- Widex Zen Therapy uses sound therapy, counseling, amplification, and stress reduction to manage tinnitus.
- Zen fractal tones help retrain the brain’s limbic system without masking tinnitus.
- Widex Zen Therapy is available both through hearing aids and a smartphone app for non–hearing aid users.
Tinnitus is one of the most common and debilitating auditory disorders, affecting 15-20% of the American population. Tinnitus is the perception of sound without the presence of a physical auditory stimulus. People most commonly describe tinnitus as ringing, roaring, buzzing or humming, but it can vary between individuals. Tinnitus is generated within our limbic system, which is located deep within our brain. The limbic system is responsible for our emotional reactions and our fight or flight response.
When tinnitus occurs, the limbic system becomes overactivated, triggering our fight or flight response. This creates a whole-body reaction, including tension and negative emotions, surrounding the tinnitus. For this reason, individuals with tinnitus are often very bothered and negatively impacted by their tinnitus. It can become detrimental, causing individuals to quit their jobs or stop doing activities that they love.
Understanding Sound Therapy for Tinnitus
There are many different approaches to treating tinnitus, with the most common being sound therapy, counseling, and amplification. Sound therapy is the process of introducing healthy sound to your ears and the limbic system, allowing your brain to retrain the limbic system and habituate to the tinnitus. Sound therapy can be completed via various methods, but most often occurs through hearing aids. This is because it allows ear level stimulation.
What Is Widex Zen Therapy?
Widex, a hearing aid manufacturing company, specifically focuses on managing tinnitus symptoms through its proprietary Zen Therapy tool. Zen Therapy is a combination of counseling, amplification, sound stimulation and stress reduction.
First, a diagnostic hearing and tinnitus evaluation should be completed with an audiologist. After this evaluation, the audiologist can then begin with step one, Zen Therapy: counseling. Counseling includes teaching the individual about tinnitus, the limbic system, and activation of the fight or flight response.
It is important for the patient to understand these connections, as this will allow their brain to begin the habituation process. After teaching the patient about tinnitus, the next step would be to fit them with prescriptive hearing aids.
Prescriptive hearing aids are devices that fit the individual’s hearing loss and ear canal volume using real ear measurements. Amplification alone can often help reduce tinnitus without further treatment.
Zen Tones and Sound Stimulation
If further intervention is needed, the hearing aids can activate sound stimulation through a Zen program. It is important to discuss the goals of sound therapy with your audiologist, as the goal is not to have Zen Tones mask the perception of your tinnitus. Masking will only lengthen the habituation process because it teaches your brain to ignore the tinnitus, instead of habituating to it.
The main goal of sound therapy is for the sound stimulation to be present in the background during quiet situations, but fade away as you have conversations or start doing other tasks. The final step of Zen Therapy discusses stress reduction, either through meditation and relaxation exercises, deep breathing, or yoga. Incorporating these into your daily routine can start your limbic system off on a good note, making you less likely to be bothered by your tinnitus even if it is very noticeable.
Types of Widex Zen Programs
As discussed above, a key component of Zen Therapy is sound stimulation through Zen Tones. There are many options of Zen fractal tones – some that sound like music or repeating bells and whistles (Zen Tones), while others that include a wave-like modulation (Zen Relax Tones).
These tones are fractal sounds, meaning they have no repeating pattern, which allows the tones to keep the limbic system’s attention on them, instead of the tinnitus. These tones can be used throughout your workday, while sitting at home, or while trying to fall asleep. This is because your brain is passively listening to the Zen Tones while actively engaging in your daily routine and conversations.
If the traditional Zen tones do not provide enough relief or management for your tinnitus, there are modified Zen options called Zen+ available as well.
ZenAqua + microphone can be used for the individual who is extremely bothered by their tinnitus, allowing them sound stimulation and amplification throughout their entire day.
ZenAqua + noise + microphone can be used for times when the tinnitus is exacerbated by your environment, adding additional background white noise to overcome the tinnitus.
ZenNoise + microphone can be used early on during Widex Zen Therapy, which presents a steady static background noise to provide immediate relief from the tinnitus. The goal of this modified program, though, is to transition to a Zen Tone.
Widex Zen Therapy Without Hearing Aids
For individuals who suffer from tinnitus and do not have hearing aids, Widex Zen Therapy can still be available to you. Widex created a Zen Tone app that can be downloaded to most smartphones and stream sound therapy directly through headphones or the phone speakers. This app includes soothing natural sounds like beach waves or forest sounds, as well as ZenNoise sounds. The app also includes guided meditation and muscle relaxation exercises.
Reclaim Calm and Control With Widex Zen Therapy
If you are someone who suffers from tinnitus, know you are not alone. There are many audiologists who specialize in tinnitus and are happy to help guide you down your habituation journey.
Widex Zen Therapy is a great well-round tinnitus management program that can help reduce the over activity of your limbic system, reduce your tinnitus, and get you back to hearing the life that you love.
If tinnitus has been controlling your attention, emotions, or daily activities, Widex Zen Therapy may be the structured, evidence-based approach you need.
Working with an audiologist experienced in Widex Zen Therapy can help you develop a personalized plan and take meaningful steps toward long-term tinnitus relief.
