The continuous ringing or buzzing sensation in the ears many people suffer from is known as tinnitus. It is pretty common among the people in Ontario; almost one in every five people is affected by it. Tinnitus is not only irritating to live with, but it also indicates serious clinical conditions like ear injury or hearing loss. The way of dealing with tinnitus is performing tinnitus sound therapy using sound generators and hearing aids. So, visit an ear clinic to consult a hearing aid practitioner when you suffer from ringing in the ear.
Common causes of tinnitus
There is no exact cause of tinnitus; people can suffer from it for many reasons. A few of the most common reasons for tinnitus are –
- Loud noise
Loud noise damages ear cells easily and it can lead to developing tinnitus. The risks are even higher if your ears are exposed to high-pitched noise for a long time. So, make sure to use ear protection in those situations.
- Earwax buildup
Earwax generally protects our ears from germs and infections. However, if you have excessive earwax buildup in your ears, then it can cause irritation and tinnitus.
- Hearing loss
As people age, the inner ear changes and causes hearing loss gradually. It does not cause tinnitus, but if you have already developed it, then hearing loss will worsen the situation. As the person cannot hear external sounds, tinnitus is not masked by those; which makes it more noticeable.
- Infections in the ears
Infections in the middle ears can cause both hearing loss as well as tinnitus. It can be temporary, but you must treat the infection promptly so the symptoms like tinnitus do not become permanent.
- Anxiety and stress
Another situation that does not cause tinnitus but worsens is stress. Even if you cannot feel the ringing sensation all the time, you will be able to notice it during stress and anxiety.
What is tinnitus sound therapy?
Tinnitus sound therapy is based on the method of distracting the patient from the continuous ringing in the ears. People with tinnitus can feel the sound more when they are in a quiet environment. It means that when they are surrounded by external noise, they hear the ringing lesser as they do not pay much attention to it. Tinnitus sound therapy focuses on this specific fact and aims to make people shift their concentration to the external noise, so the brain can filter out the persistent internal noise.
Tinnitus counselling – the first step of tinnitus sound therapy
Before you get tinnitus sound therapy, it is important to understand your condition. Hearing aid clinics in Peterborough perform hearing tests on their clients to check the level of tinnitus and its effects on the patient. Afterwards, the specialists analyze the patients on their condition and how their hearing faculties can help them. Knowing about it in detail will also help you be more comfortable with the therapy and reduce your anxiety. So, before you opt for tinnitus sound therapy, register for tinnitus counselling.
How does sound therapy work?
Tinnitus sound therapy does not bring any psychological change in the brain cells. Instead, it functions as a distraction to the internal sound so the patients can develop the ability to pay attention and ignore sounds as they want. Tinnitus sound therapy combines several approaches such as habituation, masking, neuromodulation, distraction etc. Hearing aid practitioners use various sound generators and hearing aids to provide patients with different levels of sound therapy.
You may consider visiting the hearing aid and instrument practitioners that can provide you with tinnitus counselling and tinnitus sound therapy with the right instruments.
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