Are you being kept awake by ringing in your ears? You don’t need to just live with it. Here are some tricks for quieting that annoying, constant sound so you can get some sleep.

Moderate to severe tinnitus can definitely throw a monkey wrench in your sleep cycle. During the day, you’re preoccupied with noise and activity so your tinnitus might seem less noticeable. But at night, when there’s less noise, tinnitus can seem louder and more disturbing.

The good news is, if you want to have an easier time falling asleep, there are some techniques you can use.

Five tips for falling asleep when you have tinnitus are presented below.

1. Stop Resisting The Noise

Although this may sound difficult, if you focus on it, it gets worse. This is partly because for most people higher blood pressure can worsen tinnitus symptoms. You will feel worse the more you dwell on it and your irritation will increase. You can make the sound fade away a little by thinking about something else and using the following techniques.

2. Establish a Nighttime Routine

Condition your body to get sleepy at the right time by creating healthy sleep habits such as dimming the lights, winding down at least a half an hour before you go to bed, and going to bed at the same time every night. This will make it easier to fall asleep when you’re ready.

Tinnitus has also been associated with stress. It’s also helpful to build habits to de-stress before bed.

• Reading a book in a quiet room
• Dimming the lights at least an hour before you go to bed
• Making your bedroom a little cooler
• Stretching or doing yoga
• Listening to gentle sounds or soft music
• Concentrating on thoughts that make you happy and calm
• Staying away from alcohol
• At least a few hours before bed, steer clear of eating
• Going into a bath
• Doing deep breathing or a short meditation

Getting into a predictable schedule before bed helps you shift from the stresses of the day into night and teaches your body to transition into sleep.

3. Watch What You Eat

There are known triggers to tinnitus such as alcohol and artificial sweeteners. Stay away from certain foods if you find, after monitoring your diet and symptoms, that they trigger or worsen your tinnitus. Caffeine is also a trigger so at least avoid drinking it in the afternoon and at night.

4. Avoid Common Causes of Tinnitus

Ringing or other noises in your ears can be caused by many things. Dealing with the cause of tinnitus can help it get better or even prevent it altogether. You can do several things to help:

• In order to determine whether your exposed to loud noises, and how to reduce that exposure, you have to assess your lifestyle
• Don’t use earbuds…use headphones instead and keep the sound level low
• If you have inherent conditions like high blood pressure, get help for it
• Use ear protection
• Go for your annual checkup
• If you have anxiety or depression, get it treated
• To find out if one of your medications is causing tinnitus symptoms ask your doctor

If you can identify what’s causing the ringing in your ears, you may be able to deal with it better.

5. Get Examined by a Hearing Care Specialist

A professional hearing test can help you determine what’s causing your tinnitus and suggest possible treatments. There are several ways hearing professionals can help you take care of your tinnitus including:

• Fitting you for hearing aids designed to cancel out the noise
• Help you deal with thought patterns revealed to make tinnitus worse by suggesting cognitive behavior therapy
• Help you train your brain not to hear tinnitus by enrolling you in therapy

To speed up recovery and sleep better at night, seek professional help. To see if you can get some help with your tinnitus, schedule your appointment with a hearing care specialist.