What’s tea got to do with tinnitus treatment?

As mentioned in (my story) when I was going through my tinnitus and ear condition misery I saw several ear, nose and throat specialists all without any joy.

However one of the last ENT’s I visited, gave me some very powerful advice; advice which resonated with me and certainly became one of the catalyst of change in my journey to overcome my tinnitus suffering.

He told me about his own battle with tinnitus over the years and showed me his hearing chart, which made my hearing look like a walk in the park compared to his.  So I knew right there, this guy was talking from experience.

After doing the usual ENT tests and taking the relevant medical history, he asked me a strange question. He asked me why I thought the Japanese participated in a daily tea ceremony?

What a strange question for a Doctor to ask his patient I thought? (But there was a method to his madness)

What’s tea got to do with it

He went on to explain to me that the Japanese are a very industrious culture, but they make time in their busy schedules to embark in a daily tea ceremony. This important habit does one thing, it reminds them to relax!

The Key to overcoming Tinnitus is first and foremost to relax he told me.

He then went on to use another Zen like metaphor to help paint a mental picture for me.

“I want you to imagine a river”, he said “and in the middle of that river has rolled a very large boulder, what does the river do with that boulder?” He asked.

“Does it try to move the large boulder? He said? Before I answered, he said, “No it flows around it.”

Tinnitus when approach with force is an immovable object

Like tinnitus, resistance is futile, learn to flow around (bypass) the noise, and you’ll eventually coexist to the point where the noise no longer registers with you (habituated). Do not keep trying to bulldoze it away, you’ll lose, or worse only intensify the noise.

Wow! What a powerful metaphor I thought! And what a cool Doctor!

It was this powerful metaphor, which changed my perspective from looking at tinnitus as an absolute problem to one of a subjective matter. On leaving his office his next nugget of advice was on the future of my tinnitus treatment. He said I could either ask my Doctor for anxiety medication, depression medication, sleeping pills or he could refer me to the university for habituation therapy. All of which might work to some degree on your associated symptoms but have no guarantee of banishing your tinnitus and will all come with a price, weather it’s on your health or your pocket book.

Or you could save yourself the time, money and potential health dangers and start learning methods to heal yourself from within. Just remember that the river never tries to move the boulder, it just learns to flow around it.

This to me was tinnitus treatment advice from an expert like no other. It wasn’t until a year later after much research, focus and communication with my mentor that the seeds, which he initially planted, truly began to sprout. It was at this time when I practically (not mentally) understood what he was saying.

The power of imagery more powerful than words alone

When we open our minds to change, open ourselves to alternative perspectives and stop resisting with a conventional mindset, amazing things and amazing people surface. Some call it synchronicity but I like to think of it as the true beginning of my tinnitus treatment and my eventual healing.