3 Ways Tinnitus Impacts Quality of Life

The impact that tinnitus can have on an individual’s life is often underestimated. There are a few known causes of tinnitus, but it is commonly known as the experience or perception of noises that others can’t hear. However, this can mean different things for different people. It can mean a buzzing noise, a whistling or a ringing. Some people hear a noise that sounds like a heartbeat, others hearing it as a melody.

The symptom tinnitus can be experienced differently by many people, but one consistent factor is that it can have a deep impact on quality of life beyond your hearing alone. Here, we’re going to look at three of the most profound impacts it might have.

It can impact your sleeping habits

Few things are as important to the overall health of an individual as getting enough sleep. Without healthy sleeping habits, we’re more likely to experience stress, chronic pain, fatigue, weight gain and so much more. Tinnitus is often experienced more acutely at night time, meaning that it very regularly interrupts sleep. Furthermore, tinnitus also causes stress, which makes it harder to sleep, as well.

The difficulty with sleep that tinnitus often causes can be deeply linked to the other two ways tinnitus can impact your life, as mentioned below. One of the first treatments often employed to fight tinnitus is using sound machines and masking devices to make the sound easier to tune out at night.

It can impact your ability to focus and communicate

There are a variety of ways that tinnitus can make it more difficult to concentrate. When living with constant noise in your ear or head, it can be hard to maintain any kind of focus, especially when you’re trying to do a complex task. The fact that tinnitus can interrupt your sleep doesn’t help. A lack of sleep is likely to lead to fatigue and an inability to concentrate, as well.

Furthermore, tinnitus can make it especially difficult to focus when you’re trying to communicate with others. Depending on how severe the symptoms may be, it can be difficult to hear what others are saying past the noise of tinnitus. Furthermore, tinnitus is regularly experienced alongside hearing loss, so that may also be a factor.

It can impact your mental health

In the long term, severe tinnitus and all of the effects mentioned above can, indeed, have a profound impact on the mental health of those who experience its symptoms. Depression, high stress levels, and anxiety are all more common in people who live with tinnitus. Furthermore, the trouble sleeping associated with tinnitus can exacerbate all of those issues.

Low sleep quality leads to increased production of cortisol, known as the stress hormone, which causes both the feeling of stress and the physical tension in the muscles associated with it. The low sleep can also lead to more regular feelings of fatigue and generally lower energy levels. Furthermore, because of the extra effort it takes to concentrate when living with tinnitus, even performing day to day tasks can feel more exhausting than usual.

Furthermore, the difficulty with communication can exacerbate the effects described above. Many people who experience hearing loss or other communication troubles often start avoiding social interaction because of the stress they can cause, which can lead to feelings of isolation, loneliness and depression. As such, therapy is often used alongside other tinnitus treatments to address the mental side of the symptoms, not just the physical ones.

How an ENT doctor can help you deal with the impact of tinnitus

Tinnitus can be tricky to treat as the range of treatments work differently for everyone who experiences the symptoms. For some, devices that provide noise to cancel out the tinnitus, such as hearing aids with masking features and noise machines, are the most effective approaches.

Tinnitus retraining therapy is the method of learning mental exercises that can help you learn to focus less on the symptoms, so that it becomes less noticeable over time, too. Which method is most effective is best found out with the help of your ENT doctor.

Get in touch to fight the impact of tinnitus today

The three impacts mentioned above are the most common, but the only ways that tinnitus can affect your life beyond your hearing. If you experience tinnitus, then ENT Physicians Inc. is the team that can help you combat the condition.

To learn more about the treatment methods we provide for tinnitus, or to arrange a personalized consultation, get in touch with our team at (419) 318-4987. We’ll be glad to help; however we can.