It’s well known that stress, particularly for extended stretches, can be extremely harmful for your body. Stress can cause serious muscle aches and headaches. But did you know stress can also lead to tinnitus, a ringing, buzzing, or clicking in the ears?
Stress isn’t the only thing that can trigger tinnitus, it can also be caused by a sinus infection, loud noises, and other variables. Let’s take a peak at some potential factors.
Unhealthy Stress – How to Recognize it
You might be wondering how stress lends to tinnitus. We generally don’t consider the negative impact stress can have on our bodies or how it can lead to frustrating, painful, or even severe medical conditions. Neglecting stress isn’t a good idea.
Healthy Stress
Short term stress can actually be an extremely motivating factor with regards to completing tasks. Stress can give a boost of energy and adrenalin to accomplish tasks and projects that really need to get done.
There is a difference, though, between healthy, temporary stress and unhealthy, destructive stress. The ability to accomplish goals can be helped by healthy stress while unhealthy stress can physically harm you.
Unhealthy Stress
Normally, an irrational fear is the source of unhealthy stress. When someone stays in a heightened state of anxiety, the result is usually unhealthy stress.
Unhealthy stress is associates with our “fight or flight” response, a natural reaction that helps keep us protected in hazardous conditions. Harmful physical symptoms occur when someone remains in a hyper-stressful situation for extended periods.
Worrying
Worrying is an extremely common cause of unhealthy stress. The significance of a relationship or situation can often be exaggerated. We might have ourselves convinced that we did or said something to ruin our chances at a promotion. Excessive worrying can lead to intrusive, seemingly uncontrollable thoughts.
Unhealthy Stress And Invasive Thoughts
We might worry about what we couldn’t get completed today and stress over what we need to do tomorrow. Obsession, perpetual internal dialog, and even panic are a typical part of this type of stress. If we don’t take some positive steps to manage this stress it will continue to wear down our body.
Typically, unhealthy stress affects the upper part of the body by creating muscle tension and pain. The head, neck shoulders, and jaw are areas that can be impacted.
Anger And Jaw Tension
Have you ever read a book where the writer portrays a character as being so angry his jaw clenched in rage? Stress, worry, anger, and intrusive thoughts commonly come with jaw strain.
Pressure can be put on the fragile bones of the eardrum and inner ear by sustained tension. Ringing in the ears can be the result.
Ear Strain And Sinus Infections
From sore throats to stuffy noses, sinus infections produce lots of unwelcome symptoms.
Headaches, sinus pressure, and pressure in the ears are common symptoms of a sinus infection. These problems can trigger ringing, buzzing, and clicking in the ears.
During a sinus infection, your nasal congestion frequently spreads to your ears. This can generate excess earwax, which causes blockages in the ears and intense pressure on the eardrums. Pressure on the little bones of the inner ear can lead to tinnitus symptoms.
If the ringing is triggered by a sinus infection it will probably go away on its own and you won’t have to consult a hearing professional. But you should absolutely make an appointment with us if the ringing persists for more than a few days.
Extended Exposure to Loud Noises
The intermittent music performance probably won’t cause lasting ear-ringing. If you repeatedly expose your ears to very loud sounds, however, you might be putting stress on the tender parts of your ears.
When you expose your ears to intense noises frequently, your eardrums and the bones of the inner ears are put under a great deal of strain, which can result in ringing, buzzing, or clicking.
Beyond the occasional ringing in your ears, exposure to intense sounds over a prolonged period can result in temporary or lasting hearing loss. Listening to music at a reasonable volume and using ear protection when necessary is indispensable for hearing health.
Protecting Your Hearing
Whether caused by stress, muscle tension, an illness, or loud noises, tinnitus shouldn’t be ignored. It’s best to get your ears tested by a hearing professional regularly. For your peace of mind, you should get examined, particularly if you suspect that your tinnitus is being caused by a serious underlying medical issue.