Tinnitus Foundations
treatment plan
Understand your tinnitus and build skills to help it settle into the background, so you can enjoy the life that matters to you
A SIX-WEEK PROGRAM FOR MILDER TINNITUS IMPACTS
WHAT IS THE TINNITUS FOUNDATIONS TREATMENT PLAN
Tinnitus Foundations is a six-week program for adults who want to understand their tinnitus and start building a calmer relationship with it. Each week we focus on one area tinnitus often affects, and you try practical activities at home between sessions.
The program uses Tinnitus Activities Treatment*, a counselling approach developed by audiologists. It combines clear information about how tinnitus works with simple skills you can keep using after the program ends.
WHO IS SUITED TO THE FOUNDATIONS TREATMENT PLAN
Foundations suits you if tinnitus bothers you some of the time and you’d like to feel more confident managing it.
It’s a good starting point if your tinnitus is fairly new, or if you’ve had it for a while and want practical tools without a longer treatment process.
Your Initial Tinnitus Assessment shows whether Foundations suits you, or whether another treatment plan would help you more.
WHAT FOUNDATIONS TREATMENT HELPS WITH
Understanding tinnitus
Knowing why tinnitus happens and why it changes from day to day can take much of the worry out of it. We look at how hearing works, why your brain has started paying attention to the sound, and what helps it settle again. Many people find this alone brings some relief.
Practical skills
Each week you learn simple skills you can use straight away. You find out how to use background sound at home and at work, how to wind down for sleep, and how to protect your focus when tinnitus is loud. You also learn easier ways to hear and talk with people.
Confidence over time
Tinnitus often changes from day to day, and it helps to know what to do when it flares. You finish the program with a personal plan for harder days, built from the skills that worked best for you. Many people find this makes tinnitus feel far more manageable.
Foundations assessment & treatment
HOW IT WORKS
The first session covers how tinnitus works, how it has affected your life, and your goals. The next four sessions each focus on one area tinnitus often affects: your thoughts and emotions, hearing and communication, sleep, and concentration. We spend more time on the areas that matter most to you. Each week you try practical activities at home, and we review them together at the next session. The final session brings it all together into a plan you can keep using, with a summary report supplied for you and your treating doctor, with your consent.
THE ASSESSMENT
Every patient starts with an Initial Tinnitus Assessment. We look at your hearing, your tinnitus, and how it’s affecting your sleep, stress and daily life. Afterwards, you receive a formulation letter and booklet, and we meet again on a call to talk through your results and recommendations. With your consent, a report goes to your doctor. The fee is $350, or $300 for seniors, pensioners and students.
THE TREATMENT PLAN (10-WEEKS)
The program runs over six weekly one-to-one telehealth sessions of 50 minutes. Between sessions, you try short activities at home through our online program, and you can send me a message if you have questions. Throughout the program, you also learn to use low-level background sound to help tinnitus become less noticeable. Sessions are guided by the Notice → Choose → Live framework™. The program fee is $1,500 (payment plans available).
THE SCIENCE
International tinnitus guidelines recommend education and counselling for adults living with bothersome tinnitus (Cima et al., 2019; Tunkel et al., 2014). Tinnitus Foundations uses Tinnitus Activities Treatment*, a counselling approach developed by audiologists at the University of Iowa (Perreau et al., 2022). It combines clear information, practical activities and low-level background sound across the areas tinnitus affects most.
* Tinnitus Activities Treatment (TAT) was developed by Professor Rich Tyler and colleagues at the University of Iowa and is a recognised treatment process for people living with tinnitus (used with permission).
How to book
Every patient starts with an Initial Tinnitus Assessment, where we work out whether Foundations suits your tinnitus and goals. The program fee is $1,500 for six weeks of sessions and support. There is no obligation to start the program after your assessment.
REFERENCES
Cima, R. F. F., Mazurek, B., Haider, H., Kikidis, D., Lapira, A., Noreña, A., & Hoare, D. J. (2019). A multidisciplinary European guideline for tinnitus: Diagnostics, assessment, and treatment. HNO, 67(Suppl. 1), S10–S42. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00106-019-0633-7
Perreau, A., Tyler, R. S., Mancini, P. C., & Witt, S. A. (2022). Tinnitus activities treatment. In R. S. Tyler & A. Perreau (Eds.), Tinnitus treatment: Clinical protocols (2nd ed., pp. 42–55). Thieme.
Tunkel, D. E., Bauer, C. A., Sun, G. H., Rosenfeld, R. M., Chandrasekhar, S. S., Cunningham, E. R., Jr., Archer, S. M., Blakley, B. W., Carter, J. M., Granieri, E. C., Henry, J. A., Hollingsworth, D., Khan, F. A., Mitchell, S., Monfared, A., Newman, C. W., Omole, F. S., Phillips, C. D., Robinson, S. K., … Whamond, E. J. (2014). Clinical practice guideline: Tinnitus. Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, 151(2 Suppl.), S1–S40. https://doi.org/10.1177/0194599814545325
* Tinnitus Activities Treatment (TAT) was developed by Professor Rich Tyler and colleagues at the University of Iowa and is a recognised treatment process for people living with tinnitus (used with permission).