Malady of Tinnitus: helpful tips
Part 7

Tinnitus: Helpful Tips

1. Do not panic. Tinnitus is rarely a sign of any serious ongoing pathological condition.
2. See a competent doctor who can rule out any condition that may cause tinnitus.
3. Review your current medications with your physician for possible tinnitus side effect.
4. Do not draw any negative conclusions about your condition at first.
5. In most cases, people who experience tinnitus will "habituate" it, and after a period of adjustment, will go on with their lives as well as before.
6. Seek out reliable, helpful information from sources, such as the American Tinnitus Association; 800-634-8978; www.ata.org; or tinnitus at ata.org.
7. Be wary of dire diagnoses and negative information.
8. Find a support group. They can help you sort out the useful from the useless, and can offer you compassionate companionship and coping strategies.
9. Discuss the problem with those around you. Inform them about the conditions that are difficult for you.
10. Be involved in your recovery. Tinnitus may not resolve on its own.
11. Be kind to yourself. You have undergone an entire physical and mental change.
12. Examine your lifestyle and make changes if stress is a part of your environment.
13. Be a detective. Find out what "lights up" your tinnitus.
14. Examine your diet, and eliminate possible sources of irritation such as salt, artificial sweeteners, excess sugar, alcohol, some over-the-counter medications, tobacco, and caffeine. If these do not cause you discomfort and you enjoy them, after a proper trial, feel free to resume their use.
15. Do not give up if a therapy or treatment doesn't produce immediate relief.
16. Do not waste time blaming yourself for your tinnitus. The causes of tinnitus are numerous and nearly impossible to determine.
17. You will learn that the real difficulty with tinnitus is created outside of the auditory system. Our negative thoughts may be more damaging than the sounds themselves.
18. The sounds you hear may in fact be the normal sounds created by our body or brain at work.
19. Keep informed about tinnitus. Learn what tinnitus is, and more importantly, what it is not. There is a great deal of research being conducted in the search for tinnitus relief. This alone can act as positive reinforcement
20. You will not fear tinnitus once you are correctly informed