How Is Tinnitus Treated?

Tinnitus is a very common symptom of an underlying condition that affects millions of people, but there is currently no cure for it, only treatments. If that makes you feel despondent, don’t worry, many of the treatment options are highly effective in reducing the symptoms as well as your general tinnitus stress.

Hearing Aids

Hearing aids are one of the best ways to combat the underlying cause of tinnitus – which is usually hearing loss. When you don’t have hearing loss, your brain has a pattern for processing sounds, but this can disappear when we start to get older and the auditory system slows down.

Age-related hearing loss can cause tinnitus because of the loss of cilia hairs in the inner ear; this changes the auditory patterns of the brain. Using a hearing aid, you can reestablish previous auditory patterns and help your brain to find new ways of processing auditory sounds.

Sound Masking Devices

Currently, there is no cure for tinnitus, there are only treatments, but there are some very effective treatments, like sound masking devices. Sound masking devices use white noise, pink noise, nature sounds, music and ambient sounds to drown out the irritating sound of tinnitus.

A sound masking device can be internal or external; it can look like a hearing aid or an external speaker. These devices can be set at a level that is slightly higher than the sound of tinnitus, drowning it out and improving your life quality. It is an easy and fast solution to the symptoms.

Sound Machines

Sound machines work in much the same way as sound masking devices; the main difference is that sound machines are only worn occasionally. Sound machines are tailored to fit the user and can train the brain to remove the attention given to the symptoms for long-term health benefits.

Using a sound machine intermittently can reduce the irritations caused by tinnitus; research has found that sound machines are often more effective at treating tinnitus than white noise or sound masking, and they give your brain a chance to reprogram the way it processes audio.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) Therapy

Since tinnitus cannot be cured, it needs to be treated, but the only way to do this is to mask it. Another method is to use the creativity of the mind to process thoughts in a creative way; CBT is one of those methods. CBT therapy trains an individual to use change the focus of attention.

Working with a therapist once or twice a week, some with tinnitus can identify negative thought patterns and resolve them with some creative strategies. CBT was developed to treat psychological issues, but it has proved to be quite effective in treating many tinnitus symptoms.

Tinnitus Management

One of the most common demographics to experience tinnitus is those in the armed forces. People working with ammunition and loud explosives regularly develop tinnitus more frequently. For this reason, progressive tinnitus management was developed in the United States.

Progressive tinnitus management takes a similar approach to cognitive behavioral therapy in that it involves working closely with a therapist to overcome the symptoms of tinnitus psychologically. The program involves clinical work and practice to create better responses.

Anti-Anxiety Medications

Sometimes tinnitus treatment requires a combination of approaches to resolve the symptoms. A medical professional might advise some cognitive behavioral therapy in combination with anti-anxiety medication. Anti-anxiety drugs are helpful in reducing tinnitus stress and irritation.

If you are distressed because of tinnitus, it can make the condition ten times worse, but anti-anxiety medication takes your mind off the background noise and helps you to sleep better at night. The tinnitus sounds might not disappear, but you will have a more relaxed attitude.

Anti-Depressants

Anti-depressants are in the same category of medication as anti-anxiety drugs, but they work differently to relieve the symptoms of tinnitus. Anti-anxiety drugs reduce the stress around tinnitus and improve life quality, but antidepressants can reduce the effect of the tinnitus sound.

The brain uses neurotransmitters to transport sounds from the brain to the rest of the body; unlike anti-anxiety medication, anti-depressants increase the levels of serotonin which affects the neurotransmitters and resolves the effects of tinnitus in a surprising number of cases.

If you notice tinnitus symptoms and they distress you, it’s time to contact an ear, nose and throat (ENT) doctor and think about some treatment options. There is no cure for tinnitus, but the ideas in the article can help. Contact Mountain Ear, Nose and Throat Associates at Sylva: 828-586-7474, Franklin: 828-524-5599, Murphy: 828-835-1014 and New Asheville: 828-458-8100