Episode 13: Tinnitus and the Power of Prediction — Dr. Will Sedley

[Tinnitus Talk]

Hi everybody!

While our previous episode, on Frequency Therapeutics, might be hard to top, we are truly excited to bring you this next episode. It's a real opportunity to deepen your knowledge on the neurological underpinnings of tinnitus, explained in plain language.

Dr. Will Sedley is a neurologist who has dedicated his career to understanding the brain mechanisms underlying tinnitus. His own theory is that tinnitus arises due to how the brain uses predictive processing in dealing with sensory inputs.

We also cover topics like: the factors that trigger the onset of tinnitus, whether there are many different causes of tinnitus or really only one, the analogy with other conditions like chronic pain, the reliability of animal models, how to develop an objective marker of tinnitus, and the thorny issue of whether tinnitus subtypes really exist.

You can learn more about Will's work, and engage with him directly, through this thread.

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Listen on:

• Tinnitus Talk Podcast (incl. timestamps and transcript)
  
• SoundCloud
  
• iTunes
  
• Spotify

We welcome any discussion, but please keep the following in mind when commenting:

• Off-topic comments, i.e. not directly responding to the content of the podcast, will be removed. So please do listen before commenting!
• While we welcome constructive criticism on ideas or policies, we do not tolerate direct attacks on individuals.

This episode was produced, as usual, by @Markku and @Hazel and @Autumnly. Transcription was done by @Liz Windsor and @Andrea Rings. Do you want to volunteer as well? Let us know!

We also thank our Patreon supporters for making this podcast possible.

Don't forget to:

• Send Ideas and Suggestions for Future Podcast Episodes

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Share the podcast on your social media and with your tinnitus friends!

 

[UHPTS]

Thanks for the interview!

Does the sound therapy that is being talked about have a name?

 

[Frédéric]

 

[Frédéric]

Many thanks to @Markku, @Hazel and @Autumnly for the production.

Many thanks to @Liz Windsor and @Andrea Rings for the transcription.

 

[Kendra]

Thanks for the new podcast! I always look foreword to them. They give me comfort and hope knowing tinnitus is being researched and taken seriously.

 

[SallyM]

Will Sedley, thank you, the hour and a half I spent listening to you and Hazel was very much worth it. Godspeed for your research!

 

[Reinier]

Interesting podcast.

I noticed something that could perhaps be regarded as the predictive power of the brain.

I have considerably more hearing loss in my right ear. I know that with this ear I will not hear certain frequencies.

Yet when I listen to (for example) a radio that is located on my right, I cannot determine that the higher frequencies (like "s" sounds in speech) are picked up by my left ear and not my right ear. (This is not because of room acoustics. The same happens with headphones).

I know that the radio is located on the right side of me. I cannot "unknow" this. My brain fills in the missing higher frequencies that are not picked up by my right ear. So the effect is that I "think" that I hear the higher frequencies with my right ear, which cannot happen because of the hearing loss. Not good for the stereo experience .

Sometimes when I really concentrate I do hear that the higher frequencies are picked up by my left ear and not my right ear. Fascinating that the brain can play tricks in that way.

 

[Ed209]

Great episode.

 

[mikki_]

Maybe he is on the correct path. If one looks at YouTube for tinnitus sound therapies then many of the most popular ones have sound components that are totally unpredictable. This kind of YouTube "market analysis" is no scientific fact yet it can give hints on what kind of approach might work.

 

[JohnFox]

Fascinating that the brain can play tricks in that way.

Yes, the brain is fascinating. I have found that in certain environments wearing headphones helps my tolerate the significant tinnitus in my head. I have the static hissing type. For watching TV I have found that wearing a pair of Bluetooth noise cancelling headphones tricks my brain into feeling like the tinnitus noise is coming in from the headphones, which in turn is less bothersome to me. It is the only way I can watch TV without experiencing a lot of discomfort. I have very noise reactive tinnitus. This also works when I fly my airplane. I am a private pilot, and when I fly I wear a pair of headphones. As soon as I put on the headphones and start the engine I hardly notice the tinnitus. The static hissing noise is still there, but my sense is that it is all coming from the headphones with all the other airplane noises. If I really concentrate I can hear the tinnitus loud and clear. Then, when I pull off the headphones when done flying, it all comes back and I realize that oh yea, it's inside my head.

 

[XrayTom]

Really Great Podcast Episode!

Dr. Sedley sounds like he's on the ball. Let's hope he can help us tinnitus sufferers. I would be happy even if he was only able to lower our tinnitus by half or more! Our Prayers are with you Will!