What Spock Would Say About Tinnitus

The crew of the Starship Enterprise boldly went where others had not gone before and fans have travelled with them since the 1960’s. Almost as popular as Captain Kirk is his First Officer, Mr. Spock. Spock’s always scientific and logical thinking made us take a fresh look the human condition. Spock wasn’t a doctor, but he was the Science Officer. We don’t know if tinnitus was still a problem when the starship started its first voyage in the year 2123, but if it was, we can imagine what Mr. Spock would have to say about it.

Fascinating!

Mr. Spock referred to interesting things and events as “fascinating”. It was his favorite adjective and adverb. No doubt, Spock would say that tinnitus is fascinating.

The idea that a person could hear sounds that are not in the environment would fascinate Spock. He would quickly determine that the tinnitus sounds of clicking, whirring, ringing and buzzing were not to be confused with the voices heard due to mental illness.

He would find it fascinating that the human brain was one cause of tinnitus. While it might seem strange to him that a brain that longed for auditory input would begin to “make it up” he would none the less find it fascinating.

Equally fascinating would be how tinnitus can be caused by certain drugs that are prescribed to make humans better. That these drugs would cause the harm and distress of tinnitus instead of helping as originally intended would be fascinating and completely illogical to him.

Insufficient facts always invite danger

Mr. Spock ruled his life by logic and not emotion. He wisely understood that to make the best decisions, you had to have as much information as possible.

He would find a high degree of comfort in the amount of data that is accumulated during the investigation of the cause of tinnitus. A talk with the audiologist about tinnitus usually begins with a complete medical history. Then any history of exposure to loud noises or head or neck injuries is reviewed. The medications and supplements (including herbs) you take are evaluated. Pure tone audiometry and other tests are performed as well. During the diagnosis of tinnitus, copious facts about the patient are collected. It’s enough information to make Mr. Spock smile and rest assured that danger of a misdiagnosis has been kept at bay.

That’s quite logical

As a Vulcan, Mr. Spock valued logic over emotion. Any Trekkie could tell you that Vulcans are a highly emotional race and as such use logic to control their dangerous emotions. Mr. Spock would see the treatment of tinnitus with hearing aids as highly logical. He would approve.

After all, when the most common cause of tinnitus is hearing loss, it only makes sense to treat the hearing loss to control the tinnitus. A brain that longs for auditory input will sometimes create signals to fill the void. This is the hissing, clicking, whirring and ringing of tinnitus. Restoring sufficient auditory input to the brain provides the stimulation the brain is missing. In addition, undiagnosed hearing loss can cause stress and stress is another cause of tinnitus.   

It’s logical. Increase auditory stimulation and decrease stress and resolve tinnitus while enriching the hearing experience all at the same time.   

Live long and prosper

The Vulcan greeting “live long and prosper” was a favorite of Spock’s. He would tinnitus detrimental to the idea of prosperity, as he would recognize that you can’t prosper when you are uncomfortable.

Mr. Spock would consider the negative impact that tinnitus has on quality of life and resolve himself to make it stop. He would recommend that anyone that has tinnitus see an audiologist immediately. He would say that delay was not logical and relief should be sought as soon as possible.

Even if he is a fictional character, Mr. Spock has it right on this one. If you have tinnitus and want to live a long, comfortable life of prosperity you need to seek treatment right away.