In this chapter we’ll provide a description of concentration problems common among persons with problematic tinnitus. We’ll also give a brief review of the current state of knowledge regarding tinnitus and concentration. Finally, we’ll provide a few suggestions for dealing with concentration problems.

What do we mean by Concentration Problems?

When we see a tinnitus patient we always ask if tinnitus disrupts the ability to concentrate and focus on what is relevant in life. This is motivated by the fact that a majority of people in our tinnitus clinics report that their concentration is affected by their tinnitus. While disrupted concentration might not be the first thing that springs to mind if you’re asked about your tinnitus, you’re likely to agree when we ask you directly if you ever feel that you find it hard to stay focused all day long and concentrate when your tinnitus is bad. In fact, when tinnitus patients in a research study by Tyler and Baker (1983) were asked to list the problems they had with their tinnitus, the third highest response was concentration difficulties. In our own studies, we’ve asked directly in an interview, “Does tinnitus affect your concentration?” As many as 70% said that it did.

It’s important to be clear that all people sometimes find it hard to concentrate. When we write about concentration problems here we mean occasions when you feel that your tinnitus negatively influences your ability to manage everyday activities such as reading, listening, remembering, planning, and other activities that require that you can concentrate. You might recognize this problem but not attribute it to your tinnitus. We’ll get back to that, but please note that tinnitus is just one of many causes of concentration problems. In fact, it can also be the other way around. For quite a few patients we’ve seen that it’s when they concentrate on something that they’re interested in, they experience their tinnitus as less apparent and annoying.

In order to be able to understand concentration problems we need to introduce three concepts that are well known in cognitive psychology. They will help us to further understand the different ways concentration and cognitive abilities might fail. The concepts will also be helpful when we present advice on how you can improve your concentration.