Hear and Now: Tinnitus Education and Mindfulness Practice

Tinnitus is the phenomenon in which individuals perceive a sound in the absense of an auditory stimulus. This can manifest in a plethora of different sounds such as ringing, buzzing, whooshing, and overall noise. Treatment options for tinnitus can be expensive, inaccessible, and ineffective due to false advertisements and scamming. A promising approach for treating the debilitating effects of tinnitus is mindfulness. Mindfulness teaches being present in the moment and not being controlled by destructive thoughts, nor judging them as they come. In 2022, Dr. Jennifer Gans and colleagues examined data collected for their 8-week internet delivered Mindfulness Based Tinnitus Stress Reduction (MBTSR) course that included didactic information about mindfulness and tinnitus. This study is cited in the “Resources” tab. Significant differences in perceived stress and tinnitus self-function were found during the study and for those who completed the 6-month follow-up. The researchers highlighted that the greatest changes were shown in the first three weeks, and stated future research should include a modified 3-week course.

Although not a true Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program, this 100% free course is inspired by the work of Dr. Gans and colleagues as stated in their study alone. This course is a completely novel design and was created to fulfill a graduate capstone project. It was intended to be completed in a 3-week timeframe but is truly self-paced in nature. The model includes tinnitus lessons, mini-mindfulness lessons, and guided meditations, all 15 minutes or less in duration. All lessons and guided meditations were recorded using a professional-grade microphone and include captions and supplemental handouts. For a more detailed look at the course materials such as lesson durations, feel free to scroll down to “Course Outline” and browse through each individual module.