Let’s set the stage: You’re lying in bed trying to fall asleep after a long tiring day. Your eyelids are getting heavy and you know that sleep is right around the corner. Then as you’re lying there in the quiet of the night, you start to notice the sound of buzzing in your ears. Your phone, TV, and radio are all turned off so you’re sure it’s nothing in your room. Unfortunately, this noise is inside your ears and it won’t stop.
If this scenario has happened to you, then it’s likely that you’re one of the 50 million people who suffer from tinnitus. This condition makes you hear ringing, buzzing, and whooshing sounds, among others, inside your ears. Most people suffering from tinnitus consider it a mere inconvenience; they notice it now and again but it doesn’t really impact their day-to-day lives. But this is not the case with everybody who is suffering from tinnitus. For some, it can cause them to lose sleep, to disengage socially, and to have a hard time working.
What’s The Main Cause of Tinnitus?
Tinnitus remains somewhat of a mystery, but this problem has been narrowed down to a few causes. It appears commonly in people who have damaged hearing, as well as people who have heart conditions. Restricted blood flow around the ears is commonly thought to be the underlying cause of tinnitus. This causes the heart to have to work harder to pump blood to where it’s needed. People who have iron-deficiency anemia frequently experience tinnitus symptoms since their blood cells do not carry enough oxygen throughout their body, which, again, works the heart harder to get nutrients to the correct place, often leading to tinnitus.
Tinnitus also happens as a result of other conditions, such as Meniere’s disease, ear infections, and ear canal blockages. Situations where tinnitus becomes more pronounced occur with all of these condition because they all affect the hearing. In other cases, there may not be an easily discernible cause of tinnitus, which can make treatment challenging, but not impossible.
How Can Tinnitus be Managed?
Depending on the underlying cause of your tinnitus, there might be a number of possible treatment options. One important thing to take note of, however, is that there is currently no known cure for tinnitus. Despite this fact, there’s still an excellent possibility that your tinnitus will get better or even vanish completely due to these treatments.
Research has revealed that hearing aids help cover up tinnitus in individuals who have hearing loss.
If masking the noise doesn’t help, cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) has been confirmed to help people live with the ringing in their ears that does not go away with other treatments. This type of mental health treatment helps people turn their negative thoughts about tinnitus into more positive, practical thoughts that will help them function normally on an every day basis.