If you are one of the millions of individuals in the U.S. suffering from a medical condition called tinnitus then you probably know that it tends to get worse when you are trying to go to sleep. But what’s the reason for this? The ringing is a phantom sound due to some medical condition like hearing loss, it isn’t an external sound. But none of that information can give an explanation as to why this ringing becomes louder at night.
The reality is more common sense than you may think. To know why your tinnitus increases as you try to sleep, you need to understand the hows and whys of this really common medical issue.
Tinnitus, what is it?
To say tinnitus is not an actual sound just adds to the confusion, but, for most people, that is true. The person dealing with tinnitus can hear the sound but nobody else can. Your partner sleeping next to you in bed can’t hear it although it sounds like a maelstrom to you.
Tinnitus by itself isn’t a disease or condition, but a sign that something else is happening. It is generally linked to significant hearing loss. Tinnitus is frequently the first indication that hearing loss is Taking hold. People who have hearing loss frequently don’t notice their condition until the tinnitus symptoms start because it develops so gradually. Your hearing is changing if you begin to hear these sounds, and they’re alerting you of those changes.
What causes tinnitus?
Tinnitus is one of medical science’s greatest conundrums and doctors don’t have a strong understanding of why it occurs. It could be a symptom of inner ear damage or numerous other possible medical conditions. There are tiny hair cells inside of your ears that vibrate in response to sound. Often, when these little hairs get damaged to the point that they can’t effectively send messages to the brain, tinnitus symptoms happen. These electrical messages are how the brain translates sound into something it can clearly interpret like a car horn or somebody talking.
The absence of sound is the base of the current hypothesis. Your brain will begin to compensate for signals that it’s waiting for because of hearing loss. It attempts to compensate for sound that it’s not getting.
That would clarify a few things when it comes to tinnitus. Why it can be a result of so many medical conditions, like age-related hearing loss, high blood pressure, and concussions, for starters. That could also be why the symptoms get worse at night sometimes.
Why does tinnitus get worse at night?
You might not even detect it, but your ear is picking up some sounds during the day. It hears very faintly the music or the TV playing somewhere close by. But during the night, when you’re trying to sleep, it gets really quiet.
Suddenly, all the sound disappears and the level of confusion in the brain increases in response. It only knows one thing to do when confronted with total silence – generate noise even if it isn’t real. Sensory deprivation has been shown to induce hallucinations as the brain tries to insert information, such as auditory input, into a place where there isn’t any.
In other words, it’s too quiet at night so your tinnitus seems louder. If you’re having a difficult time sleeping because your tinnitus symptoms are so loud, creating some noise may be the answer.
How to generate noise at night
For some people suffering from tinnitus, all they need is a fan running in the background. Just the noise of the motor is enough to reduce the ringing.
But you can also buy devices that are exclusively made to lessen tinnitus sounds. White noise machines replicate environmental sounds like rain or ocean waves. If you were to leave a TV on, it may be disruptive, but white noise machines create soothing sounds that you can sleep through. Alternatively, you could try an app that plays calming sounds from your smartphone.
Can anything else make tinnitus symptoms louder?
Lack of sound isn’t the only thing that can cause an upsurge in your tinnitus. For example, if you’re indulging in too much alcohol before you go to bed, that could contribute to tinnitus symptoms. Other things, like high blood pressure and stress can also be a contributing factor. Give us a call for an appointment if these suggestions aren’t helping or if you’re feeling dizzy when your tinnitus symptoms are active.
References
https://hearinghealthfoundation.org/hearing-loss-tinnitus-statistics/