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A space for real stories, honest reflections, and small victories from life with tinnitus and hearing loss.
Here you’ll find comfort, perspective, and maybe even a laugh or two as we learn to live a little more peacefully with that damn noise.
CBT for Tinnitus: It’s Basically Therapy Without the Drama
By Marie
Quick explainer: What is CBT (and why is it used for tinnitus)?
CBT stands for Cognitive Behavioural Therapy.
Despite the intimidating name, it’s actually very practical and down-to-earth.
CBT doesn’t try to:
- “fix” the tinnitus sound
- make it disappear
- tell you it’s all in your head
What it does help with is:
- how your brain reacts to the sound
- the fear, stress, and constant monitoring
- the unhelpful thought loops that keep tinnitus centre stage
In simple terms, CBT helps your nervous system learn that tinnitus is annoying but not dangerous. Which often reduces distress, improves sleep, and allows the noise to fade into the background of life.
⇒ No lying on a therapy couch.
⇒ No deep childhood excavation.
⇒ No one shouting “CALM DOWN” at your ears.
When someone first suggested CBT for tinnitus, I’ll be honest, I imagined a therapist leaning very close to my ear and shouting:
“CALM. DOWN.”
Possibly whilst waving a clipboard.
⇒ Shockingly, that is not how it works.
CBT doesn’t try to “fix” the sound itself. It doesn’t switch tinnitus off, mute it, or politely escort it out of the building.
What it does help with is the bit that actually makes tinnitus unbearable:
👉 the distress
👉 the fear
👉 the constant “why is this happening / will this ever stop / am I doomed forever?” spiral
And that turns out to be… quite a big deal.
CBT Isn’t About the Noise
It’s About Your Reaction to It
Tinnitus is strange because two people can hear roughly the same sound, but experience it completely differently.
- One person shrugs and carries on.
- The other is stuck in fight-or-flight. Heart racing, scanning for the noise, panicking about sleep, silence, and the future.
That difference? It’s not strength. It’s not attitude.
It’s what the nervous system is doing.
CBT works by gently untangling the unhelpful loops between:
- thoughts (“this is unbearable”)
- emotions (fear, frustration, hopelessness)
- physical reactions (tension, hyper-focus, stress)
Instead of trying to silence tinnitus, CBT helps your brain understand that the sound is not a threat. And once the brain stops treating it like an emergency… things start to soften.
“But It’s All in My Head, Right?” (No. And Also Yes.)
This is where CBT often gets misunderstood.
People hear “therapy” and think it means:
- the tinnitus isn’t real
- you’re imagining it
- you just need to think more positively
None of that is true.
⇒ The sound is real.
⇒ The distress is real.
⇒ Your experience is real.
CBT doesn’t tell you the sound isn’t there.
It helps your brain stop reacting as if a tiger has entered the room every time it notices it.
- No toxic positivity.
- No “just ignore it”.
- No pretending you’re fine.
What CBT for Tinnitus Actually Helps With
People who go through CBT for tinnitus often report:
- less panic when they notice the sound
- fewer catastrophic thoughts
- improved sleep
- reduced anxiety and low mood
- more headspace for actual life
And importantly, the tinnitus itself often feels quieter. Not because the sound has changed, but because it’s no longer front and centre Your brain stops shining a spotlight on it 24/7. Which is, frankly, a relief.
If This Sounds Familiar, You’re Not Alone
If reading this made you think,
“Oh. So it’s not about fighting the sound. It’s about changing how my brain reacts to it,” then you’re already standing on the same path CBT works with.
That’s actually why I wrote my ebook:
Your Life is Bigger Than the Noise
I'm not selling anything. You can down the ebook directly for free without any sign up.
A 6-Stage Journey to Habituating Tinnitus and Reclaiming Your Life
It’s not a “cure”. It doesn’t promise silence. And it definitely doesn’t tell you to “just ignore it”.
What it does do is walk you through the mental and emotional shifts that help tinnitus stop running your life.
Think:
- understanding what’s actually happening in your brain
- learning how to reduce fear and hyper-focus
- building trust with your nervous system again
- and slowly getting more life back into the picture
A free, practical self-coaching guide for anyone living with tinnitus.
If you’ve been feeling overwhelmed, stuck, or just tired of the noise taking up too much space in your life, this little book might help you breathe again. It’s simple, calm, and created to give you tiny shifts that add up to real change.
Download the e-book in PDF format (no email required, no fuss)
Or read the full series on my site
CBT Has the Strongest Evidence (Even If That’s Not Very Exciting)
Here’s the slightly boring but reassuring bit:
CBT is currently the most strongly supported, evidence-based treatment for reducing tinnitus distress. It’s recommended by major tinnitus and audiology organisations worldwide. Study after study shows that it improves quality of life, even when the sound itself doesn’t disappear.
⇒ No hype.
⇒ No miracle claims.
⇒ Just… solid results.
Read more on CBT on the Tinntus.org.uk website; https://tinnitus.org.uk/tinnitus-treatments/cognitive-behavioural-therapy-cbt
Good News If the Idea of Therapy Rooms Makes You Sweat
You don’t have to lie down and analyse your childhood.
Recent research shows that:
- CBT delivered by audiologists
- online CBT programmes
- telehealth sessions
can all be effective for tinnitus.
So yes, you can do this:
- at home
- in your pyjamas (that's a win-win for me!)
- without making awkward eye contact
Which feels very on-brand for modern coping.
And don't forget, if you’re looking for something you can go through at your own pace — without appointments, pressure, or jargon — my ebook Your Life is Bigger Than the Noise is there when you’re ready. it's not to replace CBT, because I'm not qualified for that, but it's a solid start!
Sometimes it helps just to know there’s a path.
Your Life Is Bigger Than the Noise
A free, practical self-coaching guide for anyone living with tinnitus.
If you’ve been feeling overwhelmed, stuck, or just tired of the noise taking up too much space in your life, this little book might help you breathe again. It’s simple, calm, and created to give you tiny shifts that add up to real change.
Download the e-book in PDF format (no email required, no fuss)
Or read the full series on my site
CBT Isn’t About “Fixing” You
CBT isn’t about changing who you are.
It’s not about being calmer, stronger, or more “zen”.
It’s about giving your brain new information: “This sound is annoying, but it is not dangerous.”
And when your nervous system finally believes that? The volume of distress drops.
Life gets bigger again.
And tinnitus stops running the show.
No shouting required.
Take care
Marie
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Or The "Habituating Tinnitus" series
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I do not offer medical advice. I am not a doctor or a medical professional.
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