Tinnitus is nothing new. But it may be the first time you have had to deal with it. A constant ringing or buzzing is commonly how tinnitus manifests but not always. At times, the sound is quite overwhelming. Regardless of how tinnitus manifests for you, this point is probably true: you are most likely searching for new ways of coping with your tinnitus if it’s something that’s troubling you.
The good news is that new therapies and treatment options are being developed that aren’t cures for tinnitus but can help you manage it. Your tongue is even involved in certain of those treatments.
Most Recent Approaches to Tinnitus
One of the newest therapies for tinnitus sounds a bit unusual at first but does appear to show some hope. This device, developed at the Trinity College School of Medicine in Dublin, stimulates both the tongue and ear. The technical term is bi-modal neuromodulation.
As outlined by the first tests of this device, the results were pretty impressive. Most individuals underwent treatments for twelve weeks or so. Within those 12 months, those same people observed a dramatic decrease in tinnitus symptoms. But until the testing phase is complete it won’t be extensively available.
How Can I Get Relief From my Tinnitus Now?
Regrettably, it will most likely be quite a while before novel solutions like this are generally accessible. So how can you deal with your tinnitus now?
Fortunately, there are some newer tinnitus therapy devices available today. And one of the best new ways to manage tinnitus is something you’ve probably already heard of: your hearing aid.
Here’s the way it works:
Your hearing aid can give you something else to listen to. One reason why tinnitus becomes more obvious as your hearing wanes is that the stays loud while everything else becomes quieter. A hearing aid can boost the volume on the rest of the audio spectrum. By boosting the volume of outside sounds, your tinnitus sounds will often fade into the background.
There is a sound masking device similar to a modern hearing aid. A masking device might be the answer if your hearing loss is minor. A masking device essentially looks like a hearing aid. And some hearing aids can be augmented with masking technology. This technology can produce sounds designed to mask your tinnitus symptoms. Whatever sound will best mask the ringing in your ears will be used, it may be a specific tone or even white noise.
This is, naturally, only the beginning. We can help you choose the best option for you so call us for a consultation.