Habituation vs. masking
Masking introduces a second sound to compete with tinnitus right now — turn it on, the contrast drops; turn it off, tinnitus is usually back to its usual prominence. Habituation is a different goal entirely: rather than adding a competing sound in the moment, it's about your auditory system gradually learning to stop flagging the tinnitus signal as something worth conscious attention, so it fades into the background even without anything else playing.
How it's thought to work
Your brain constantly filters incoming signals, deciding what's worth your conscious attention and what isn't. Constant, unchanging, non-threatening sounds are exactly the kind of thing that filter is good at learning to ignore — it's the same mechanism that lets you stop noticing a fridge hum or the sound of traffic outside after you've lived somewhere a while. Habituation is that same filtering process gradually applying to tinnitus, so the signal keeps existing but stops competing for attention the way it used to.
What a structured routine looks like
Tinnitus Retraining Therapy (TRT) is the best-known structured approach — it typically combines low-level sound enrichment with directive counselling over many months, usually under an audiologist's guidance. The general principle behind it — consistent, low-level sound exposure over an extended period, paired with not actively fighting or fearing the sound — is something a self-guided routine can borrow from, even if it isn't a substitute for a full clinical TRT programme.
Tinnitune's habituation program applies that same principle in a shorter, self-guided form: 14 days of daily sound sessions, alternating between narrowband and notched masking noise, with a fixed length each day and a streak to track consistency. It's a starting structure for building the habit of consistent sound exposure, not a complete replacement for a longer clinical programme.
It's slow, and that's normal
Unlike masking's near-instant effect, habituation — whether structured or not — is measured in weeks and months, and progress isn't linear. Consistency matters more than any single session, and there's no guarantee of a specific outcome or timeline; some people notice a meaningful shift, others notice a partial one, and some notice very little without additional professional support.
When to also see a professional
An audiologist can run a full TRT-style programme with the counselling component a self-guided app can't replicate, and can help if tinnitus is severe, sudden, or accompanied by other symptoms. A structured self-guided routine is a reasonable starting point, not a ceiling.