Tinnitus, lucid dreaming and awakening. An online survey and theoretical implications

Most people with tinnitus do not hear their phantom sounds while dreaming. In a survey of 195 tinnitus patients, 160 could recall dreams, and 92.5% reported no tinnitus during dreams. The 7.5% who did hear tinnitus while dreaming had higher tinnitus burden and stress, and more often had objective tinnitus or tinnitus linked to peripheral auditory pathology or drug use. Among the 13% who frequently experienced lucid dreams, 36% could perceive tinnitus during those dreams, strongly associated with hearing external sounds while lucid dreaming. Most patients perceived tinnitus instantly upon waking; 18% could be awakened by it, and 9.8% reported temporary cessation during nocturnal awakenings. These findings support the idea that gating of external auditory information acts as a tinnitus on-off switch.

Study at a glance

Abstract

(1) Background: Tinnitus is the perception of phantom sound in the absence of a corresponding external source. Previous studies reported that the presence of tinnitus is notably absent during dreams. This study aimed at replicating previous findings regarding tinnitus-free dreams, while also gaining a deeper understanding of tinnitus manifestations during dreams and after awakening. (2) Methods: For this observational study, 195 tinnitus patients answered an online survey on the mutual-help community Siopi. (3) Results: 160 patients could recall their dreams. Among them, 92.5% state they do not hear their tinnitus while dreaming. The rest (7.5%) report higher tinnitus burden, higher stress and more often exhibit objective tinnitus and/or tinnitus related to peripheral auditory pathology and/or drug intake. 13% of the participants frequently experience lucid dreams. Among them, 36% could perceive their tinnitus during lucid dreams, and this was strongly associated with the concomitant perception of external sounds during lucid dreaming. While the majority of patients report perceiving their tinnitus instantly upon awakening, during nocturnal awakenings, 18% declared they could be awakened by their tinnitus and 9.8% mentioned that their tinnitus can temporarily cease. (4) Conclusions: Our findings confirm the previous findings: tinnitus is rarely perceived during dreams. Remarkably, our study is the first to document the case of tinnitus during lucid dreaming. 64% of these patients gain higher-order consciousness attributes while still experiencing a tinnitus-free state. Our observations suggest that the presence or absence of gating of external auditory information during dreams acts as a tinnitus on-off switch, refining the previously proposed integrative model of auditory phantom perception.