As you most likely recognize, sustained periods of stress aren’t healthy for the body. Stress can produce serious muscle aches and headaches. But did you know stress can also bring about tinnitus, a ringing, buzzing, or clicking in the ears?
Tinnitus can be caused by numerous different health factors, including stress, sinus infections, or loud noises. Let’s have a look at several potential causes of that irritating noise in your ears.
Unhealthy Stress – How to Identify it
How does stress relate to tinnitus? We often don’t think about the negative effect stress can have on our bodies or how it can result in frustrating, painful, or even serious medical problems. Ignoring stress isn’t a good idea.
Healthy Stress
Short term stress can actually be a really motivating factor with regards to accomplishing tasks. If you’re facing a deadline and need to focus on finishing a project, stress can be an ally by providing the boost of energy required to finish the job.
But short term, healthy stress and chronic, harmful stress are two very different things. Healthy stress helps you reach a goal without damaging your body. Unhealthy stress is harmful for your body.
Unhealthy Stress
Unhealthy stress is caused by the fear of something that, generally, never actually happens. When someone remains in a heightened state of anxiety, the outcome is frequently unhealthy stress.
Unhealthy stress relates to our “fight or flight” response, a natural reaction that helps keep us safe in dangerous situations. When someone remains in a hyper-stressful state for a long period of time, it can lead to harmful physical symptoms.
Worrying
Unhealthy stress is often the result of worrying. We might exaggerate the importance of a situation or a relationship with other people. We might tell ourselves we ruined a chance at a promotion because of something we said. Too much worrying can cause intrusive, seemingly unmanageable thoughts.
Invasive Thoughts And Unhealthy Stress
We may believe that we are falling behind and failing to fulfill our daily routine. Obsession, unending internal dialog, and even panic are a common part of this kind of stress. If we don’t take some positive actions to deal with this stress it will keep wearing down our body.
Pain and muscle tension on the upper body are normal effects of unhealthy stress. The head, neck shoulders, and jaw are areas that can be impacted.
Jaw Tension And Anger
Have you ever read a book where the writer talks about a character as being so angry his jaw clenched in rage? Stress, anger, worry, and intrusive thoughts often come with jaw tension.
Pressure can be put on the fragile bones of the eardrum and inner ear by sustained tension. Eventually, this strain can cause ringing in your ears.
Sinus Infections And Ear Strain
Sinus infections bring many unwelcome symptoms, from a stuffy nose to a soar throat.
Sinus pressure, headaches, and pressure in the ears are common symptoms of a sinus infection. A buzzing, clicking and ringing can be the result.
When you have a sinus infection, your nasal congestion frequently spreads to your ears. This can generate accumulated earwax, which leads to blockages in the ears and severe pressure on the eardrums. And with this comes ringing in the ears.
You might not need to see a hearing professional if the ringing is being caused by a sinus infection, as the symptoms could clear up by themselves. If the ringing continues for more than a few days, however, you should schedule an appointment with a hearing professional.
Prolonged Exposure to Loud Noises
The intermittent music show is probably not going to cause lasting ear-ringing. If you routinely expose your ears to very loud sounds, however, you may be introducing stress to the tender parts of your ears.
When you expose your ears to intense noises regularly, your eardrums and the bones of the inner ears are put under a great deal of strain, which can produce buzzing, ringing, or clicking.
Beyond the occasional ringing in your ears, exposure to intense sounds over a long period can trigger temporary or lasting loss of hearing. It’s essential to protect your ears from the elements and listen to music at a sensible volume level.
Protecting Your Ears
Whether caused by stress, muscle tension, an illness, or loud noises, tinnitus shouldn’t be ignored. It’s best to have your ears tested by a hearing specialist on a regular basis. For your peace of mind, you should get examined, especially if you think that your tinnitus is being triggered by a serious underlying medical issue.