What’s the best way to relieve the ringing in my ears? There’s no cure for tinnitus, but knowing what causes or exacerbates your symptoms can help you lessen or eliminate episodes.
Researchers calculate that 32 percent of people suffer from a nonstop ringing, buzzing, or whooshing noise in their ears. This condition is known as tinnitus, and it can wreak havoc. People who hear these sounds have problems sleeping and concentrating, and they may also have associated hearing loss.
There are steps you can take to lessen the symptoms, but because it’s usually related to other health conditions, there is no direct cure.
What Should I Stay Away From to Decrease The Ringing in My Ears?
The first step in dealing with that persistent ringing in your ears is to steer clear of the things that are known to cause it or make it worse. Loud noise is one of the most prevalent things that worsen tinnitus. Refrain from using headphones, and if you are exposed to noise at work or at home, get some high-quality earplugs to reduce the damage.
Certain medications such as anti-inflammatory drugs, antibiotics, and even high doses of aspirin can worsen the ringing so talk to your doctor. Never stop taking your medications without first speaking to your health care professional.
Here are some other typical causes:
- stress
- high blood pressure
- infections
- other medical problems
- allergies
- too much earwax
- jaw issues
Jaw Issues And Tinnitus
Your jaw and ears are closely associated. This is why jaw problems can cause tinnitus. The best example of this is an affliction called Temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ for short), which involves a breakdown of the shock-absorbing cartilage around the joints in your jaw. Tinnitus can be the outcome of the stress of simple activities like chewing.
Is there anything that can be done? The best thing you can do, if your tinnitus is caused by TMJ, is to seek medical or dental help.
How is The Ringing in my Ears Related to Stress?
Stress can impact your body in very real, very physical ways. Associated surges in heart rate, breathing, and blood pressure can all lead to an intensification of tinnitus symptoms. As a result, stress can cause, worsen, and extend tinnitus episodes.
Can I do anything to help? If stress is a major cause of the buzzing or ringing in your ears, you can try remedies like yoga and meditation to try to relieve stress. It might also help if you can reduce the overall causes of your stress.
Excessive Earwax
It’s absolutely normal and healthy for you to produce earwax. But too much earwax can aggravate your eardrum, and start to cause buzzing or ringing in your ears. The resulting tinnitus can intensify if the earwax continues to accumulate or becomes hard to wash away in a normal way.
What can be done? Cleaning without utilizing cotton swabs is the easiest way to minimize ringing in the ears caused by earwax. In certain situations, you might need to get a professional cleaning so that you can get the ringing or buzzing to go away (some people just naturally make a lot more earwax than others).
High Blood Pressure Makes Tinnitus Worse
Various health conditions, such as tinnitus, can be caused by hypertension and high blood pressure. High blood pressure has a way of intensifying the ringing or buzzing you’re already hearing, making it difficult to disregard. There isn’t a cure for tinnitus, but there are treatments for high blood pressure.
What can I do? Disregarding high blood pressure is not something you should do. You’ll likely want to get medical treatment. But you could also change your lifestyle somewhat: stay away from foods with high salt or fat content and exercise more. Hypertension and stress can raise your blood pressure resulting in tinnitus, so try to find lifestyle changes and ways of relaxing to decrease stress (and, thus, tinnitus caused by hypertension).
Will Using a Masking Device or White Noise Device Help my Tinnitus?
You can decrease the impact of the continual noise in your head by distracting your ears and your brain. You don’t even need to purchase special equipment, your radio, TV or computer can act as masking devices. If you prefer, there are hearing aids or specialized devices you can purchase to help.
If you’re experiencing a constant ringing, buzzing, or whooshing sound in your ears, be serious about the problem. It might be a warning sign that you also have hearing loss, or that you are experiencing a medical problem that should be resolved before it gets worse. Before what started as an annoying problem becomes a more severe issue, take steps to protect your ears and if the ringing persists, get professional hearing help.