Tinnitus Specialist

Managing Your Tinnitus Can Be Life Changing

Is the ringing, roaring, or buzzing in your ears driving you to distraction? Or worse, is tinnitus affecting your ability to function mentally and emotionally each day? 


For some, tinnitus is a mild bother. For others, it can be debilitating, impacting mental and emotional health by causing profound anxiety, depression, sleeplessness, anger issues, even thoughts of suicide. What about for you?


If you are challenged with tinnitus, there is help and hope for successfully managing it, and you do not have to experience these challenges alone. 


While tinnitus has some similar characteristics from person to person, your tinnitus journey is unique. The experienced and caring team at Johnson Audiology understands that and is committed to working with you as an individual to map a strategy for quietening the ringing, using evidenced-based tools and techniques.


Tinnitus does not have to be a permanent part of your life. Call to schedule your assessment and let us help you begin to manage your tinnitus. Read on to learn more.

HOW DOES TINNITUS IMPACT YOU?


  • Because of your tinnitus, is it difficult for you to concentrate?

    You're not alone: 16% of individuals indicate that their tinnitus can cause trouble concentrating.


  • Because of your tinnitus, do you have trouble falling asleep at night?

    You're not alone: 18% of individuals indicate that their tinnitus affects their ability to sleep. 


  • Does your tinnitus interfere with your ability to enjoy social activities?

    You're not alone: 20 million people struggle with chronic tinnitus and many report avoiding social gatherings because of it.

  • Because of your tinnitus, is it difficult to read?

    You're not alone: For 12 million people, the problem is severe enough that it impacts tasks of daily living and quiet activities like reading. Of that number, 16% report their tinnitus as severe.


  • Do you find it difficult to focus your attention away from your tinnitus and on other things?

    You're not alone: 30% of people reporting tinnitus classified their condition as a “moderate” to “very big” problem in their life.

  • Does your tinnitus make you feel anxious?

    You're not alone: 13% of people report that their tinnitus can cause them to be anxious. Tinnitus is linked with anxiety, depression, anger issues, even thoughts of suicide.

  • Does your tinnitus get worse when you are under stress?

    You're not alone: Tinnitus and stress often go hand in hand. Stress can exacerbate tinnitus, and tinnitus can, in turn, cause greater stress, creating a vicious cycle. Tinnitus also can have a direct influence on thoughts and emotions, hearing, sleep, and concentration.


If you answered YES or SOMETIMES to any of these questions, then tinnitus is having an influence on your life and daily function. Book a tinnitus evaluation now at Johnson Audiology to begin the journey to managing your tinnitus.


TECHNIQUES & TOOLS FOR MANAGING TINNITUS

Managing tinnitus is often best accomplished using a muti-disciplinary team approach with care providers from various specialties playing a role, but the best place to start is with your audiologist. Your audiologist at Johnson Audiology will ask you questions to draw out how your tinnitus presents for you: How does it sound? Do you hear it in both ears? Does it come and go, or is it constant? Do certain activities trigger or make your tinnitus worse? 



Below are some treatment options that have shown positive results for people with tinnitus. Some are in the wheelhouse of your audiologist’s skillset and training. Some fall within the purview of other health care professionals. Your audiologist can help direct and guide you.

GENERAL WELLNESS

Your overall well-being can have an impact on the intensity of your tinnitus. There are simple things you can do that may help alleviate some of the burden of tinnitus—everything from maintaining a healthy diet to exercising regularly to staying socially engaged and active. Stress reduction and relaxation techniques and therapies like mediation, biofeedback and hypnotherapy can also be helpful. General wellness techniques can be practiced alone or in combination with other tinnitus management options.

HEARING AIDS

While tinnitus can have a number of causes or triggers, tinnitus is overwhelmingly connected to some level of hearing loss. Restore sound where you have hearing loss, and the brain no longer needs to fill in the silence with the ringing, roaring, and buzzing of tinnitus. About seven out of ten patients will notice a subjective decrease in their tinnitus just by treating their hearing loss.

SOUND THERAPIES

Using real, external sounds—from white noise to music to environmental sounds—to counteract your perception and reaction to tinnitus is a technique often employed as part of a tinnitus management plan. Sound masking can cover the sound of tinnitus, while more advanced therapies may provide more robust relief like sound integration programs built into your hearing aid’s program settings. Sound therapies do not have to be high tech either. Free downloadable mobile phone apps from the various hearing aid manufacturers offer a combination of sound and sleep therapy options, relaxation and meditation exercises as well as practical guidance for those with tinnitus.

BEHAVIORAL THERAPIES

Tinnitus can trigger strong, negative emotions like anxiety, depression, and anger. Learning techniques for controlling your emotional reactions can thereby disassociate tinnitus from burdensome negative behavioral responses. The goal of behavioral therapies—an umbrella term for a host of more specific treatments like mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) and tinnitus acceptance therapy (TAT)—is to help you control your behavioral reactions to tinnitus, and thereby reduce the impact of the condition. These therapies employ a multi-disciplinary approach, including your audiologist, a behavioral therapist and your general practitioner.

DRUG THERAPIES

The FDA has not approved any drugs specifically for the treatment of tinnitus. However, many prescription-based pharmacological options are available to address stress, anxiety, and depression. Since these mental health issues are often caused by tinnitus or exacerbate tinnitus, addressing and treating them directly can lead to a quietening of tinnitus. Beware of over-the-counter remedies and supplements that claim to be tinnitus cures. No reliable scientific evidence supports this. Talk with your family practice doctor or psychologist about these options and keep your audiologist in the loop.

PHYSIOLOGICAL TREATMENTS

In some cases, tinnitus is caused by physiological functions or disorders within the body like head and neck injuries or a jaw joint (temporomandibular joint, or TMJ) dysfunction. Additionally, tinnitus can be a symptom of some prescription and over-the-counter medications. In these less-common situations, addressing the baseline physical cause—by visiting a dentist to address TMJ or talking to your medical doctor about adjusting your medication schedule or dosage—can eliminate or drastically reduce tinnitus symptoms. 

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