Tinnitus Retraining Therapy Is Ineffective, Latest Study Finds

One possible reason why TRT may have been thought of as having been" ineffective" is that although the TRT protocol follows a strict ruleset, it also takes into account that no two people will respond in an identical manner to the treatment, let alone their perception of tinnitus. People have different personalities, different lifestyles, different responses to tinnitus, and indeed the tinnitus sound is as unique as the individual experiencing it.

There are so many variables involved with tinnitus that it would be pretty difficult, if not impossible to develop a standardized double blind placebo experiment protocol, the same criteria could equally apply to CBT, both approaches can only be tentatively valuated scientifically, indeed TRT and CBT have many features in common with each other in the way that they work. They do not cure the problem they are addressing, their purpose in both cases is to change how the patient perceives the bothersome problem.

This is also called re-framing (something that will be familiar to anyone who has looked at Neuro Linguistic Programming, which is also a behavioural modification therapy of sorts).

 

The audiologist at the medical college of Wisconsin told me not to use formal sound therapy and just instead gave me a free plan to use (sounds on apps for a few hours a day for a couple month). She also told me that in time the noise will just be something I'd get used to and learn to ignore most of the time. That is what happened. I am not sure it's different with those with hearing loss (I have normal hearing).

 

You know damn well your tinnitus was caused by hearing damage.

Google hidden hearing loss, thank me later.

 

In some regards I think your Audiologist gave you good advice, having looked through the TRT book critically, it does look more and more like an overpriced, very long, sales pitch (or am I just being too cynical?). if you pay shed loads of money, and are repeatedly fed material to support a given idea until you believe it at a subconscious level, then in that respect it "works" to a degree.

Having read around the subject it does appear there is a significant drop rate for TRT, in the end analysis though, if it works for some people and does no additional harm, then I'm OK with that, it does have a lot of correlations with CBT (as I mentioned in a post or so back).

Personally I think it is only viable in fairly severe cases of tinnitus or hyperacusis, and if you can afford the fees AND have the degree of perseverance to follow through with the full protocol.

 

Let me clarify. I do not have any hearing loss in the hearing range of 0-8 kHz. None. Three tests with 3 different providers, including an ENT office, show that. I DO have hearing loss in the inaudible ranges (dog whistle level) which does not matter in regard to hearing in my environment. That damage, in the high levels, is what causes my tinnitus.

 

That's the expectation for the inaudible ranges. Literally.