Tinnitus: Is Tinnitus a Disease?

Tinnitus is not a disease. It typically results from damage to the auditory system and or the mid-brain. Tinnitus is a symptom of the damage that has been done in the outer, middle, or inner ear, along the auditory pathway or in the brain. Tinnitus can be a symptom of Parkinson's disease, PTSD, heat stroke, environmental stress, physical stress, brain cancer, brain lesion, brain tumor, serotonin syndrome, Anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis or other more serious health conditions. Many tinnitus sufferers experience secondary conditions like insomnia or depression. Much of the depression stems from lack of sleep, excess serotonin production, and grieving that stems from not having a quiet moment for the brain to calm down. The brain of a tinnitus sufferer is in a state of constant excitation. The brain of someone without tinnitus is in a state of homeostasis.

Inhalation of toxic substances can also cause tinnitus. Volatile ultra-fine particles given off by some laser printers may cause tinnitus. Positive ion inhalation can cause tinnitus. Fine dust particles in the air can cause tinnitus.

Each tinnitus sufferer experiences a unique perceived volume and tone of internal sound (hissing, ringing, crickets, whooshing, clicks and pops are typical) depending on the extent of the damage to the sufferer's auditory system or mid-brain.

The level of annoyance of the tinnitus combined with the brain's natural response to the annoyance is what leads some people to debilitation. There are some noises that would cause anyone with an undamaged auditory system to flee an area. Tinnitus sufferers are no different. The sound is internal and the tinnitus sufferer cannot flee. This is how we become sleep deprived. In addition, tinnitus sufferers tend to be more sensitive to certain noise volumes and tones. Some tinnitus sufferers also have hyperacusis (amplification of certain sounds). Like chronic pain, tinnitus can flare up. There is no cure for chronic severe tinnitus. Acute tinnitus will usually clear up within a year.

Although there is no cure for chronic severe tinnitus, it can be managed. The reason that there is no cure is because tinnitus is usually the result of damage to the cochlear cells (which are non-regenerative). To put it into perspective, when someone says, "I cured my own tinnitus!"I know that it isn't true. It is like someone who says, "I lost my eye and I grew it back!" The people who say that they cured their tinnitus are suffering from acute tinnitus whereby the tinnitus would have been cured no matter what they did. But, they attribute what they were doing (e.g. taking vitamins or exercise) as "the cure."

If you have acute tinnitus and you are participating in yoga and then your tinnitus suddenly goes away you may actually believe that yoga cured your tinnitus. The fact that your tinnitus went away at all is the indicator that you were suffering from acute tinnitus whereby the cochlear cells were bent, like blades of grass, and over time recovered. Whereas the person with broken cochlear cells, dead cochlear cells, or brain damage in the mid-brain are not going to recover. These people are suffering from chronic tinnitus that needs to be managed. It takes work to manage chronic severe tinnitus. The sooner that they accept what has happened and begin the management process the better.

There is a known grieving process over the idea of never having a quiet moment again. That grieving process can be shortened, for some people, by Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and medication if necessary. Grieving can flare up with flare ups. CBT helps tinnitus sufferers cope with the emotions associated with a flare up and recognize signs of grieving. Identifying the signs can help tinnitus sufferers to navigate the negative emotional waters until the flare up quiets down.

If you have chronic severe tinnitus it is important for you to learn how to manage your specific tinnitus. I openly share how I manage my tinnitus on this blog with the hope that my information will help other tinnitus sufferers to better understand the condition and I also want to encourage researchers to aggressively study tinnitus.

What works for me may not work for you. Your tinnitus may sound much different than mine.  The cause of your tinnitus may be much different than mine. General practitioners, hearing specialists, neurologists, psychiatrists, dietitians, physical trainers, and psychologists may be part of your treatment team if your tinnitus begins to get worse, especially if the tinnitus is affecting your judgement, work performance, sleep, mood, or relationships.