3 ms·

Hmm, seems interesting but it's intended to take the "focus" off of the ringing rather than actually fix the underlying cause. Personally, having tinnitus for

Hmm, seems interesting but it's intended to take the "focus" off of the ringing rather than actually fix the underlying cause. Personally, having tinnitus for so long I don't even notice it anymore; it would be nice to experience complete "silence" again though.

idontwantthis 3y ago
It doesn’t sound to me like it would help you in that case, if it is just about attention. I have tinnitus as well and after months of focusing on it trying to “cure” it, I learned to adapt and now it is better and doesn’t keep me up at night or interfere with anything. This sounds like a shortcut to the acceptance that patients need to achieve in order to move on. But maybe it would make a real difference to very high intensity patients.
Ataraxic 3y ago
I don't understand it that way. My understanding of the underlying cause of tinnitus iirc, is that it's caused by damage to hair cells in your inner ear. Our brains interpret this damage and loss of signal as a signal; thus, we hear a high-pitched tone even when it is silent. Training your brain to ignore this seems like treating the underlying cause, which is a misinterpretation of auditory signals or the lack thereof. I have tinnitus but most times I don't notice it. Go to a loud venue for a while and even with earplugs it noticeably comes back for up to a week or two.
- hooverd 3y ago
  Although, there are also people who are deaf as a doornail and never get it. And you can experience it as a symptom of psychotropics.
criddell 3y ago
Are you implying the underlying cause is never a brain malfunction? I think of it a little like phantom limb pains If you feel pain in a hand or foot that you no longer have, retraining your brain is one way to fix it. Maybe regrowing a foot would be better, but we don't know how to do that.
- TheBigSalad 3y ago
  I'm not doctor or scientist, but I think of it like the nerves in the ear are signaling off constantly. The brain is operating normally by listening to them, but what you really want is for it to adapt and start to ignore the bad signals. The brain can phase them out, but it can never stop receiving the signal, so you still hear it if you consciously focus on it. It sounds like this person is already there but still looking for a real cure, something to stop the signals.
39896880 3y ago
“Silence” really does belong in quotes. I spent some time in an anechoic chamber (a few hours a day over 6 weeks) and could hear the blood flowing through my ears. It was quite strange and convinced me that true silence doesn’t exist unless you’re deaf.
- jijijijij 3y ago
  Probably similar to the experience of seeing the blood vessels of your retina when a focused light source moves past your eyes. I think that's something we kinda always "see", but the signal is removed by the brain before reaching consciousness, until lighting quickly changes blood vessels' shadows.
- causality0 3y ago
  One of the spookiest experiences of my life was activating a pair of noise-canceling headphones in a room that was already quiet and immediately being able to hear my neck vertebrae touching. I snatched them off my head like they were a spider.
  - alfiedotwtf 3y ago
    I think that’s normal. I also hear that roar that you read about when yawning or twisting ear muscles, and also pushing my head forward with my hard while fighting back with my neck muscles.
jijijijij 3y ago
Have you tried this trick of overloading your acoustic nerves temporarily? For both ears, close your ears with your index finger and than tap on the index fingers with your middle fingers - to make a loud pounding sound - a few times. As far as I know, these short peaks are not dangerous to the ear, but safely overload hearing sensitivity. You may gain a few (sometimes critical) moments of silent peace this way.
fallinghawks 3y ago
I can make mine go away temporarily (as in a minute or so) by sticking my fingers in my ears and jiggling them around to make a lot of noise for 10 seconds. I suspect it's just the contrast, but it is really nice to have something resembling real silence. A few years back I got a bad wax buildup in one ear and stopped hearing anything. After they took the wax out, my ear was hypersensitive for a day or so. I heard every little rustle, shifting in my chair, even fabric moving when I moved my arm.
- KomoD 3y ago
  I can also make it go away temporarily (also just a minute or two) with the tapping technique "Place the palms of your hands over your ears with fingers resting gently on the back of your head. Your middle fingers should point toward one another just above the base of your skull. Place your index fingers on top of your middle fingers and snap them (the index fingers) onto the skull making a loud, drumming noise. Repeat 40-50 times"

idontwantthis 3y ago

It doesn’t sound to me like it would help you in that case, if it is just about attention. I have tinnitus as well and after months of focusing on it trying to “cure” it, I learned to adapt and now it is better and doesn’t keep me up at night or interfere with anything. This sounds like a shortcut to the acceptance that patients need to achieve in order to move on. But maybe it would make a real difference to very high intensity patients.

Ataraxic 3y ago

I don't understand it that way. My understanding of the underlying cause of tinnitus iirc, is that it's caused by damage to hair cells in your inner ear. Our brains interpret this damage and loss of signal as a signal; thus, we hear a high-pitched tone even when it is silent. Training your brain to ignore this seems like treating the underlying cause, which is a misinterpretation of auditory signals or the lack thereof. I have tinnitus but most times I don't notice it. Go to a loud venue for a while and even with earplugs it noticeably comes back for up to a week or two.

hooverd 3y ago
Although, there are also people who are deaf as a doornail and never get it. And you can experience it as a symptom of psychotropics.

criddell 3y ago

Are you implying the underlying cause is never a brain malfunction? I think of it a little like phantom limb pains If you feel pain in a hand or foot that you no longer have, retraining your brain is one way to fix it. Maybe regrowing a foot would be better, but we don't know how to do that.

TheBigSalad 3y ago
I'm not doctor or scientist, but I think of it like the nerves in the ear are signaling off constantly. The brain is operating normally by listening to them, but what you really want is for it to adapt and start to ignore the bad signals. The brain can phase them out, but it can never stop receiving the signal, so you still hear it if you consciously focus on it. It sounds like this person is already there but still looking for a real cure, something to stop the signals.

39896880 3y ago

“Silence” really does belong in quotes. I spent some time in an anechoic chamber (a few hours a day over 6 weeks) and could hear the blood flowing through my ears. It was quite strange and convinced me that true silence doesn’t exist unless you’re deaf.

jijijijij 3y ago
Probably similar to the experience of seeing the blood vessels of your retina when a focused light source moves past your eyes. I think that's something we kinda always "see", but the signal is removed by the brain before reaching consciousness, until lighting quickly changes blood vessels' shadows.
causality0 3y ago
One of the spookiest experiences of my life was activating a pair of noise-canceling headphones in a room that was already quiet and immediately being able to hear my neck vertebrae touching. I snatched them off my head like they were a spider.
- alfiedotwtf 3y ago
  I think that’s normal. I also hear that roar that you read about when yawning or twisting ear muscles, and also pushing my head forward with my hard while fighting back with my neck muscles.

jijijijij 3y ago

Have you tried this trick of overloading your acoustic nerves temporarily? For both ears, close your ears with your index finger and than tap on the index fingers with your middle fingers - to make a loud pounding sound - a few times. As far as I know, these short peaks are not dangerous to the ear, but safely overload hearing sensitivity. You may gain a few (sometimes critical) moments of silent peace this way.

fallinghawks 3y ago

I can make mine go away temporarily (as in a minute or so) by sticking my fingers in my ears and jiggling them around to make a lot of noise for 10 seconds. I suspect it's just the contrast, but it is really nice to have something resembling real silence. A few years back I got a bad wax buildup in one ear and stopped hearing anything. After they took the wax out, my ear was hypersensitive for a day or so. I heard every little rustle, shifting in my chair, even fabric moving when I moved my arm.

KomoD 3y ago
I can also make it go away temporarily (also just a minute or two) with the tapping technique "Place the palms of your hands over your ears with fingers resting gently on the back of your head. Your middle fingers should point toward one another just above the base of your skull. Place your index fingers on top of your middle fingers and snap them (the index fingers) onto the skull making a loud, drumming noise. Repeat 40-50 times"