Tinnitus: Why Are My Ears Ringing — And How Do I Make It Stop?

That ringing sound in your ears is probably annoying and distracting. But it probably isn’t a serious health problem. Technically called tinnitus, this condition affects nearly 50 million Americans, according to the American Tinnitus Association.¹ In fact, tinnitus isn’t a disorder itself, but a symptom of an underlying condition. Read on to learn more about tinnitus causes, symptoms, treatment and management.

Causes of tinnitus

Tinnitus can be caused by a number of factors that can result in an interruption of sound transmission from your ear to your brain. This may ultimately lead to nerve cells creating a tone your brain interprets as a sound. Common causes of tinnitus can include:

• Age-related hearing loss
• Damage to hair cells in the inner ear
• Exposure to loud noises
• Earwax blockage
• Chronic health conditions and certain medications

Symptoms of tinnitus

Symptoms of tinnitus can present a variety of “phantom” noises that only you can hear. These can include sounds such as a ringing, humming, clicking or buzzing in ears. The exact sound, as well as its volume and pitch vary from person to person. Tinnitus symptoms may come and go, may get worse, may remain the same or may disappear on their own. Even when the condition that initially caused the tinnitus is treated, tinnitus symptoms may continue.

Managing and treating tinnitus

Left untreated, people with tinnitus may experience difficulty sleeping, focusing and communicating — leading to a decline in quality of life. Fortunately, tinnitus can improve with a variety of treatment options. Techniques for effectively treating and managing tinnitus often focus on decreasing or covering up the sound and can include:

• Behavioral therapies
• Masking devices that generate low-level white noise
• Relaxation strategies, since stress can make tinnitus symptoms worse
• Avoiding certain foods or drinks and focusing on healthy lifestyle habits
• Hearing aids

To manage tinnitus, it may also be helpful to track what makes your tinnitus symptoms worse, such as certain foods or a poor night’s sleep. Healthy lifestyle habits like exercising and distracting yourself with work or fun activities may also help manage tinnitus. Other tips on how to prevent tinnitus from getting worse include not smoking, avoiding loud noises and using ear protection when needed. Here are some additional healthy hearing and ear care tips.

If you experience symptoms of tinnitus that don’t improve in a week, have tinnitus symptoms that appear without an apparent cause or if you experience hearing loss or dizziness with tinnitus symptoms, be sure to schedule an appointment with an audiologist. The doctor will review your health history and may perform a hearing test to help determine the cause of the problem and develop a tinnitus treatment or management plan. Additionally, here are some questions to ask your audiologist .

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