Most estimates put the amount of people impacted by tinnitus in the millions or about one out of every seven people. That’s… a lot of people, both in actual terms and in relation to the general population, and in a few countries, the amount of the population who experience tinnitus is even more startling.
Sometimes tinnitus is temporary. But if you’re dealing with chronic tinnitus symptoms it becomes crucial to find a remedy as soon as you can. Luckily, there is a treatment that has proven to be quite effective: hearing aids.
Tinnitus and hearing loss are related but distinct conditions. It’s possible to experience tinnitus with normal hearing or to experience hearing loss without also getting tinnitus. But the two conditions occur together frequently enough that hearing aids have become a practical solution, treating hearing loss and ending tinnitus all at once.
How Can Tinnitus be Managed by Hearing Aids?
According to one survey, 60% of individuals who suffer from tinnitus reported some amount of relief when they began using hearing aids. Approximately 22% of everyone surveyed reported considerable relief. In spite of this, hearing aids are actually designed to manage hearing loss not specifically tinnitus. Association seems to be the main reason for this benefit. As such, hearing aids appear to be most effective if you have tinnitus and hearing loss.
Here’s how hearing aids can help stop tinnitus symptoms:
- Outside sounds are boosted: The volume of certain frequencies of the world become quieter when you’re suffering from hearing loss. The ringing in your ears, in that situation, is a lot more noticeable. Hearing loss is not affecting the ringing so it becomes the most pronounced thing you hear. A hearing aid can enhance that surrounding sound, helping to mask the ringing or buzzing that was so forefront before. Tinnitus becomes less of a problem as you pay less attention to it.
- Conversations become less difficult: Increasing the volume of human speech is something contemporary hearing aids are particularly good at. So once you’re using your hearing aids on a regular basis, carrying on conversations becomes much easier. You will be more engaged with your co-worker’s story about their children and better able to participate with your spouse about how their day went. The more you socialize with others, the more social you are, the less you’ll detect your tinnitus. Socializing also helps decrease stress, which is linked to tinnitus.
- The enhanced audio stimulation is keeping your brain fit: When you experience hearing loss, those portions of your brain tasked with interpreting sounds can frequently suffer from fatigue, stress, or atrophy. Using a hearing aid can keep the audio centers of your brain limber and healthy, which as a result can help decrease some tinnitus symptoms you may be experiencing.
Modern Hearing Aids Come With Numerous Advantages
Modern hearing aids are intelligent. They come with innovative hearing assistance algorithms and the latest technology. But the efficiency of modern hearing aids is attained in part because each device can be customized and calibrated on a patient-by-patient basis (sometimes, they recalibrate based on the amount of background noise).
Customizing hearing aids means that the sensitivity and output signals can easily be adjusted to the specific hearing levels you may have. The buzzing or humming is more likely to be successfully masked if your hearing aid is dialed in to work best for you.
What is The Best Way to Get Rid of Tinnitus?
Your degree of hearing loss will dictate what’s right for you. If you haven’t experienced any hearing loss, you’ll still have available treatment options for your tinnitus. That could mean custom-created masking devices, cognitive-behavioral therapy, or medication.
But, if you’re one of the many individuals out there who happen to suffer from both hearing impairment and tinnitus, a set of hearing aids may be able to do the old two-birds-one-stone thing. Stop tinnitus from making your life miserable by managing your hearing loss with a good set of hearing aids.