TREATMENT & MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES

1 -	Avoid stimulants. Caffeine - found in tea, coffee, chocolate & cola drinks. Nicotine - smoking.
2 -	Consult your medical practitioner if you have increased tinnitus or tinnitus as side effect of any prescription medications.
3 -	Learn distraction techniques to avoid focussing on the tinnitus. Further details throughout this homepage.
4 -	Tinnitus is usually more noticeable at nightime eg. when quiet in bed. Use relaxation techniques, music or an audiologic clock which provide masking for distraction. See treatment CD on this homepage.
5 -	Low level noise generators, tinnitus maskers and/or hearing aids can usually help significantly in tinnitus management. Low level noise generators are not prescribed to "cover" the tinnitus rather to produce a low level signal to help with alternative stimulation to the auditory system and also in developing distraction . Tinnitus maskers produce "masking noise" to cover the tinnitus providing "psychological space" for the person with tinnitus. Most people who use tinnitus maskers get relief from listening to the tinnitus others notice the additional benefit of suppression of the tinnitus from minutes to hours after removing the tinnitus masker. Not all clients obtain benefit from using "masking " as in some cases the tinnitus competes with the masking noise; in such cases low level noise generators are the best option. Consult an Audiologist for further advice.
6 -	Directive counselling regarding the anatomy and physiology of the auditory system is critical in developing a better understanding of the problem. This also helps with demystification of tinnitus as in Tinnitus Retraining Therapy (TRT). Any anxiety , depression or other emotional reactions must be attended to by enlisting professional help. Further details throughout this homepage.