Imagine having a constant ringing noise in your ears. Sounds annoying, right? For some people, this sensation known as tinnitus can have a huge impact on their quality of life. Most often it causes temporary symptoms, but some people experience persistent and severe symptoms that can make every day feel bothersome. Fortunately, at TMJ Therapy & Sleep Center of Colorado, we offer tinnitus treatment in Denver, CO that could help you reclaim your quality of life.
Hearing Loss
Hearing loss is just one of the side effects of severe tinnitus. If you have a ringing in your ears and suddenly realize that you’ve also had difficulty hearing people speak clearly, it’s likely from the tinnitus. You might not even realize it until you notice how often you ask people to repeat themselves or to speak up. It’s important to note that tinnitus doesn’t actually cause hearing loss. It makes it more difficult for you to concentrate on focused listening.
Simple tasks like ordering food and drinks, socializing, or listening to a meeting at work can feel frustrating, difficult, and daunting. The good news, however, is that if tinnitus is the cause of your hearing problems and TMJ is the underlying cause, with TMJ treatment your condition will improve and so will the quality of your life.
Concentration
It’s probably no surprise that living with tinnitus can make it difficult to remain focused. Imagine writing a paper and a car alarm keeps going off outside your window. Only the alarm never ends. That’s what life is like living with tinnitus. 16% of people with tinnitus reported having trouble concentrating and 2% reported feeling unable to work.
The constant ringing in your ears can affect your work or school performance, or just make it difficult to read a book, learn, study, or solve any type of problem. If you’re also experiencing disrupted sleep from tinnitus, the combination of the two can make it even more difficult to stay concentrated on certain tasks.
Sleep Disruption
If you’re used to going to sleep in a quiet environment, tinnitus can easily disrupt your sleep. Imagine going to bed and all you can hear is your alarm clock going off. It’s going to feel incredibly difficult to fall asleep and stay asleep. The more aware of your tinnitus you are, the more it can affect your sleep. It can also make falling back asleep after waking up in the middle of the night hard. With enough disrupted sleep from tinnitus, you will begin to feel sleep deprived which can affect your focus and energy during the day and severely impact your quality of life, much like living with sleep apnea. 18% of people with tinnitus report having sleep problems.
Emotions
The last way tinnitus can impact your quality of life is by affecting your emotions. Going back to the car alarm analogy; if you have to listen to a car alarm going off all day long, it’s going to get annoying. When you’re feeling annoyed, you might start to react to situations with more anger, frustration, and worry. Some people who suffer from tinnitus even report having depression or anxiety. If you can’t control your emotions because of your tinnitus, you might fight with friends, family, and coworkers, or even go off on people in stores. When you’re not in control of your emotions, your entire life can begin to unravel.
The key to resolving your emotional reactions is by managing your reactions to tinnitus. However, if TMJ is the cause of your tinnitus, TMJ treatment will help eliminate tinnitus and, therefore, help you get back to normal where controlling your emotions is second-nature.
Is Your Tinnitus Caused By TMJ?
Your ears not only rest next to the TM joint, but the TM joint also shares some of the same nerves and muscles as the middle ear. When you have a TMJ disorder, it can cause problems with these nerves and muscles. As a result, tinnitus can occur.
One way to determine if TMJ is the cause of your tinnitus is by looking for other TMJ symptoms. If you notice any of the following, it’s very likely TMJ is the cause.
- Clicking or popping noise when opening/closing the jaw
- Sore jaw, face, neck
- Sensitive teeth
- Ear pain
- Lockjaw
- Frequent headaches or migraines
If you experience any of these symptoms, we highly encourage you to visit our TMJ dentist in Denver, CO for a consultation.
Tinnitus Treatment in Denver, CO
During your consultation with Dr. Berry, he will examine your jaw, take x-rays, and use other advanced dental technology to diagnose TMJ. After your diagnosis, he will create a TMJ treatment plan that might consist of using a bite splint and potentially BOTOX.
Within weeks of treatment, your symptoms should begin to subside, including your tinnitus. Once the tinnitus begins to go away along with your other symptoms, we assure your quality of life will also begin to improve!
If you’re ready to treat your tinnitus in Denver, please call our office at (303) 691-0267 to schedule a consultation with Dr. Berry.
