplicable. It is like a storm of noise, which blows through and passes. It may come and go. Generally, it lasts less than three months, and it is often treatable. 
• Chronic tinnitus: As the name suggests, it is long-term. The condition worsens and steadily becomes a central part of your life. Generally, if it lasts longer than three months, it is considered chronic.
• Subjective tinnitus: According to the American Tinnitus Association, this is head or ear noise that is perceivable only to the specific patient. It usually results from auditory and neurological reactions to hearing loss – though many things can cause it. More than 99% of tinnitus cases are subjective.
  
• Objective Tinnitus: This includes head or ear noises that are audible to other people. Your circulatory system (blood flow) and somatic movements (musculo-skeletal) produce the sounds. It is very rare; less than 1% of all cases generally. One example is the sound of a heartbeat powerful enough to reach the ear. (This is known as pulsatile tinnitus).
  

Common tinnitus questions

Helping you better understand your affliction

Tinnitus treatment steps

A first visit to a tinnitus hearing care professional

In your first appointment with a hearing care professional, you can certainly expect a hearing test, as an initial step in tinnitus treatment. You might be surprised to find out that you could have a hearing loss. People who suffer from tinnitus usually have some degree of hearing loss, but it’s often very mild and barely noticeable.

From there, the steps provided to manage tinnitus may vary. Tinnitus has many forms and many causes, so there is not one standard procedure for diagnosis.

You will likely receive a questionnaire, followed by a tinnitus analysis. Any medications you take regularly may also affect tinnitus, so it is important to tell your hearing care provider what medications you are currently taking.

All this information will give the hearing care professional a better understanding of your social, mental and physical state. They will then explain the results of the tests to you.

Next you will learn what tools and technology are available to help you.

Like a star in the daytime

Sound therapy & background noise blending

How can hearing aids be a solution to help with tinnitus?

The best way to overcome tinnitus is to shrink the ratio between the sounds you don’t want to hear, and the sounds you do want to hear.

To use an analogy: a brilliant star set against a dark background shines brightest. It is impossible to ignore. But the same star dropped into the light of a noon sky is quickly lost; it disappears into the glare.

This analogy is the core principle of sound therapy, a common element of tinnitus treatment. Effectively, by providing sounds tailored for tinnitus, the ringing in your ears can be ‘washed’ away.

When embraced long-term, sound therapy teaches your brain to reclassify what it hears.

Thus tinnitus, which once held center stage, is then pushed out into the audience where it disappears; as an unimportant, unnoticed sound in the background.

Once you understand your available options and decide what course is best for you, you and your loved ones – together with your hearing care professional – can begin treating your tinnitus.