Why Yoga Is Good for People with Hearing Loss and How They Can Easily Practice It
Because of the unique nature of hearing loss, people who are hard of hearing or deaf rely more heavily on their other senses. This often leads to exhaustion and difficulty concentrating. In the long term, however, these symptoms can also worsen and lead to depression, burnout, tinnitus, and sudden hearing loss. Yoga can be beneficial for those affected by tinnitus.
Healing Through Relaxation
Yoga is a simple form of relaxation that allows you to develop a better relationship with your own body and become more at ease. People who practice yoga regularly experience stress relief and a noticeable increase in well-being and inner strength. And rightly so, because the meditative physical and breathing exercises are very effective for reducing stress.
Relaxation techniques are a key pillar of clinical tinnitus treatment, along with physical activity and mindfulness-based, systematic stress reduction. This is because as soon as a tinnitus sound is perceived, the negative physical, emotional, and cognitive stress response is largely responsible for making the ringing in the ears constant and unpleasant.
If the tinnitus is classified as “threatening” by the body’s internal defense and stress response, this automatically leads to constant attention being focused on the sound. Targeted relaxation techniques can provide relief and, when practiced early in the acute phase, help ensure that the ringing in the ears subsides and does not develop into a chronic condition.
However, many people are unaware of how important targeted relaxation is in overcoming tinnitus—even though it has been proven that stress, rather than supposed damage to the inner ear, is usually the main cause of this hearing disorder. Therefore, systematic stress reduction can help significantly reduce the discomfort and awareness associated with tinnitus.
Clinical Yoga for Tinnitus
Since yoga is also recommended by the German Tinnitus League, it’s no surprise that tinnitus clinics incorporate yoga exercises into their treatments. Long-term patients report “very positive” experiences with yoga as part of their tinnitus therapy.
This is because yoga improves tinnitus symptoms, sleep quality, and mood; reduces anxiety and depression; and significantly enhances patients’ ability to relax. Most patients are convinced that they can better control and consciously reduce their feelings of stress and actively divert their thoughts away from the tinnitus. This leads to improved focus, a greater sense of relaxation and well-being, and a significant increase in self-confidence and self-esteem.
Practical Tip: A common challenge for people with tinnitus is that relaxation exercises are typically performed in a quiet environment. While most people relax best in quiet settings, tinnitus patients find it particularly difficult to do so in such environments! To help them fully immerse themselves in yoga despite this, they can play soothing music or nature sounds while practicing.
Getting Started with Yoga
There is no specific type of yoga designed to treat tinnitus. However, given the wide variety of yoga classes available, people with tinnitus can certainly find gentle variations that allow them to relax. Although it’s recommended to practice yoga daily if possible, this daily practice doesn’t have to be long: Just 15 minutes can make a big difference in your health, physical, and mental well-being and help reduce stress in a targeted way.
It’s best to start with a beginner’s class, which gently introduces you to the practice of yoga and teaches you the various exercises. Yoga classes typically combine physical exercises—known as “asanas”—with periods of deep relaxation, as well as breathing and meditation exercises.
However, because of the unique way they perceive their environment, people with hearing impairments need a slightly different kind of yoga class—one that is tailored to their language and their needs. These include:
- A larger, square room in which the yoga mats are arranged so that all class participants can see the yoga instructor clearly.
- A yoga instructor who, first of all, does not move around the room while speaking but instead remains stationary or keeps their range of movement limited. This ensures they are clearly visible when explaining exercises. Second, the instructor should demonstrate the exercises from different angles and repeat them.
- The exercise and movement sequences should be practiced together so that they can be internalized more easily.
- The teacher needs good stamina, physical fitness, and concentration, because yoga classes for hearing-impaired and deaf beginners require intensive guidance—especially at the beginning—to deeply and lastingly reinforce knowledge of the exercises and breathing techniques. Once this knowledge has been internalized, subsequent classes can continue with brief instructions on yoga asanas.
The yoga instructor should also speak slowly and clearly, use clear facial expressions and gestures to aid communication with the students, and look them in the face.
Does health insurance cover it?
Ten-hour beginner yoga courses are available starting at around 100 euros. Many health insurance providers even cover a large portion of the costs as part of their general preventive health care programs. Anyone interested can check with their own health insurance provider to find out about funding options and course offerings in their region.
Since yoga is generally suitable for people of all ages and plays a significant role in managing and reducing stress, these relaxation exercises can also help people who are ill or have hearing impairments to recover. For the latter group, suitable programs and solutions can be found, which can even help alleviate tinnitus.
