What is Tinnitus?
When a person has tinnitus, it means that he or she perceives a ringing noise in the ears. This problem impacts approximately 15 to 20 percent of people across the world. However, the term tinnitus doesn’t refer to an actual medical disorder. It’s a symptom of another problem such as age-related hearing changes, a disorder of the circulatory system, or an injury to one or both ears.
The good news is that a variety of treatments and innovative devices such as IQbuds² MAX and IQbuds BOOST may help largely mitigate the many of the symptoms of Tinnitus.
Common Symptoms of Tinnitus
The sounds that people with tinnitus hear occur due to internal rather than external stimuli. Often referred to as phantom noises, people with this condition typically use the following words to describe the sounds it causes them to hear:
- Buzzing
- Clicking
- Hissing
- Humming
- Ringing
- Roaring
Phantom noises can range from a very low sound to a high-pitched screeching sound. It can affect one or both ears. In severe cases, the internal noise produced by tinnitus can make it impossible for the person to concentrate or hear other legitimate external sounds. Some people live with tinnitus continually while others experience it only occasionally.
Common Causes of Tinnitus
For most people with tinnitus, the cause is one of the following:
- Age-related hearing loss: It’s much more common for people over age 60 to experience this problem than younger people. When hearing loss causes tinnitus, doctors refer to it as presbycusis.
- Changes to ear bones: Abnormal ear bone growth can lead to a condition called otosclerosis that causes hearing loss and/or tinnitus.
- Earwax build-up: Although some earwax is necessary to protect the eardrums from dirt and bacteria, too much can irritate the eardrum, cause hearing loss, or cause tinnitus.
- Loud noise exposure: Firearms, chainsaws, and factory equipment are just some examples of extremely loud noises that can cause noise-related hearing loss. It can also lead to short-term or permanent tinnitus.
Tinnitus also has the following less-common causes:
- Acoustic neuroma (non-malignant tumor)
- Eustachian tube dysfunction
- Head or neck injuries
- Inner ear muscle spasms
- Meniere’s disease
- TMJ disorders
Objective vs. Subjective Tinnitus
When a doctor suspects tinnitus, he or she will complete an examination and diagnose one of two types. The first is objective tinnitus, which means that the doctor can hear it during the exam. This is rare. The primary causes of objective tinnitus include muscle contractions in the ear, a condition with the middle ear bone, or a problem with a blood vessel.
With subjective tinnitus, no one else can hear the sounds except for the person who has the condition. It is far more common than the objective type. Problems with the inner, middle, or outer ear lead to the symptoms associated with subjective tinnitus. Hearing loss caused by issues with the auditory nerves or pathways can also cause this problem.
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Sound Therapy & More for Tinnitus Relief
Also known as acoustic therapy, sound therapy for tinnitus involves creating quiet background noise and downloading it to a portable device or placing it on a nightstand. While it won’t make tinnitus disappear, it can make it less challenging to cope with on a daily basis. With IQbuds² MAX or IQbuds BOOST, users can use sound therapy apps on the go and adjust or blend the volume with noise from the outside world.
More on Sound Therapy
The idea behind sound therapy is to desensitize the tinnitus sufferer to internal noises by focusing instead on the more pleasant external noises. Frequently listening to soft background music can retrain the brain to change its patterns regarding what it takes in and what it ignores. According to WebMD, background noise can be helpful for several reasons:
- Masking can help cover up some of the sound in your ears.
- Distraction can take your attention off the sound.
- Habituation is the idea that hearing the noise consistently can lead your brain to treat tinnitus as a less important sound that should be ignored.
- Neuromodulation is based on the theory that tinnitus may be caused by too much activity in certain parts of your brain. So background noise could help change the patterns that cause the activity
Hearing Protection and Clean Ears
Protecting hearing by limiting exposure to loud noise and wearing earplugs when necessary is essential for people already diagnosed with tinnitus. It can also help prevent those who don’t have the condition from developing it.
Removing earwax regularly is also important. However, using Q-tips can potentially push earwax even further down the ear canal. It’s better to use drops made specially to break up earwax and naturally let it flow out of the ear.
Yoga, Meditation and Support
Yoga, meditation, and distracting oneself with pleasant music can also help to reduce the unpleasant effects of tinnitus. While this condition can make people feel alone, the fact that it affects nearly one in five people means that those with tinnitus can find plenty of support if desired.
Online forums such as Tinnitus Talk enable individuals to connect with other Tinnitus sufferers from around the world to share ideas and offer support.
Relief from isolation and haunting ringing
MEET ANA
Ana has been dealing with hearing challenges related to Meniere’s Disease and tinnitus for a long time, negatively impacting her life in many ways. Discover how IQbuds BOOST have offered relief from many of her symptoms.
We guarantee that you will hear better within minutes. If you’re not happy, simply return the product to Nuheara for a refund within 30 days.
Nuheara is
changing lives.
Although we started our journey at Nuheara focused on helping people with hearing challenges we found that in some instances IQbuds has helped people with tinnitus to find relief from their symptoms.
Nuheara is pleased that its innovative hearing technology is helping improve the lives of people with tinnitus and other hearing challenges.
Nuheara is changing lives.
Although we started our journey at Nuheara focused on helping people with hearing challenges we found that in some instances IQbuds has helped people with tinnitus to find relief from their symptoms.
Nuheara is pleased that its innovative hearing technology is helping improve the lives of people with tinnitus and other hearing challenges.
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