Tinnitus, the presence of ringing or buzzing in the ear, can significantly affect your mood, productivity and sleep. While the symptom has no known cure, many patients find relief from a management technique called tinnitus retraining therapy (TRT).
How Does Tinnitus Retraining Therapy Work?
One 2021 study found that TRT was an effective tool for minimizing the severity of chronic tinnitus. With TRT, your hearing specialist will use sound therapy and counseling to help you get used to the tinnitus sound, minimizing your negative response.
Your specialist will start by reviewing your symptoms and conducting a hearing test to determine if your tinnitus presents with an underlying hearing loss. Next, they’ll combine the following:
- Counseling. Your hearing specialist will teach you about your tinnitus, why it arises, what could cause it to intensify and help you find ways to perceive it neutrally. Counseling aims to take the weight out of tinnitus. It’s less likely to bother you when you ascribe it less meaning.
- Sound therapy. During sound therapy, you’ll listen to a low, external sound through a device worn in or behind your ears. Sound therapy aims to get your brain used to the presence of constant noise. Over time, tinnitus will feel less intrusive by contrast.
You can continue to use sound therapy at home or on the go by listening to tinnitus masking or white noise through hearing aids or headphones. Next time the ringing is disrupting an otherwise pleasant trip to Empire Café, simply pop your headphones or hearing aids in your ears and turn on some white noise.
Can I Combine Tinnitus Retraining Therapy With Cognitive Behavioral Therapy?
You can absolutely combine TRT with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). While your hearing specialist will administer TRT, you should schedule an appointment with a mental health professional for CBT.
CBT focuses on changing the negative thought patterns that may create your emotional response to tinnitus. During CBT, your mental health professional will likely begin by discussing the reasoning behind negative thought patterns and teach you tools to reframe them. For example, “Tinnitus will never end.” could turn into “Some days might be difficult, but I’ve already taken the first step toward finding relief.” By changing your thoughts, you take the power away from tinnitus.
Schedule Your Tinnitus Evaluation
If you’re ready to take control of your tinnitus, contact Hearing Systems to schedule an evaluation with one of our specialists.