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| Tinnitus: the less you fear it, the less you hear it |
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Multithumb found errors on this page: There was a problem loading image C:\wamp\www\images/stories/08_tinnitus.jpg  Tinnitus is the perceptual experience of "hearing" noises that do not come from an external source. For some it is short-lived and resolves itself, for others it is persistent and often upsetting. For some sufferers, the noise is almost continual while for others it is intermittent. Frequently the sounds are more disturbing when the person is in a quiet environment and not busy, which is why tinnitus often disrupts sleep. The nature of the sounds vary, the most upsetting are usually described as a high-pitched tone. Others experience a sound more similar to rushing air or white noise. Although exposure to loud noises and certain medications are known to cause tinnitus, in many cases the origin is unknown. In severe cases, it has the potential to severely disrupt a person's quality of life. There are some effective medical treatments for tinnitus including the judicious use of minor tranquilizers and anti-depressants. Adjunct treatments such as sound masking therapy have also helped many as have chiropractic adjustments. Many authorities note that a combination of therapies can often produce the best results. Hypnosis is a therapy that has the potential to help you cope more effectively with your tinnitus, although it is often misunderstood. Clinical hypnosis involves the skillful use of naturally altered states of consciousness in order to change perceptions and responses in the subconscious mind. For the tinnitus sufferer, the key shift in perception is that the noise is not a threat to survival and that it will be experienced as more of a nuisance. The more you fear the noise, the more you focus on it, creating a vicious cycle of increasing distress. Or, "the less you fear it, the less you hear it." It's interesting to note that most people with tinnitus are not bothered much by it-this is the place where you want to be. Let's explore some key concepts in the mind/body approach to alleviating the distress of tinnitus. - Point one In humans, hearing is the primary survival/protective sense (omni-directional, works in the dark, etc.). Any ongoing unexplained noise will be perceived as a threat and create stress. Quite often a person will begin to panic that something is seriously wrong when they realize that the head noise is not going away. This fear leads you to focus more on the noise. You may begin to fear you are going insane and will not be able to function. A well-trained professional hypnotist can help you decrease these negative emotions. "The less you fear it, the less you hear it." - Point two A full medical workup is a MUST! This not only rules out any rare but possibly serious causes of the ear noise, but it should also reassure you. After the tinnitus has motivated you to seek proper medical diagnosis it has now become a worthless sensory experience that can be safely ignored. - Point three Some researchers believe that tinnitus is similar to phantom limb pain-where an amputee continues to experience sensations as if the missing limb were still present. In the past some people with tinnitus would have surgery to sever the cranial nerve that connects the ears to the brain yet still continued to hear the unwanted sounds. This suggests that although tinnitus may very well have a physical origin, it may become like a tape loop in the mind that can be safely ignored after your doctor has properly evaluated you. - Point four The healing path for tinnitus is seldom linear, no practitioner, a skilled hypnotist included, is going to snap his fingers and just make the sound go away like some "magic" remedy. Rather what you should expect is an increasing comfort level to where you have more good days and the tinnitus becomes more of an occasional nuisance rather than disabling. If you are considering working with a hypnosis practitioner for your tinnitus, make sure he or she has expertise in this area so that you derive maximum benefit in the quickest amount of time. (Source: ezinearticles)   Socialize this Subscribe to our RSS feed to stay in touch and receive all of TT updates right in your feed reader
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