Are you being kept awake by ringing in your ears? You don’t have to just live with it. If you would like to get a better nights sleep, think about these tips to tone down this irritating unrelenting noise.
Moderate to severe tinnitus can definitely throw a monkey wrench in your sleep cycle. In the middle of the day, you’re distracted by noise and activity so your tinnitus may seem less noticeable. But at night, when there’s less noise, tinnitus can seem louder and more stressful.
The good news is, if you would like to fall asleep easier, there are some techniques you can use.
Five tricks for falling asleep when you have tinnitus are shown below.
1. Don’t Resist The Noise
Although this might sound difficult, if you focus on it, it becomes worse. If you begin to get irritated, your blood pressure goes up and this causes tinnitus symptoms to get worse. So the more aggravated you get thinking about it, the worse you are probably going to feel. Focusing on something else and utilizing the techniques below can help make the noise seem softer.
2. Establish a Nighttime Schedule
Condition your body to get sleepy at the right time by developing healthy sleep habits such as dimming the lights, winding down at least a half an hour before bed, and going to bed at the same time each night. When you’re ready to fall asleep it will be easier.
Tinnitus has also been related to stress. It’s also helpful to build habits to de-stress before bed.
- Stretching or doing yoga
- Avoiding drinking alcohol
- Making your bedroom slightly cooler
- Bathing
- Doing deep breathing or a short meditation
- Focusing on thoughts that make you happy and calm
- Reading a book in a quiet room
- Avoiding eating a few hours before you go to bed
- Dimming the lights at least one hour before you go to bed
- Listening to quiet sounds or relaxing music
Training your body to transition into sleep by getting into a predictable routine before bed helps you shift away from the stresses of the day.
3. Pay Attention to What You Eat
There are known triggers to tinnitus such as alcohol and artificial sweeteners. If you find, after monitoring your diet and symptoms, that certain foods trigger or worsen your tinnitus, make it a habit to avoid them. You may feel like you still have to have your morning coffee, but avoid caffeine in the afternoon or at nights.
4. Avoid Common Causes of Tinnitus
Ringing or other noises in your ears can be caused by many things. Addressing the cause can help prevent tinnitus or make it better. You can do several things to help:
- Get treated for anxiety or depression
- Review your medications with your doctor to see if one may be causing tinnitus symptoms
- Use ear protection
- Go for your annual checkup
- If you have underlying conditions such as high blood pressure, get help for it
- Assess your lifestyle to determine whether you’re subjected to loud noises (and how to limit exposure)
- Don’t use earbuds…use headphones instead and keep the sound level low
If you can discover what’s causing the ringing in your ears, you may be able to deal with it better.
5. Make an Appointment to See a Hearing Specialist
A professional hearing exam can help you find possible solutions as well as identify what may be causing your tinnitus. Professionals can help you take care of your tinnitus in several ways such as:
- Fitting you for hearing aids created to cancel out the noise
- Help you handle thought patterns revealed to make tinnitus worse by recommending cognitive behavior treatment
- Help you train your brain to not hear tinnitus by signing you up for therapy
Expert help can hasten recovery and assist you to sleep better at night. Schedule an appointment with your hearing care professional to find out if you can get some help with your tinnitus.