Engage In Mindful Meditation Before Bed

Meditation can be an excellent way to relax before bed, even if you don’t suffer from tinnitus. For those who do have tinnitus, engaging in mindful meditation can help your brain acknowledge the phantom sound and learn to ignore it.

There are many ways to meditate, and you can feel free to find a method that suits you best. If you need somewhere to start, just begin by concentrating on your breathing. Thoughts will drift across your mind, and it is likely that your tinnitus will make its presence known. You can acknowledge your stray thoughts and your tinnitus then go back to focusing on your breathing, the pace, and how it fills your lungs.

By choosing to engage in mindful meditation for 5-10 minutes before you sleep, you can rest and relax your mind as well as your body, allowing you to rest more easily.

Undertake Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy

While there is no cure for tinnitus, you can manage your reactions to your tinnitus. Research has shown that cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is an especially effective form of therapy to address tinnitus, as CBT is used to address negative thoughts and behaviors.

For instance, say you are trying to drift off to sleep, and your tinnitus starts to increase in volume. The loud monotone sound makes it difficult to sleep, and you—already tired and likely frustrated with the interruption—start to think negative things like, “I’ll never get any sleep with tinnitus. Why can’t I just get rid of my tinnitus? I’ll never find something that works on my tinnitus.”

These self-defeating and frustrating thoughts do nothing but make your mood worse. With CBT, you will learn to replace those statements with more positive affirmations, such as, “Millions of people have tinnitus and learned to live with it. I can do the same.”

You can work with a licensed therapist who offers cognitive-behavioral therapy or use a self-guided program.

Use A Sound Generator While Preparing To Sleep

One of the easiest things you can do to help you fall asleep when you have tinnitus is to keep your bedroom from being too quiet. Tinnitus is often most noticeable when you are in complete silence. It is often speculated at tinnitus is the brain’s way of filling in the sound gaps.

You can use a number of things to break up the silence of your bedroom without it being too noisy to allow you to go to sleep. A few of the common options are:

• Specific tinnitus sound generators that produce white noise, ocean sounds, or other soothing background sounds.

• Turn on a ceiling fan or tower fan for gentle sound generation.

• Download a sound generation app that allows you to set a timer for the app to automatically turn off when you have fallen asleep.

Which of these options you choose will depend on your personal preference, as they should be fairly equal in their effectiveness.

Undergo A Diagnostic Hearing Evaluation

When your tinnitus has become enough of an impediment that it impacts your ability to sleep, you may want to consider having a diagnostic hearing evaluation done. There are many cases where tinnitus occurs concurrently with hearing loss.

If you have any amount of hearing loss, it can make your tinnitus that much worse, as your auditory system is receiving less input than it should. That lack of outside sounds can make your tinnitus so much worse.

So, if you often struggle with tinnitus at night, then it may be time to book a hearing evaluation with our hearing specialist.

Limit Your Intake Of Stimulants

Stimulants can interfere with your ability to fall asleep as well as make your tinnitus worse. The chemical makeup of most stimulants causes your blood vessels to dilate, which can influence the severity of your tinnitus. Common stimulants such as nicotine and caffeine can make your tinnitus worse as you try to fall asleep.

To help improve your ability to sleep, be sure to limit your intake of stimulants like nicotine and caffeine. It can also help with daytime tinnitus if that is something you struggle with often.

Develop A Firm Sleep Schedule

It can be easier to sleep even with tinnitus if your body is accustomed to a set sleep schedule. That way, even if your tinnitus is bothersome, your body will be able to ignore it and simply fall asleep.

If you have become used to an irregular schedule, start by waking up at a set time. As you become accustomed to waking up at the same time, it will be easier for your body to naturally regulate when you should be going to bed to feel fully rested. By sticking to a sleep schedule, you can cut tinnitus out of your sleep process.

Keep Your Ears Clean And Healthy

Having blocked ears can make your tinnitus worse at any time of day. People who are especially prone to earwax buildup should take steps to clear their ears with earwax softening solution that our hearing instrument specialist can provide. If you find that the solution is not enough to ease the discomfort in your ears, our hearing specialist can refer you to a medical professional who can perform cerumen removal.

Whatever you do, don’t try to dig out your earwax on your own. You can easily push the wax and debris into your ear as well as potentially puncture your eardrum.

Manage Your Tinnitus Day And Night With Modern Hearing Solutions of Wyoming

Tinnitus can be a problem during the day as well as at night. Many of the suggestions provided here are meant for someone going to bed. However, if you suffer from daytime tinnitus, hearing aids can help.

Even if you don’t have hearing loss, you can use hearing aids to help with your tinnitus. With these devices, you can enjoy portable sound generation, as there are many hearing aids that come with built-in tinnitus management programs.

Some hearing aids can be pre-programmed by our hearing specialist to help treat your tinnitus, or you can opt for hearing aids that allow you to control your tinnitus management programs from your smartphone.

To work with our hearing instrument specialist concerning your tinnitus and other hearing needs, feel free to contact us today to set up an appointment. We look forward to helping you to enjoy the best hearing possible.