Most estimates put the number of people impacted by tinnitus in the millions or around 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 several countries, the amount of the population who experience tinnitus is even more alarming.
Sometimes tinnitus is temporary. But if you’re dealing with persistent tinnitus symptoms it becomes crucial to find a remedy as soon as you can. Fortunately, there is a remedy that has proven to be quite effective: hearing aids.
There are some links between tinnitus and hearing loss but they are in fact separate conditions. It’s possible to have tinnitus with average hearing or to have hearing loss without also getting tinnitus. But if you’re experiencing the two conditions together, which is pretty typical, hearing aids can treat both at the same time.
How Can Tinnitus be Managed by Hearing Aids?
According to one survey, 60% of individuals who suffer from tinnitus noticed some amount of relief when they started using hearing aids. For 22% of those individuals, the relief was significant. In spite of this, hearing aids are actually designed to treat hearing loss not specifically tinnitus. The benefits seem 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 stop tinnitus symptoms:
- Everything gets a bit louder: The volume of certain wavelengths of the world become quieter when you are suffering from hearing loss. When that occurs the ringing in your ears becomes much more obvious. Hearing loss is not reducing the ringing so it becomes the loudest thing you hear. A hearing aid can increase that ambient sound, helping to drown out the buzzing or ringing that was so prominent before. 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. This means carrying on a conversation can become much easier once you’re routinely wearing your devices. You will be more involved with your co-worker’s story about their kids and better able to participate with your spouse about how their day went. The more you interact with other people, the more social you are, the less you’ll detect your tinnitus. Socializing also helps decrease stress, which is linked to tinnitus.
- Your brain is getting an auditory workout: When you have hearing loss, those portions of your brain charged with interpreting sounds can frequently suffer from fatigue, stress, or atrophy. Tinnitus symptoms you might be experiencing can be reduced when the brain is in a healthy pliable condition and hearing aids can help maintain this.
Modern Hearing Aids Come With Many Advantages
Smart Technology is incorporated into modern hearing aids. They come with cutting edge hearing assistance algorithms and the newest technology. But it’s the ability to customize a hearing aid to the distinct user’s needs that makes modern hearing aids so effective (they can even sense the level of background noise and automatically adjust accordingly).
Whatever your specific hearing levels are, personalized hearing aids can easily be calibrated to them. The better your hearings aid works for you, the more likely they are to help you cover up the humming or buzzing from tinnitus.
What is The Best Way to Get Rid of Tinnitus?
Your level of hearing impairment will dictate what’s best for you. There are still treatment options for your tinnitus even if you don’t have any hearing impairment. Medication, cognitive behavioral therapy, or a custom masking device are some possible options.
However, if you’re one of the many individuals out there who happen to have both hearing loss and tinnitus, a set of hearing aids might be able to do the old two-birds-one-stone thing. Stop tinnitus from making your life difficult by managing your hearing loss with a good pair of hearing aids.