![How Do I Get My Ears to Stop Ringing](https://images.medicinenet.com/images/article/main_image/human-ear-pain-eustachian-tubes-illustration-rendering.jpg?output-quality=75)
Ringing in the ears, or tinnitus, can be stopped by treating the underlying cause of the condition, which may involve medications, devices, therapy, or coping strategies. Treatment methods include:
- Medications: Medications should be taken as prescribed and may cause side effects such as constipation, blurry vision, nausea, or fatigue. Drug therapy usually includes tricyclic antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications (nortriptyline, amitriptyline, or Xanax).
- Devices: Cochlear implants, hearing aids, and tinnitus maskers can also be used to treat the condition.
- Sound therapy: Low-level background music, specialized ear maskers, and white noise are remedies that can help you treat tinnitus symptoms at home.
- Tinnitus retraining therapy: Tinnitus retraining therapy retrains the auditory system and helps mask the abnormal sounds of tinnitus as natural rather than disruptive.
- Cognitive behavioral therapy: Tinnitus can be caused by depression, anxiety, or stress. Cognitive behavioral therapy can help treat the condition in such cases.
What is tinnitus?
Tinnitus affects about 15% of people on average worldwide and is characterized by a ringing sound in the ears. Because the noises can be heard without an external source, the sounds are called phantom noises. Tinnitus can occur in one or both ears and can affect people of all ages.
Damage to the ear bones is one of the most common causes of this condition; however, tinnitus can result from anxiety, depression, substance abuse or an underlying health condition. Tinnitus can be frustrating because it interferes with regular hearing, but this condition can be improved with proper treatment.
What does tinnitus feel like?
Tinnitus is an internal sound that can be either low or high-pitched, and may sound like ringing in the ears, although others describe it as buzzing, humming, clicking, roaring, or hissing.
Most people are affected with subjective tinnitus but, in some cases, the sounds can be so loud that they interfere with the ability to concentrate on external sounds.
Tinnitus can cause a pulsing or whooshing sound that becomes rhythmical with your heartbeat, a condition called pulsatile tinnitus.
Seek immediate medical assistance if you develop tinnitus after an upper respiratory infection or are suffering from dizziness, hearing loss, or anxiety attacks along with tinnitus.
![](https://images.medicinenet.com/images/quiz/tinnitus/tinnitus-s1.jpg)
QUESTION
What is tinnitus? See AnswerWhat causes tinnitus?
Tinnitus is not a disease but a symptom of an underlying condition. Sometimes, however, there is no identifiable cause for ringing in the ears.
Common causes of tinnitus include:
- Damage: Delicate cells in the inner ear trigger electrical signals that help the brain interpret sounds. These may get damaged, bent, or broken due to constant exposure to loud noises.
- Buildup: Buildup of fluid, earwax, foreign objects, or dirt can block the ear canal, causing a change in pressure.
- Injury: Injury to the head and neck tissues or nerves can lead to ear problems.
- Medications: Tinnitus can occur as a side effect of medications such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), antibiotics, cancer drugs, antidepressants, antimalarial drugs, and diuretics.
- Conditions: Tinnitus can be caused by conditions such as Eustachian tube dysfunction, temporomandibular joint disorder, acoustic neuroma, or blood vessel disorders.
- Spasms: Muscle spasms in the inner ear can cause hearing loss, a feeling of fullness in the ear, and tinnitus.
Ringing in the ears may be an early indicator of inner ear disorder called Meniere's disease, which is caused by abnormal inner ear fluid pressure.
Harvard Health Publishing. Tinnitus: Ringing in the ears and what to do about it. https://www.health.harvard.edu/diseases-and-conditions/tinnitus-ringing-in-the-ears-and-what-to-do-about-it
National Institutes of Health. Tinnitus. https://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/tinnitus
Top How Do I Get My Ears to Stop Ringing Related Articles
Ear Health Quiz
How loud is too loud? Take this quiz to learn about your ears, how they function, and how to keep them healthy.Tinnitus
Tinnitus is described as a throbbing, ringing, clicking, or buzzing in one or both ears. Tinnitus is caused by trauma to the ear, over exposure to loud noises, medication, and diseases or infections of the ear such as multiple sclerosis, TMJ, autistic neruoma, Meniere's disease, hearing loss, and aging. Treatments include medication, tinnitus masking, retraining therapy, and relief therapy.
Tinnitus Quiz
Is tinnitus just a nuisance or a symptom of a serious medical condition? Take the Tinnitus Quiz to find out!Tinnitus Slideshow
What is tinnitus? Explore tinnitus (ringing in the ears) causes, symptoms, relief remedies, treatments and prevention tips. Learn about pulsatile tinnitus.How Do You Get Rid of Ringing in the Ears (Tinnitus)?
Tinnitus is not a condition in itself, but a symptom of some other condition that causes a high-pitched whine, a ringing, buzzing or clicking in the ears. It can come from any number of problems starting with the eardrum and cochlea – the organs that turn sound waves into electrical signals for the brain to interpret as sound.
What Is the Most Effective Treatment For Tinnitus?
Tinnitus is the perception of abnormal sounds in the ears. Tinnitus may sound like ringing, bussing, roaring, clicking, hissing, or humming in one or both ears. Tinnitus is not a disease itself. Tinnitus is usually a manifestation of an underlying condition, such as age-related hearing loss, ear injury, or circulatory system disorder. However, in many cases, there is no identifiable cause.What Vitamin Deficiency Causes Ringing in the Ears?
Ringing in the ears has been linked to vitamin B12 and vitamin D deficiencies. Treating an underlying cause of tinnitus such as a vitamin deficiency may help relieve symptoms.What Your Ears Say About Your Health
Could your sore or ringing ears be a sign of something else? Find out more from WebMD about what your ears can tell you about your health.Why Does Tinnitus Get Louder sometimes?
Reasons why tinnitus or ringing in the ears may get louder sometimes are still unknown. However, researchers say that the worsening of tinnitus sometimes may be attributed to various triggers.