Treatments To Help You Cope With The Ringing In Your Ears

Your doctor has diagnosed that annoying ringing in your ears as tinnitus. In a few cases where the noise is caused by an illness or tumor in your middle ear, surgery can correct the problem. But the majority of cases have no cure and treatment is oriented around helping you cope with the sound. Here are some of the treatments your doctor may recommend to help you live with tinnitus.

Noise Suppression

Devices are available that produce sounds that compete with the ringing. This helps your auditory sense to ignore the ringing and focus on other sounds. These are helpful when sleeping, concentrating on work or home projects, and when having a conversation with someone.

White Noise Machines - These produce a variety of sounds, from a waterfall to an oscillating fan. You can experiment with the different sounds until you find one that helps you relax and ignore the tinnitus. Some machines use recordings of actual sounds while others are digital.

Noise Masking Devices - This is a type of hearing aid that produces white noise at a frequency that matches the ringing in your ears. They also amplify the frequencies used during normal conversations. The white noise combines with the ringing and over time, your brain filters the two sounds out so you can focus on people and other sounds around you. An audiologist can show you the different hearing aid brands that include noise masking technology. They will also adjust the device to match the frequency of the tinnitus.

Hearing Retraining Devices - Similar to the noise masking hearing aids, these produce musical tones that match the frequency of the ringing sound. Eventually, your mind will tune out the music so you can hear other sounds clearer. Some people respond better to the tones than to the white noise of the masking devices.

Coping Therapies

You may feel a variety of emotions with the tinnitus. Stress, frustration and anger can occur when you're focused on the ringing and can't switch your mind to other thoughts. Your doctor may recommend one or more of the following coping techniques to help prevent those feelings.

Relaxation Therapy and Biofeedback - These techniques teach you to monitor your current emotional state and give you tools to calm down any frustration or anxiety. You may initially participate in a group, but will soon learn how to do these relaxation techniques wherever you may need them.

Mindfulness Meditation - This is a type of meditation that teaches you to disassociate yourself from the tinnitus and your anxious feelings. Once you can freely disassociate yourself from the frustrated feelings, you'll be less affected by the ringing in your ears.

Hypnosis - With this technique, the practitioner will help your mind focus on other thoughts rather than the ringing. You will also learn self-hypnosis so you can shift your thoughts while at work or relaxing at home. To find out more, speak with someone like Audiology Consultants, P.C.