Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

OK, perhaps that is useful therapy but it doesn't sound like CBT. More info about CBT here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_behavioral_therapy

 

I couldn’t agree more! For me it was a tinnitus clinician/audiologist who uses CBT in her sessions to help her clients. I am still trying to get better at implementing the stuff we talked about, but she helped me greatly! A lot of CBT can even be transferable to many different parts of your life as well (ie work, relationships etc...)

 

I find it sad that so many people on this forum feel like CBT/Therapy is a curse word. Instead seeking help, they suffer with their suicidal thoughts, anxiety and depression.

And usually the answer is "therapy cannot make my tinnitus go away"

That is stubborn way of thinking.

I have not gone to therapy because of my tinnitus, but I've been in therapy because of other issues. It really helped me, and whenever I feel I cannot handle my tinnitus alone, I will go back.

This is not easy to handle. I have some good days and then I become depressed and fall back. I don't think I would handle this so well if I hadn't learned some coping skills when I went to therapy.

 

I think that it is worth mentioning that if CBT therapy with a professional is financially out of reach, there are books available which outline methods for readers to use on their own, as well as videos online. Most public libraries have CBT books.

 

What severity is your tinnitus? That is excluded and lost in all this. Do you have any other ear problems besides tinnitus? Ear pain, h or other symptoms that impact your life?

Probably not. The pattern is that it's easier to cope with mild tinnitus or if you are already signs of tinnitus improvement.

It's a fine line between saying CBT can help you cope when most therapists don't even know what tinnitus is and few can relate or understand if the tinnitus is severe enough. Some people don't even want to leave their homes or have frequent spikes or whatever severe affect they are having.

 

@PeteJ

You just like to ignore what people say. I doubt @erik has had any easy time with tinnitus.

If you feel you cannot handle it mentally, isn't that a reason to seek help with the mental struggle?

 

It's not discussed because it's irrelevant. CBT isn't going to change your tinnitus's volume. It's not meant to.

CBT will address your irrational thoughts, and that in turn will help you cope better. That will increase your quality of life, in spite of having an unchanged tinnitus.

Your impermeability to any life improvement that doesn't involve a reduction in your tinnitus is throwing you into the pit of despair because there is no effective treatment that lowers tinnitus's volume today. I suggest you reconsider the rigidity of your requirements.

Good luck!

 

The misunderstanding of CBT and DBT is shocking sometimes. A therapist does not need to really understand tinnitus to help someone with CBT or DBT. The process does not change if you have depression, cancer, MS, tinnitus or any other malady.

 

The corollary is that CBT is applicable to other areas of life. I learned CBT before my tinnitus onset, and I've used the exact same "CBT toolbox" to deal with my tinnitus at onset instead of taking AD drugs.

 

You don't know what I go through and you have the audacity to say I am ignoring people?

It does matter about the volume, about pain and other circumstances. If it didn't, EVERYONE WOULD USE CBT. THE CBT THREAD WOULD BE THE LONGEST THREAD HERE BECAUSE EVERYONE WOULD BE LINING UP ASKING FOR INFO BECAUSE IT IS SO GREAT AND HELPS US ALL COPE!!!!

I hope it looks like I am yelling because I am not getting through for some reason.

Please accept my apology. I know it works for people and you are only trying to help me.
I would like something to help but I wish it would improve and heal on it's own. Let me just say I found it difficult to try cbt and I don't understand how people with severe t claim it helps them. I have a hard time believing that.

 

Now that is quite something. Not only has CBT helped you reduce the stress that is caused by tinnitus but it has helped to improve your thinking in additional areas of your life, as well. Bravo.

 

You’re ignoring the cultural context. The fact is that we’ve been force fed CBT as a replacement for a treatment and everytime we talk about how that’s not okay our own sufferers bend over for these shills. Yeah that gets on your nerves after a while.

 

There really aren't any treatments for tinnitus yet, other than psychological ways of coping, for the majority. It's likely going to be years before any actual noise reduction treatments are available. It seems that if somebody is pitching unproven technology, they're considered legitimate, but when those who support proven psychological ways of coping are called shills, or other nasty terms, then it's obvious that there's something fishy going on in Gotham.

I choose not to sit around waiting for a scientific cure. Psychological ways of handling tinnitus have helped me, not only with tinnitus, but have been very beneficial in other aspects of my life, as well.

 

Hi All,

I have been suffering from tinnitus for the last 6 months, I have my good days and bad days but I'm still feeling very anxious and depressed about the whole thing. I read a couple of articles about CBT and its effectiveness.

My question is does a CBT therapist need to be specifically trained no tinnitus to be effective? Or will someone who is qualified as a CBT without any specific tinnitus training still be effective?

 

Someone who is a CBT practitioner without any specific tinnitus training should still be effective. CBT can be applied to various parts of your life, one of which is tinnitus.

 

There will be more training available in the future, for therapists, regarding tinnitus patients. In the meantime, it would be helpful for the therapists who have patients with T, to learn about tinnitus. There is an online video with Dr. Hubbard, regarding CBT for Tinnitus Distress, which is a very good introduction to the subject
.

 

Or the one @threefirefour recently found.

 

I don't know what you're referring to, but I'm very interested in CBT and tinnitus and would like to see it. Do you have any more information about this video you're referring to? Thanks.

 

Of course. It’s a great video.

CBT: The Full Experience

 

CBT helped because I had never been to a therapist myself, didn’t need it until tinnitus showed up, it’s only as good as its therapist. It’s a toolbox for when you're facing something your body and mind hasn’t had to face. I marked a paper with numbers which came out I was clinically depressed, I still said that’s bull crap. But then I realized I was wrong one day when my voice changed to an extremely low volume. Like my lips didn’t want to move. I was also waking up with my arms cramped and locked to my chest from excessive stress. It was of course the SSHL, dizziness, tinnitus and constant rumination.

Through CBT it at least made me believe things could change and to hold on. And they did, no one else I knew had my problem. The answer was time in my case, and some short term whatever to knock you out and sleep.

It took at least a year and facing the reality only you can help you. I would rate my CBT a B+ because I had a good therapist. Meditation, Yoga all that stuff to me is still garbage, but the socialization aspect was worth it.

I consider myself a pretty tough guy, but for 90 days or so this F’N thing brought me to my knees. I will always and forever be patient and sympathetic for anyone who has weird neurological things and diseases going on. I guess as you get older you never stop learning that compassion is sometimes the only answer.

 

This past session, I made a list of all my anxieties (currently mostly tinnitus related), and my therapist and I developed counter responses to these anxieties. I thought it was helpful.

I do feel that I am running the session and taking the lead. The therapist asked me questions along the way and helped me develop my responses but in the end I was the one who came up with the responses. Is this the way it's supposed to be?

 

Seems like that's the whole point, having a person there to guide you into taking control of your life and being there to affirm this with you.

 

I believe that it is the goal of classic CBT, which is meant to be short term therapy that teaches you how to retrain your mind. Learning how to spot thinking patterns that cause problems, and knowing how to correct them with better, more rational thoughts, is a cornerstone of the foundation of this therapy.

 

I am a member of the American Tinnitus Association. They just released a podcast with a psychologist, Dr. Bruce Hubbard, who has tinnitus and specializes in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for those with tinnitus. You can hear the podcast here:

https://www.ata.org/podcasts/episode-10-habituation-tinnitus-using-cognitive-behavioral-therapy

In this podcast, he tells you what you need to know about CBT. He also has a lot of free resources for those with tinnitus on his website here:

https://www.cbtfortinnitus.com/cbt-for-tinnitus-resources

He says many people can complete CBT for tinnitus in as little as 2 to 10 sessions with someone who is trained in CBT for tinnitus but unfortunately most therapists are not adequately trained in CBT and don't know anything about tinnitus. On his resource page, he has a 90-minute webinar, a mindfulness meditation audio, recommendations for self-help books (he is working on one of his own) and other key self-help information to give it a go for yourself. He does offer coaching on dealing with tinnitus as well should you need/want that.

I suggest you give it a listen and look. Hope this helps.

 

Hi all, I'm having an incredible fall Saturday morning including a walk to the farmer's market and baking a homemade apple pie. Incredible with the exception of my annoying and ever-present friend tinnitus, that is...

I've heard CBT is one of the treatments with the most supporting evidence for tinnitus relief, so I'm interested in pursuing it. My audiologist & ENT even recommended CBT but didn't have any leads on a practitioner, even though I'm in a major metropolitan area (Portland, Oregon). So I have questions...

1. What exactly is CBT?
2. Did it work for you?
3. How does one find a local practitioner specialized in tinnitus?
4. Any advice navigating CBT with health insurance?

Guidance on any or all of these is greatly appreciated!

-Seth

 

Hi Seth, the apple pie sounds incredible. Surely understand the tinnitus issue. A prominent Cognitive Behavior Therapist (CBT) is Dr. Bruce Hubbard in New York. He works via FaceTime or by phone.

His website is:
https://www.cbtfortinnitus.com/dr-bruce-hubbard

Scroll down to the end of that page and you will see his awesome success story as well as how to access his webinar which addresses tinnitus and CBT. His webinar is excellent. CBT is not about treating tinnitus, but “treating” your reaction to it. He is a musician with tinnitus and hyperacusis, as well as active in many educational and tinnitus organizations.

Last time I checked, he can be found in the doctors corner tab of Tinnitus Talk. I worked with him and he helped me. He has lots of material that is helpful. He is very expensive though but his goal is to give you the tools so you can move forward. My insurance did not cover my sessions and he can explain the insurance issue.

He also publishes in the American Tinnitus Association newsletter frequently. Hope this helps.

 

It is a pseudo scientific therapy that works on the basis that your negative stressful mental reaction to having tinnitus is not based on the mere existence of your tinnitus, but rather on the way you react to its presence. It purports to be able to teach you mental strategies that enable you to think and react emotionally and cognitively in a more mindfully mature approach that will lessen your overall negative mental response to having this phantom sensation. It is the very definition of garbage.