Tinnitus, ringing in the ears, happens to one out of 10 Americans. Of the greatest sufferers, one in five has disabling effects. There are many causes of tinnitus, and it may even have a link to other medical conditions. Although tinnitus is prevalent, don’t ever ignore it. External factors, like ototoxic drugs, or internal factors, like underlying medical conditions, could be the culprit. Let a hearing instrument specialist help you rule out the cause. Patients can, in the meantime, find relief physically, even if a cure is not possible for tinnitus. Regular exercise will help combat the annoying effects.

Relaxation and stress relief with exercise

t is debatable whether or not stress directly causes tinnitus, but there is certainty that alleviating stress with physical exercise can shield you from bothersome ringing in the ears. Physical exercise will redirect your attention and produce feel-good endorphins.

The three positive effects of exercise

Exercise not only fights against tinnitus by promoting positive feelings and stress relief through the release of endorphins, as stated above, it also has two other positive effects. A second effect is that it boosts circulation. Heart rate and blood flow are improved with even moderate exercise. Since certain forms of tinnitus are linked with low blood supply to the inner ear, exercise is beneficial in increasing circulation. Good cardiovascular health ensures that the fragile cells responsible for hearing stay healthy with nutrients and enough oxygen. The third positive effect is it improves general health.

Serious medical conditions, like hypertension, depression, and diabetes, are often linked to tinnitus. Regular exercise reduces the risk of these conditions and in turn reduces tinnitus.

Start out slowly with exercise

If exercise is new to you, don’t hurt yourself. Start out slowly and then gradually increase the intensity. You will experience positive results. Although tinnitus may slightly increase at the beginning of an exercise routine, depending upon your kind of tinnitus, it will eventually dissipate. Sticking to exercise will make tinnitus fade and feel less uncomfortable. There’s no doubt it will be a challenge to conquer tinnitus even with lifestyle changes but the positives will outweigh the negatives. However, if there is no alleviating tinnitus to any satisfactory degree, contact your hearing instrument specialist at Pure Sound Hearing Aids. They can help you push tinnitus into the background with other coping strategies, further counseling, or hearing aids with tinnitus therapy features.

A normal, challenging day, like dealing with family, work, or school, can quickly turn frustrating when tinnitus--buzzing in the ears--becomes too much to bear. Tinnitus may be constant, distracting, and irritating. It heightens anxiety, stress, and nervousness. While it may seem singular and hopeless, it is more common than you think, and there are proper solutions to ease it. To reduce your tinnitus symptoms, try one or more of the methods explained below.

1. Do exercises in breathing

Although breathing is a vital, natural process, we often fail to realize the positive benefits it can engender, besides being life-sustaining. Performing techniques in breathing will help you concentrate on your body’s natural rhythm and can effectively calm you. The good news is that the exercises can be done anywhere, don’t take much time, and are easy to do. Here are two ways to ease tinnitus, control your breathing, and relax you:

• Start with taking long, even breaths through your nose, releasing the breaths through your mouth. Ease the stress in your body while exhaling by focusing on the lessening of tension in your neck, shoulders, core, and jaw. Repeat this action three or four times per session.

 

• Slowly breathe in and out of your nose and then for two or three seconds hold your breath. Stay relaxed while repeating this exercise three or four times. Concentration is heightened in this way.

2. Use guided meditation

​You will achieve a relaxed state by using guided meditation as a tool. Personal meditation may be too silent for tinnitus sufferers. Guided meditation is best. Listening to another person’s voice with your eyes closed, as your guide gives you breathing exercises to do, will lessen tinnitus. Ambient noise in the background can be played during this process to create a calming soundscape. Because there will be pauses between your guide’s words, such a distraction may be necessary.

3. Use sound therapy

Avoid situations of absolute silence. Absolute silence allows you to focus on the distracting, phantom buzzing of tinnitus. Gentle, soothing sounds, like white noise or ocean waves, even if it is just a recording, help to calm you and ease tinnitus. The disorder will be less noticeable. By using sound therapy, you will train your brain to focus less on the disorder and more on external sounds.

There are tinnitus therapy features now available in hearing aids. This new technology allows wearers to hear environmental sounds more successfully, often reducing tinnitus. There are different sound therapy signals that exist for your comfort needs. You can choose from two different types--static noise or nature-inspired sounds.

For Signia hearing aid wearers, there is Notch Therapy, a unique therapeutic approach, available to combat a certain, common type of tinnitus. It works unnoticed in the background and offers long-term relief over time. Rather than using sound therapy, where a sound is audible in the background, Notch Therapy operates imperceptibly in the background.

Remember, it is best to practice relaxation techniques even when you are not stressed to promote your overall well-being. You will have more success over tinnitus in no time at all. For more help, contact a hearing instrument specialist at Pure Sound Hearing Aids.

Fifteen percent of all people are thought to suffer from tinnitus--humming, phantom ringing, or buzzing in the ears. The range of severity with tinnitus differs from person to person, being mild to disabling. Tinnitus has no real cure, despite its prevalence. But the effects can be reduced at home without inconvenience or cost.

Don’t linger in silence

Your mind will focus on the internal noise without competing sounds. What you can do is listen to white noise, music, or nature’s sounds to block out the ringing. You can also try listening to a podcast or audio book to lessen the discomfort.

Utilize meditation and breathing exercises

Feel peaceful by meditating carefully to fight the inner noise. In addition, breathe slowly and deeply to combat any tension and stress associated with tinnitus.

Stay in motion

Tinnitus effects will lessen with movement. Exercise eases stress, improves overall health, and creates positive feelings. Blood circulation also improves. Some tinnitus sufferers experience a low blood supply, so exercise will increase blood flow to the cells of the inner ear.  Also, such a distraction as movement will help you from focusing on buzzing sounds.

Get a better night’s sleep

Tinnitus can be irritating and interrupt sleep, but there are ways to get a better night’s sleep. At night, avoid utilizing stimulants such as nicotine or caffeine. Reading a book, instead, can help your mind relax. However, don’t resort to too much time with the phone, television, or computer. Staring at screens can further aggravate sleeping difficulties. A soundscape of relaxing sounds is a pivotal way to accomplish healthy amounts of sleep at night.

Tinnitus treatments

Although there’s no cure for tinnitus, the four steps above can improve your comfort levels. However, such methods may not benefit everybody. If tinnitus is agonizing, discuss it with a hearing instrument specialist at Pure Sound Hearing Aids. They have hearing aids tuned to the exact pitch of your tinnitus, pushing it to the background. ​