Around one out of every seven individuals are estimated to deal with tinnitus. That puts the total number in the millions. In a few countries, the numbers are even higher and that’s pretty alarming.
True, tinnitus isn’t always chronic. But in those cases where ringing, buzzing, or humming in your ears is tough to get rid of, finding an effective remedy can very quickly become a priority. Fortunately, there is a remedy that has proven to be rather effective: hearing aids.
Tinnitus and hearing loss are connected but distinct conditions. you can have hearing loss without tinnitus or tinnitus without hearing loss. But if you are experiencing the two conditions simultaneously, which is relatively typical, hearing aids can handle both at the same time.
How Can Tinnitus be Managed by Hearing Aids?
According to one survey, 60% of people with tinnitus noticed some amount of relief when they began using hearing aids. For 22% of those people, the relief was considerable. But, hearing aids are not manufactured specifically to treat tinnitus. The benefits appear to come by association. So if you have tinnitus and hearing loss then that’s when your hearing aids will most successfully treat the tinnitus symptoms.
Here’s how hearing aids can help get rid of tinnitus symptoms:
- Everything gets slightly louder: The volume of some of the frequencies of the world become quieter when have hearing loss. When that happens the ringing in your ears becomes a lot more obvious. Hearing loss is not decreasing the ringing so it becomes the loudest thing you hear. The ringing or buzzing that was so obvious will be masked when your hearing aid enhances the outside sound. As you tune out your tinnitus, it becomes less of an issue.
- Conversations become easier: Increasing the volume of human speech is something contemporary hearing aids are particularly good at. So once you’re wearing your hearing aids regularly, having conversations becomes much easier. You can keep up with the story Carl is telling at the restaurant or listen to what Sally is excited about at work. When you have a healthy involved social life tinnitus can seem to fade into the background. Socializing also helps reduce stress, which is associated with tinnitus.
- Your brain is getting an auditory workout: When you have hearing loss, those regions of your brain charged with interpreting sounds can often suffer from stress, fatigue, or atrophy. Tinnitus symptoms you might be experiencing can be decreased when the brain is in a healthy flexible condition and hearing aids can help keep it that way.
The Advantages of Modern Hearing Aids
Modern hearing aids are smart. They include innovative hearing assistance algorithms and the latest technology. But it’s the ability to personalize a hearing aid to the specific user’s requirements that makes modern hearing aids so effective (sometimes, they recalibrate according to the amount of background noise).
Personalizing hearing aids means that the sensitivity and output signals can effortlessly be calibrated to the specific hearing levels you might have. The buzzing or humming is more likely to be effectively masked if your hearing aid is dialed in to work best for you.
The Best Way to Stop Tinnitus
This will probably depend on your level of hearing impairment. If you haven’t experienced any hearing loss, you’ll still have accessible treatments for your tinnitus. Medication, cognitive behavioral therapy, or a custom masking device are some possible options.
But, if you’re one of the many individuals out there who happen to have both hearing impairment and tinnitus, a set of hearing aids may be able to do the old two-birds-one-stone thing. Managing your hearing loss with a good set of hearing aids can often stop tinnitus from making your life miserable.