Bupropion Induced Tinnitus — Reduced by 70%!

[Ryan Scott]

I'm a little late to this thread but my tinnitus started December 3rd 2022 after only being on Wellbutrin since around thanksgiving. In the beginning, it was an absolutely screeching noise that made me consider whether or not this was a life I could live, and I broke down nearly every night. My psych had no idea that tinnitus was a side effect of Wellbutrin (which pisses me off because I deserved to know) and my ENT doesn't believe me when I say it's ototoxic.

What has helped me so far, or at least I'm tricking myself into believing has helped me, has actually been stopping caffeine. I used to be an avid Dr Pepper drinker (still missing it) but I have had an extreme improvement in how loud my tinnitus is without caffeine. Now, it sounds like someone's breaks are bad about 20-30 feet away from me. A soft eeeeeee that I can cover up with minecraft music. This thread has given me a real genuine hope that it improves and that life gets better. I have an audiogram scheduled but my guess is nothing will come of it because my hearing is great, just my tinnitus is not. I'm very young, only 18, and this has been one of the worst things I've ever had to go through. I don't know what I'll do in life if I have to have tinnitus for another 50 years. I haven't had time to be normal, to have fun experiences without worrying about my tinnitus getting worse.

I'm terrified of new meds, of loud sounds, of anything that could make this worse. But thank you for documenting your journey step by step, as it's given me a real reason to look forward to the future. I know I'm late, but thank you.

You are not alone in this. I am only 30 years old myself was just starting my career after 6 years of college when my tinnitus started. Much like you I am absolutely terrified of anything that could possibly make it worse. It's pretty evident on people who suffer from tinnitus understand this correlation.

 

[T_Almost_Gone]

Update:

- Right ear remains completely fine. Even at night clubs etc, there is no reaction/energy/buzz noise.

- Left ear continues to have small improvements. When I'm out and about and there is background noise, I don't hear it at all - in fact I forget about tinnitus. Only in bed in silence & when I'm horizontal I hear it. Sometimes I have to plug my ear to hear it, I can't hear it otherwise.

- I mostly avoid indoor night clubs. I stick to outdoor venues, I avoid the speakers and insert one earplug. It works fine and I don't have any spikes afterwards. Maybe I don't need that earplug? I'm not about to risk it to find out.

- Life is good. Considering I wanted to exit at the onset of tinnitus, I am grateful.

- And as a reminder, the only thing that worked for me was avoiding loud noise, stopping Bupropion, and time.

Shout out to @notin4u, @Ryan Scott and others who have commented.

 

[SarahMLFlemmer]

Update:

- Right ear remains completely fine. Even at night clubs etc, there is no reaction/energy/buzz noise.

- Left ear continues to have small improvements. When I'm out and about and there is background noise, I don't hear it at all - in fact I forget about tinnitus. Only in bed in silence & when I'm horizontal I hear it. Sometimes I have to plug my ear to hear it, I can't hear it otherwise.

- I mostly avoid indoor night clubs. I stick to outdoor venues, I avoid the speakers and insert one earplug. It works fine and I don't have any spikes afterwards. Maybe I don't need that earplug? I'm not about to risk it to find out.

- Life is good. Considering I wanted to exit at the onset of tinnitus, I am grateful.

- And as a reminder, the only thing that worked for me was avoiding loud noise, stopping Bupropion, and time.

Shout out to @notin4u, @Ryan Scott and others who have commented.

Thank you for being so faithful to continue to post your "journey" with us. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

 

[T_Almost_Gone]

It's been four years and three months! Crazy. The tinnitus is still there, but it's a quiet hiss, easily covered by normal day-to-day sounds. I can go days and not think about it.
I do go to nightclubs and bars - always with an earplug in my right ear.

My LDL cholesterol is quite high (blood pressure, blood sugar, weight, etc. are all fine, so I'm hoping it's related to some steroid shots I had recently). My doctor prescribed Atorvastatin; I see tinnitus on the symptoms list, and I cannot bring myself to take it.

I work out 5-6 times a week and will try to lose more weight.

It sounds wild to some, but I fear increased tinnitus more than the risk of coronary issues (I'm 43, healthy, and don't take any other medications).