Bad news and good news for tinnitus sufferers

> Martin’s resignation in the face of tinnitus isn’t rare, perhaps because tinnitus remains poorly understood.

No. It's because you go to the doctor and you literally get sent home without being helped in any way whatsoever. Well, he looks into your ear and maybe you get some useless medication. Just save the money and time and deal with it, that's all you can do as of today.

So what are the good and bad news? I didn't find it by skimming.

I found the docs useless. I found earplugs helped a bit - they can prevent further damage and allow the body to recover.

Bad news (there is no cure):

  “We both found the same brain structure involved in the
  cortex,” he says. “Both tinnitus and chronic pain are
  chronic conditions—there is no cure.”

Good news (there may be treatment):

  Rauschecker says, some believe there may be “an
  underlying brain condition that gives you tinnitus and
  depression.” For this reason, Rasuchecker feels that
  dopamine and serotonin are hot candidates for drug
  therapies.

  A study in March, citing Rauschecker’s paper on chronic
  pain and tinnitus, demonstrates “that the meta-
  cognitive ability to acknowledge and let go of arising
  sensory events engages a unique, self-facilitated pain
  modulatory system.” In others words, meditation can
  help reduce chronic pain, and perhaps tinnitus.

MAWP