Cognitive behavioural therapy
Cognitive behavioural therapy is often used to address phobias, but it can also benefit those with tinnitus, even if the expert doesn’t necessarily specialise in tinnitus, Sherlock says. You’ll learn techniques like deep breathing or muscle relaxation to use when you’re in a moment of high anxiety to change the way you react to the condition. “It’s flipping ‘I hate this’ into ‘this makes me uncomfortable, but I can deal with it,’” Dr Sherlock says.
Tinnitus retraining therapy
Tinnitus retraining therapy is one of the tinnitus cures that’s specific to the disorder. By combining sound therapy with education, experts help make the condition less scary, Sherlock says. “The goal of education is to demystify tinnitus,” she says. “Once they know what the threat is or isn’t, over time the brain is much less likely to keep reacting to it.”
Tinnitus activities treatment
Tinnitus activities treatment uses the same principles of education and sound therapy and targets the session towards a patient’s specific problems, Sherlock says. “If a patient’s primary problem is they can’t concentrate, they might go in for one or two sessions to discuss activities to help concentrate,” she says.