Can Hypnotherapy help tinnitus

[Spinach123]

Hi....my husband who has severe reactive tinnitus has been offered Hypnotherapy to try and help. I just wondered if anyone else has experience of receiving it and did it help ? My husband cannot tolerate any long conversations atm and concern is listening to a therapist talking to him for an hour may make him worse.

[perlcoder]

Hello,

I have suffered from reactive T for more than 20 years. It is often severe, and is very difficult to mask. I understand why hypnotherapy has attractions, and I should make clear that I have not tried it myself, and that the personal / psychological nature of T means that treatments that are of benefit to one person may not help another whose case may appear identical. Personally, I doubt that a session with a hypnotherapist is likely to make him worse, but all that said, there appears to be little or no evidence that, on the whole, hypnotherapy is useful in the treatment of T.

tinnitus.org.uk/tinnitus-tr...

Best wishes to both of you.

[Spinach123 in reply to perlcoder]

Thank you for reply. Practicalities of his severe reactive tinnitus is he is housebound and I guess it's just one more option to look at. Getting him to an app is a trial as although he would wear noise cancelling headphones to protect noise from car engine he also cannot cope with anyone talking to him, quietly that is, for more than 15 mins. Do you manage to get out ?

[perlcoder in reply to Spinach123]

You are welcome.

My T was always reactive and difficult to mask unless the masking source is actually in my ear canal - as with my hearing aid masker and the earbuds I wear most evenings. I am fortunate in not being significantly hyperacusic (it seems that your husband might be), so ordinary environmental sounds are not, in themselves, a problem for me for most of the time. I notice the reactivity more when, for example, boiling a kettle, which my T will rise in volume to match or exceed. Appointments, shopping etc are generally ok, but I entirely understand his problem with conversations - there are times when I am listening and nodding, but not really hearing and just wanting to get away. Also my T has gradually worsened over these many years from a relatively low base, and I suppose that has helped me to deal with it.

Going back to the hypnotherapy, apart from any suffering involved in going to the appointment and maintaining conversation, if I were in your shoes I would fear more the impact of disappointment. We all think that the next thing we try will help, and disappointment hits hard.

Severe T is as great a burden for our partners, imposing irksome constraints on their lives as it does on ours. Look after yourself.

Best wishes.

[youngbob]

I had several sessions of hypnotherapy which was very expensive, but unfortunately didn’t do anything for me, but that’s not to say it wouldn’t work for your husband, good luck.

[Spinach123 in reply to youngbob]

Thank you

[Delghor]

Hi. I’m a fellow sufferer. I’ve wondered about hypnotherapy. I hope it works. Would love to know the outcome

[Spinach123 in reply to Delghor]

Hi ...I'll certainly let you know if I can get hubby there

[Delghor]

I’d endure anything to get rid of it. Even consider sharp objects.

Good luck

[MAC0811]

I’d love to be able to come on here and say yes! But it didn’t seem to have any effect on me? Tbh they don’t hypnotise you (??) as I found out, not in the way you’re thinking or indeed I was. there’s none of this being put in a trance and being made to do things against your will? As she said that that’s all poppycock and no one can ever control you, its all nonsense what you see and hear and it’s simply your choice if you want to do what they say!? So when I had this treatment I was well aware of everything and simply did what she asked like close your eyes and raise your hand etc? She was telling me to imagine I’m in certain environments which were peaceful etc and telling me how your feeling sleepy and your eyes are getting heavy etc but none of this was done through her control, it was all voluntary, anyway so all it really achieved was me copying what she wanted me to do. So it made absolute no difference to my suffering at all any of what she said and did, and it wasn’t cheap either!! Note; when I pressed her about how come you see people on tv shows etc doing daft things on a stage when they’re supposedly hypnotised? And her response was; they’re either stooges / plants or else they have chosen to do the things they’ve asked them to do!! So it seems it’s all a load of nonsense. But go and try it and find out for yourselves? But they were my findings. Best thing I find for helping bad tinnitus and Hyoeracusis is distraction and listening to white noise or else having slight noise in the background and have hope and pray that one day someone will actually find a decent treatment for the cause of it all and not just for the bloody effects, and as of course the effects of antidepressants soon wear off too and don’t last forever, so they’re only sticking plasters at best!

[Saorfhlaith22]

Has he had CBT ? I am thinking of that myself. I have T RT and H we’ve had to buy a hybrid car to help me get out of the house just to couple small local shops I need to get head phones or ear buds but don’t know how they Wk with iPhones my daughter helped us with stuff like that but she doesn’t want to know me now Iam not well with this

[reorosie in reply to Saorfhlaith22]

I use Bose noise quiet comfort noise cancelling headphones for travelling in the car,it helps to block out road noise to some extent ,not completely but I can’t travel without them as they really help. They are compatible with iPhones as that is what I use. The headphones are quite expensive but I find well worth it to get some relief and take them with me everywhere. Wishing you well.

[Saorfhlaith22 in reply to reorosie]

Thanks for that