I Need Help: Can You Please Answer My Questions About Tinnitus?

[Beste]

Now I have T for 5 months and I'm 6 months in my benzo cold turkey withdrawal. My T symptoms just keeps getting change for worse and I need to solve this puzzle with your help.

Meds I'm taking now:
Mirtazapine 30 mg for sleep(started in the first month of T). That is all.

A little info about me and my T story:
I have been dealing with GAD and insomnia for the last 6 years pre T and I have taken 10 different drugs for them like Paxera, Destreyl, Trankobuskas, Prozac, Stilizan, Seroquel... in different doses. The last drug I took was clonazepam 1 mg for sleep. I took it for 8 months and cold turkeyed it because I did not know any better. Then, I got tinnitus. Here is my questions.

1- My tinnitus was only in my left ear and mild. Now, I'm 5 months in and my T is in my both ears and head really really severe like it gives me head buzzing and headaches in the left side of my head(where my T is much worse). Why did my T just get worse?

2-My T is now gets really catastrophic when I get home from outside. It never happens before. What do you think about it?

3-My T was beeep bep beepepe bebebpp sound in my left ear and now it is all in my head with electrical sound. Is it common in T?

4-My T is bearable in the morning and afternoon. It gets very severe through the evening. Do you think it is because Remeron weans off?

5-My T can only be masked with cricket sound. What do you think about it?

6-Why does my T give me headaches and head fullness?

7-I started to have ear crackling with the on set of my T. Why do I have it? If my T is in my brain, why do I have those crackling sounds in my ears?

8-I also have pulsatile T in my right ear and it also keeps getting worse. I got MRI test done in my second weeks of my T and nothing wrong showed up but I never pulsatile T at that time. I can stopped my T when I press my jugular Do you think I need another MRI?

9-I have facial twitching when my T gets really really bad. What do I need to think about it?

I'm searching for answers and no doctor knows better than the members of here.

Thank you for listenin to me.
Beste

 

[glynis]

Hi Bestie,
Medication withdrawal can take longer for your brain recover even though side effects have gone.
Anxiety and brain zaps and head tinnitus is a few of the problems from medication that can take months to go.

Time is a great healer but any new symptoms do need checking by your doctor or ENT.
.....lots of love glynis

 

[Nick Pyzik]

Now I have T for 5 months and I'm 6 months in my benzo cold turkey withdrawal. My T symptoms just keeps getting change for worse and I need to solve this puzzle with your help.

Meds I'm taking now:
Mirtazapine 30 mg for sleep(started in the first month of T). That is all.

A little info about me and my T story:
I have been dealing with GAD and insomnia for the last 6 years pre T and I have taken 10 different drugs for them like Paxera, Destreyl, Trankobuskas, Prozac, Stilizan, Seroquel... in different doses. The last drug I took was clonazepam 1 mg for sleep. I took it for 8 months and cold turkeyed it because I did not know any better. Then, I got tinnitus. Here is my questions.

1- My tinnitus was only in my left ear and mild. Now, I'm 5 months in and my T is in my both ears and head really really severe like it gives me head buzzing and headaches in the left side of my head(where my T is much worse). Why did my T just get worse?

2-My T is now gets really catastrophic when I get home from outside. It never happens before. What do you think about it?

3-My T was beeep bep beepepe bebebpp sound in my left ear and now it is all in my head with electrical sound. Is it common in T?

4-My T is bearable in the morning and afternoon. It gets very severe through the evening. Do you think it is because Remeron weans off?

5-My T can only be masked with cricket sound. What do you think about it?

6-Why does my T give me headaches and head fullness?

7-I started to have ear crackling with the on set of my T. Why do I have it? If my T is in my brain, why do I have those crackling sounds in my ears?

8-I also have pulsatile T in my right ear and it also keeps getting worse. I got MRI test done in my second weeks of my T and nothing wrong showed up but I never pulsatile T at that time. I can stopped my T when I press my jugular Do you think I need another MRI?

9-I have facial twitching when my T gets really really bad. What do I need to think about it?

I'm searching for answers and no doctor knows better than the members of here.

Thank you for listenin to me.
Beste

Beste,

First off, I'd advise you to stay away from anymore sleeping pills and try a much more healthy route using herbs, supplements, and a strong diet. If you don't see results from doing so, then you can go back to these wonderful drugs that are handed out left and right. There are many product names I can give you that I know are allowing me to get through everyday and to be able to fall asleep each night without as many problems as I should be having.

Secondly, what I've learned is that our health is what will get us through each day. I don't know how "severe" your issues are because I'm not you, but just remember that no matter how bad you feel, you can still think and make something out of your day. There really is nothing that can be done with what we have because sadly, the people of this medical world are only getting paid to do what they know to do. Give their schpeel, give you medicine, get you out and hopefully get you "fixed up".

My recommendation to try and fix the issues you're having is to allow your brain and body to function at its highest level by providing it the vitamins, minerals, and extra cellular and neuronal boosts it can get to allow you to feel better and also to help you to fall asleep better. When your body and brain work better, you should feel a bit better. It won't solve all your problems, but I truly believe it'll do a much more efficient job than a lot of the drugs they have out there. A much safer route.

Really, there is nothing out now that will help you solve the issue you're experiencing. Once again, I don't know how severe you're issues are because a good amount of the time, people tend to take their ailments out of proportion. But I'm here to help you deal with them as much as I can.

If you're interested in any more information regarding natural methods to try and solve your issues, just let me know. I make a smoothie every morning and you'd be amazed at how much goes in it.

 

[Dana]

@Beste Unfortunately a messed up with "brain chemistry" is hard to repair, but you must not be pessimistic. Pessimistic thoughts make the chemistry worse, optimistic (howether unrealistical they may seem) improve the chemicals.
Getting off cold turkey is the reason for all the problems, and you know that.

9-I have facial twitching when my T gets really really bad. What do I need to think about it?

The facial twitching is not from the worse T, but they share a common cause: big anxiety in your brain/soul.

2-My T is now gets really catastrophic when I get home from outside. It never happens before. What do you think about it?

Outside the auditory system gets stimulated and after that, as you suffer from severe lack of inhibitory neurotransmitters, your auditory system remains stimulated, therefore worsened T.
Etc, etc.
You have to do something, waiting like this you are not getting anywhere, at least not fast enough, you are just staying in "freaking out" mode, going from bad to worse, with new scary symptoms surfacing, that nobody can truly explain.
If I were you, I would chose from two options:
1) Going back on heavy duty meds, and after that asking the doctors to help you get off of them properly, meaning NOT COLD TURKEY, although doctors lovvvvvvvvve to keep you on the meds all your life.
2) I would start practicing a lot of physical activity daily. I mean a lot! That would make your body go into "sympathetic mode", which is naturally followed by the "parasympathetic phase", when you are supposed to heal, because activity helps the occurrence of that rest phase with all the inhibitory chemicals that you need so much. In other words, after physical activity you would sleep better, deeper, even with loud pulsatile and non-pulsatile T in your head, and that sleep is the best natural medicine.

 

[Dana]

7-I started to have ear crackling with the on set of my T. Why do I have it? If my T is in my brain, why do I have those crackling sounds in my ears

You may have heightened sense of hearing, and those moves we may all have, but you may hear the noise they make because of the broken filter of the auditory system, which is supposed to not hear what is going in our head. In head things are not "still", but before getting ill the ear was functioning the way it was designed to, I mean designed to not pick up, but filter out the inner noises.

 

[Dana]

5-My T can only be masked with cricket sound. What do you think about it

You can carefully listen just a cricket, the rest of masking sounds are not so "capturing" for you, so they pass by unnoticed and therefore they do not mask, they get ignored.
Just my two cents.

 

[Sound Wave]

You seem to be taking WAAAAY TOO MUCH mirtazapine if you use it only for sleep. Mirtazapine works best for sleep with real small doses. I for example take 1/4th of a 15mg pill.

 

[hartje5]

I don't agree on the Mitrazipine. For me it took 30 mg to make me sleep. Tried 7,5, tried 15, tried 30 and finally was able to sleep again. Beste I've been where you are. Because you're so stressed and freaking out symptoms get worse and worse. It is a vicius cycle. Are you getting any help? Withdrawal symptoms can take a long time but you're going to get better! Believe that. Watch Julian Cowan Hills video's on you tube to calm you down. Try guided relaxation exercises. Take hot bathes. Try anything you can think of to relax and get help. Have you read the Henry and Wilson book on CBT for Tinnitus? Go to tinnitus.org and read the information on TRT. Read anything that eases your mind.

 

[Beste]

Thank you guys for the answers. I'm trying to do my best to cope with it. I go out with my friends and try to enjoy the day. I stay at home and watch movies. I try to read my books even without no masking sounds. But I have a few things that makes me worried and anxious and angry and sad about T.

1-What if my T keep getting worse and worse?(Like my pulsatile T got so much worse..)

2-As I said above I got my T from benzo w/d. I always think to myself if I never touched a benzo or SSRIs, I would never had T. I may have noise induced T but I know it is not a big deal compared to chemical brain T. My T is so so so severe amd everywhere inside of my head.

3-I love living but I still can't get rid of seeing death the only solution to this. Why do I always think about suicide?(I'm not depressed anymore. I won't do it, I'm just stuck with this idea)

4-I am about to be in academic field amd it requires lots of silent places. How do I manage it?

And I'm really scared of my T gets worse since it was mild in the beginning but now it is really really severe..

 

[hartje5]

I have the same thing Beste. I can get so scared of T. (or even the idea of worse T) I think that there is only way out. The thought makes me sick to my stomach (literally). I would never do such a thing. Still my mind keeps throwing it in as an answer a couple of times a day. I try to find distraction. Move on. Most of the times the thought goes away. I think it has to do with panic, intense fear. But that fear will subside. And if T. got that bad, why would it not get better?

So no real solution but I know how you feel. We will learn not to fear T. in time and than the thoughts will go away and habituation may take place.

I've read a paper that says people who people who catastrophize T. suffer the most. So I try really hard not to do that. But my mind keeps hanging on to T. with all it's might. I still sees it as a big threat that has to be monitored constantly. God I wish I could just let go.

 

[Owen]

@Beste Honestly, this could be me writing this a year ago.

1- My tinnitus was only in my left ear and mild. Now, I'm 5 months in and my T is in my both ears and head really really severe like it gives me head buzzing and headaches in the left side of my head(where my T is much worse). Why did my T just get worse?
Mine continued to get worse, before it started to improve. Several times, I did take one or two tablets and it would settle down to how it was before, but I knew I had to get this poison out of my system, so in the end I just went for it.

2-My T is now gets really catastrophic when I get home from outside. It never happens before. What do you think about it?
I would be relatively fine around the house over the weekends, but coming back from work each day, it would absolutely scream

3-My T was beeep bep beepepe bebebpp sound in my left ear and now it is all in my head with electrical sound. Is it common in T?
I has exactly this. The start was like Morse code and when I stopped taking Levo, it progressed initially into a jet engine roar in the middle of my head. Over time - and I mean months, rather than weeks, it became quieter, but I honestly couldn't see how I could live with it as it was.

4-My T is bearable in the morning and afternoon. It gets very severe through the evening. Do you think it is because Remeron weans off?
I went cold turkey, so although I was offered amitriptyline, I took it for 2 days and then decided to go it alone, so I'm can't comment on the mirtazapine. However, I did find in my case that it was worst at the extremes of the day - both first thing and last thing, so I~ think variations depending on tiredness and other physiological factors are relatively common.

5-My T can only be masked with cricket sound. What do you think about it?
I never tried this, but I did struggle a lot with masking, especially when sleeping. I would play white noise, waterfalls, music, etc. and my brain would manage to filter out the "other" noise and still leave the terrible tinnitus. I did find the in the ear white noise generator of some benefit throughout the day though, as the combination of this, with the noise from outside world would at least take the edge off and offer some distraction to my brain.

6-Why does my T give me headaches and head fullness?
I get exactly the same ting. honestly, I don't know, but I think the muscles tighten around the ears and in the head generally as part of the stress of it, combined with the brain trying to overprotect the ears, this leads to headaches and problems with drainage.

7-I started to have ear crackling with the on set of my T. Why do I have it? If my T is in my brain, why do I have those crackling sounds in my ears?
I think this is the same as (6).

8-I also have pulsatile T in my right ear and it also keeps getting worse. I got MRI test done in my second weeks of my T and nothing wrong showed up but I never pulsatile T at that time. I can stopped my T when I press my jugular Do you think I need another MRI?
I had an MRI and it too came back as "normal" I have only occasionally suffered with pulsatile tinnitus and it hasn't really been the main feature of mine - it is about the only significant difference to your symptoms though. Do you have high blood pressure with the stress? Also, it may be associated with the mirtazapine.

9-I have facial twitching when my T gets really really bad. What do I need to think about it?
I've had the facial twitches - In a very specific way though. I would yawn and it would trigger myokymia in my left eye. With it, my tinnitus would also absolutely scream. It would settle down after about 10 minutes, but it was completely repeatable, as if I was irritating a nerve or something similar every time. In my case, it was again something physical, rather than anxiety related as seems to be most common.

I do understand what you are going through. It is a living hell, but I honestly believe it will improve, you just have to get through the first few months and when you do start to notice improvements, hand on to those improvements and keep reminding yourself how much better you are than you were.

 

[Beste]

@Beste Honestly, this could be me writing this a year ago.

1- My tinnitus was only in my left ear and mild. Now, I'm 5 months in and my T is in my both ears and head really really severe like it gives me head buzzing and headaches in the left side of my head(where my T is much worse). Why did my T just get worse?
Mine continued to get worse, before it started to improve. Several times, I did take one or two tablets and it would settle down to how it was before, but I knew I had to get this poison out of my system, so in the end I just went for it.

2-My T is now gets really catastrophic when I get home from outside. It never happens before. What do you think about it?
I would be relatively fine around the house over the weekends, but coming back from work each day, it would absolutely scream

3-My T was beeep bep beepepe bebebpp sound in my left ear and now it is all in my head with electrical sound. Is it common in T?
I has exactly this. The start was like Morse code and when I stopped taking Levo, it progressed initially into a jet engine roar in the middle of my head. Over time - and I mean months, rather than weeks, it became quieter, but I honestly couldn't see how I could live with it as it was.

4-My T is bearable in the morning and afternoon. It gets very severe through the evening. Do you think it is because Remeron weans off?
I went cold turkey, so although I was offered amitriptyline, I took it for 2 days and then decided to go it alone, so I'm can't comment on the mirtazapine. However, I did find in my case that it was worst at the extremes of the day - both first thing and last thing, so I~ think variations depending on tiredness and other physiological factors are relatively common.

5-My T can only be masked with cricket sound. What do you think about it?
I never tried this, but I did struggle a lot with masking, especially when sleeping. I would play white noise, waterfalls, music, etc. and my brain would manage to filter out the "other" noise and still leave the terrible tinnitus. I did find the in the ear white noise generator of some benefit throughout the day though, as the combination of this, with the noise from outside world would at least take the edge off and offer some distraction to my brain.

6-Why does my T give me headaches and head fullness?
I get exactly the same ting. honestly, I don't know, but I think the muscles tighten around the ears and in the head generally as part of the stress of it, combined with the brain trying to overprotect the ears, this leads to headaches and problems with drainage.

7-I started to have ear crackling with the on set of my T. Why do I have it? If my T is in my brain, why do I have those crackling sounds in my ears?
I think this is the same as (6).

8-I also have pulsatile T in my right ear and it also keeps getting worse. I got MRI test done in my second weeks of my T and nothing wrong showed up but I never pulsatile T at that time. I can stopped my T when I press my jugular Do you think I need another MRI?
I had an MRI and it too came back as "normal" I have only occasionally suffered with pulsatile tinnitus and it hasn't really been the main feature of mine - it is about the only significant difference to your symptoms though. Do you have high blood pressure with the stress? Also, it may be associated with the mirtazapine.

9-I have facial twitching when my T gets really really bad. What do I need to think about it?
I've had the facial twitches - In a very specific way though. I would yawn and it would trigger myokymia in my left eye. With it, my tinnitus would also absolutely scream. It would settle down after about 10 minutes, but it was completely repeatable, as if I was irritating a nerve or something similar every time. In my case, it was again something physical, rather than anxiety related as seems to be most common.

I do understand what you are going through. It is a living hell, but I honestly believe it will improve, you just have to get through the first few months and when you do start to notice improvements, hand on to those improvements and keep reminding yourself how much better you are than you were.

Wow. Thank you Owen. Knowing those jet engines in the head can get better for someone is really good. I hope your T keeps improving for you.

Take Care

 

[Owen]

Sorry about the shocking spelling and grammar - I should have proof read it before posting.