While we can become immune to experts telling us that we must have a healthy diet, it is still one of the most important aspects of keeping your stress levels low and managing your tinnitus symptoms.
Eating processed foods makes it more difficult for us to handle stress, as these often contain high levels of sugar. This can cause blood our sugar levels to fluctuate activating the sympathetic arm of our nervous system.
And, this is the part that deals with our fight or flight and readies us for action. When this happens, we release stress hormones which can cause stress symptoms.
These might include nervousness, anxiety, irritability and sleep disturbance, especially whilst experiencing tinnitus symptoms. Eating a well-balanced diet also means that we are able to replace the vitamins and nutrients which may become depleted during times of stress. In particular, vitamins which help with stress include zinc, magnesium, iron and B complex. Consuming excessive stimulant type foods can make your tinnitus seem louder on some days more than others.
Dietary stimulants can also affect tinnitus levels because they raise adrenaline levels in the body. Stimulant examples include, coffee, chocolate, tea and alcohol. Yes, I know all the good stuff! Sleep cannot be underestimated as an important part for us to maintain a healthy body and a healthy mind.
Our stress levels go up with less sleep or if you are suffering from long-term sleep difficulties. And, when stress levels go up tinnitus can seem louder. If you have not slept properly one night you might experience higher stress levels, and your tinnitus might seem louder than on a normal day. Not only that but sleeping properly also helps with our ability to handle stress. Giving our bodies the chance to recuperate and rest is essential for managing stress.
Lack of sleep affects mood, memory and judgement. If you are one of the 25 million people in the U. The ringing in one or both ears is not a real noise but a complication of a medical issue like hearing loss, either permanent or temporary.
Of course, knowing what it is will not explain why you have this ringing, buzzing or swishing noise more often at night. The truth is more common sense than you might think. To know why your tinnitus increases as you try to sleep, you need to understand the hows and whys of this very common medical problem. To say tinnitus is not a real sound just adds to the confusion, but, for most people, that is true. Tinnitus alone is not a disease or condition, but a sign that something else is wrong.
It is typically associated with significant hearing loss. For many, tinnitus is the first sign they get that their hearing is at risk. Hearing loss tends to be gradual, so they do not notice it until that ringing or buzzing starts.
This phantom noise works like a flag to warn you of a change in how you hear. Tinnitus is one of medical sciences biggest conundrums. But more often than not, the sound changes in a way that temporarily intensifies suffering. This is known as a tinnitus spike. Most patients think of a tinnitus spike as an increase in volume or intensity, but it can be also be a change in tone, pitch, or sound that makes it harder to ignore. All of these different types of tinnitus spikes can last for minutes, hours, or even days or weeks.
Regardless of how a tinnitus spike occurs, they are some of the most difficult challenges a tinnitus patient must face on a regular basis.
And for most sufferers, these kinds of fluctuations are simply unavoidable. Spikes are an unavoidable part of the habituation process that everyone must endure as they work to find lasting relief. Once you understand the underlying psychology and nature of tinnitus spikes, you can learn to not just better cope in the moment, but to become more confident and resilient against the difficult moments yet to come on your journey.
When a tinnitus sufferer experiences a spike, it can often feel random, but it was likely caused by some combination of internal or external factors. For most tinnitus patients, stress, anxiety and sleep deprivation are the biggest factors.
The vicious cycle of tinnitus always starts with a fight or flight stress reaction in the nervous system, and so additional stress or anxiety will always make tinnitus worse, while sleep deprivation will exacerbate any health problem, tinnitus or otherwise. But beyond the big three, every case of tinnitus is unique to such an extent that some specific triggering element for one person be it dietary, environmental, or otherwise , could be something that improves tinnitus for someone else.
This will vary for everyone, but generally within a couple of days. If your tinnitus was triggered by loud noise, it's critical to rest your ears so you don't cause further damage to your hearing.
Keeping track of possible common triggers in a daily journal is always helpful. If you can identify triggers, you can eliminate these factors with lifestyle changes, and that can smooth out the up and down emotional rollercoaster ride. But even if you take meticulous notes on all aspects of your diet, lifestyle, and environment, you still may not ever be able to find a pattern. The math equation for tinnitus spikes often just has too many variables to consider. And trying to figure it all out can just end up being another source of frustration and anxiety.
Luckily, identifying tinnitus triggers is not necessary for coping, or even for habituation to occur. If you never figure out what causes your tinnitus to spike, you can still find lasting relief from your tinnitus. When you are actively suffering from tinnitus, there is a lot more going on than just the perception of a sound that other people cannot hear.
Human beings are fully capable of tuning out and ignoring meaningless sounds and other sensory perceptions with a mental process known as habituation. It happens unconsciously, all the time. The problem is that we are unable to ignore any sounds that our brain or nervous system thinks might be the sound of something dangerous, problematic, or threatening.
You would never want to be able to ignore the sound of anything actually dangerous. And over time, it can get worse as the emotional and psychological effects of tinnitus — the anxiety, negative thoughts, hopelessness, panic, frustration, and anger — continuously accumulate until our nervous system is hijacked into a constant state of over agitation and anxiety.
Page last reviewed: 02 October Next review due: 02 October Check if you have tinnitus Tinnitus can sound like: ringing buzzing whooshing humming hissing throbbing music or singing You may hear these sounds in 1 or both ears, or in your head. Non-urgent advice: See a GP if:.
Do try to relax — deep breathing or yoga may help try to find ways to improve your sleep , such as sticking to a bedtime routine or cutting down on caffeine try to avoid things that can make tinnitus worse, such as stress or loud background noises try self-help books or self-help techniques to help you cope better from the British Tinnitus Association BTA join a support group — talking to other people with tinnitus may help you cope.
Information: The British Tinnitus Association BTA has more information about sound therapy , and runs support groups and a free helpline on
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