Can Not Wearing Hearing Aids When You Have Hearing Loss and Should Wear Them Cause Tinnitus?

[Bleep]

As the title says... That's what I am wondering...

 

[glynis]

Your hearing aids are set up for the frequencies missing so wearing them should help what you hear and the signals to your auditory pathways to your brain.
Love glynis

 

[Harvest King]

As the title says... That's what I am wondering...

If you do not have tinnitus but have hearing loss by all means, if it assists with any missing frequencies. However if you do have tinnitus using a hearing aid will make tinnitus worse and you will become hyper sensitive to noise.
Difficulty hearing due to tinnitus means that the frequencies already playing in your head mask the external sound entering. A hearing aid would amplify the sound to the already affected cilia (tinnitus frequency related) and could create more damage and increase the tinnitus.
Whatever the cause of the tinnitus even if only temporary (hear infection, noise induced, TMJ disorders, medication etc), tinnitus becomes an entity unto itself, it's part neurological (in this case neurobiological), that's why it is so difficult to treat. I have had temporary success using dry needling but it's painful. It halves the tinnitus but only for a few days due to the neuroplasticity of the brain. I have other avenues I will be considering. As soon as I see if they work I will keep everyone posted.
Cheers

 

[slipware]

And I thought I was imagining my tinnitus is MUCH worse while wearing, and after wearing my hearing aids. Now I know I'm not. And I'm not the only one!
Thank you so much for this explanation, it really helps my understanding. I'm due to see ENT again. This will help me explain.

 

[Tinker Bell]

If you do not have tinnitus but have hearing loss by all means, if it assists with any missing frequencies. However if you do have tinnitus using a hearing aid will make tinnitus worse and you will become hyper sensitive to noise.
Difficulty hearing due to tinnitus means that the frequencies already playing in your head mask the external sound entering. A hearing aid would amplify the sound to the already affected cilia (tinnitus frequency related) and could create more damage and increase the tinnitus.
Whatever the cause of the tinnitus even if only temporary (hear infection, noise induced, TMJ disorders, medication etc), tinnitus becomes an entity unto itself, it's part neurological (in this case neurobiological), that's why it is so difficult to treat. I have had temporary success using dry needling but it's painful. It halves the tinnitus but only for a few days due to the neuroplasticity of the brain. I have other avenues I will be considering. As soon as I see if they work I will keep everyone posted.
Cheers

I do not think this is entirely true for everyone. Some people with hearing loss and tinnitus use hearing aids and find their tinnitus reduces because they can hear the missing frequency so their brain essentially stops searching for it. In cases where someone has lost more than the frequency of their tinnitus, being able to hear can help them hear over their tinnitus.

If someone's hearing aid is making their tinnitus louder, I would recommend talking to their audiologist and having the aid adjusted. My understanding is that it can take many adjustments to find the right auditory fit.

 

[Harvest King]

Okay a clarification . . . . yes you can have hearing loss NOT caused by tinnitus ( the masking of frequencies ) as well as tinnitus. It would have to be a very switched on audiologist.
Many audiologists (not all) as with many in the medical profession don't understand tinnitus.
Here . . . . we do because we have it . . . . . and yes it sucks.

Many with tinnitus suffer in silence (except for the ringing of course).
Take Michael Jackson for instance. Why do you think he needed propofol to sleep?