Intermittent Tinnitus — Anyone Having Similar Symptoms?

[LilSass]

Hi everyone,

I'm just wondering if anyone has experienced some of these symptoms, and if so, have you made any progress:

• Dizziness, that started alongside tinnitus (has resolved 95% after first month)
• Intermittent tinnitus (i.e. from onset: one day high volume, one day low, one day unnoticeable, repeat - resets next morning) now with more 2 days of near silence, six months from onset
• Tinnitus that starts after napping (most times) or sometimes starts around midday (rarely) after quiet
• Intermittent mild earache (1-3 times per week), slight ache around jaw and going down neck/scm - mainly right side, some months after onset, becoming more frequent)
• Mild hypercusis (some sensitivity to noises like dishes banging together) & when loud can hear over tv (low to moderate volume), which seems to exacerbate it
• Crackling in ear when swallowing/yawning
• No spikes regardless of what I eat, noises, etc. (I haven't been especially over protecting my ears up until now, yet seems to make no difference in terms of loudness, frequency, etc.) - I live a quiet lifestyle, i.e. don't go to bars, clubs, limited ear bud usage, etc.
• Suspect originated from ototoxic medicine (almotriptan in combination with ibuprofen) yet, no change in pattern, etc. by continuing said medication (ibuprofen now stopped for two months - took Tylenol once and did notice t started shortly after)
• I also suffer from migraines related to neck/shoulder/back muscles

Any insight would be helpful!

Thanks everyone

Sarah

 

[LilSass]

Hi @Greg Sacramento! I was reading one of your recent posts and was wondering if you could have a look at my threads and let me know what you think? In your post you speak of tones and pitches in relation to a possible pathology. I'm trying to figure out if my t is from ototoxic meds or possibly from my muscle tension. I hope you get this - I am absolutely terrible at using this site effectively (novice social media user!)

Thanks so much!

Sarah

 

[Greg Sacramento]

@LilSass Almotriptan can increase serotonin and that can cause tinnitus, but more so from withdrawal. A taper needs to be slow even with small dose use.

Almotroptan narrows small blood vessels, I believe in the cerebral cortex, which occupy a space on either side of the head roughly starting behind the ears (where there's sensitive nerve fibers) and then to vessels that extend near the back of the skull.

Most that get tinnitus from this med class group have variable tinnitus. Less one day and more pronounced the next. Often they get temporary spikes after a nap. This is because of serotonin increase that directs attention to small fibers near the ears.

I would consider taking N-acetyle cysteine (NAC). NAC is often used alongside Almotriptan within hospitals. This could soften your T considerably.

Are you still still using Almotriptan?

Update: Found this - https://www.hindawi.com/journals/crips/2016/1790692/

 

[LilSass]

Thank you Greg! Yes, I am still using it, though not as much. Can you advise the best source/ dose of NAC?

 

[Brenda Klein]

Sarah, I have the same thing you described...
I'm having a CT scan next week.

 

[LilSass]

Hi Brenda! Nice to meet you. I'm scheduled for an MRI June 10, but I think I'm going to skip it and see if I can get a CT scan instead. I wouldn't normally care so much, but now my ears have been compromised I don't feel confident with the noise level. Today is my third day with no t! I'm going to enjoy it as much as possible.

 

[Greg Sacramento]

@LilSass

Can you advise the best source/ dose of NAC?

I was taking one or two 600mg capsules within 24 hours.
If you decide to use NAC, take it a few hours before other medication and with some food..

 

[LilSass]

Thanks @Greg Sacramento! The only meds I'm presently on is methocarbamol (OTC muscle relaxant when needed) and almotriptan, when needed. Does this include other supplements? I'm currently taking Mg, Q10, D, probiotic, B2, B12. Do you have any ideas on how to taper off the almotriptan (I only take it when needed which has recently been reduced from 3-5 per week to 1-2 per week)?

 

[LilSass]

@Greg Sacramento

Are you referring to amitriptyline?

 

[Greg Sacramento]

@LilSass

Are you referring to amitriptyline

No, but you are not taking enough almotriptan for a need to taper if you decide to discontinue.

 

[LilSass]

Thanks @Greg Sacramento! How do you know so much?
Do you know much about this? Tinnitus Treatment With Mirtazapine
https://neuro.psychiatryonline.org/doi/pdfplus/10.1176/appi.neuropsych.11040086

 

[LilSass]

Hi again @Greg Sacramento! How are you? Do you think taking NAC will help even though it's 6 months since onset? BTW I read your story...thinking about you.

 

[Greg Sacramento]

@LilSass Thank you for your kindness. Thank you so much.
NAC - I would give it a go.

 

[LilSass]

@Greg Sacramento I haven't been using sound enrichment at night (or day). What do you recommend? Also, looking for good ear plugs- do you have a favourite? Do you think t caused by ototoxic meds will fade in time? Sorry for all of the questions - I very much trust your opinion! All the best!

 

[tbuzz89]

@LilSass

I've also started to experience similar fluctuations as you but not until around two months after the onset of my T. Many mornings I wake up to very low levels, and for the first time yesterday I had a near silent day (1.5 out of 10.) Today has spiked back up to 8/10. Seems to be following a loose pattern of low volume and then high volume.

I've ordered some NAC to give it a go and will reply with some updates on whether it helps or not!

 

[Greg Sacramento]

@LilSass I used soft gentle pink music - mostly a brook sound for years. I kept the sound low - where I heard it at whisper level - several feet away - 10 feet when sleeping - used a CD. I know almost nothing about ear plugs. NAC may help ototoxicity.

 

[LilSass]

@tbuzz89 Is yours noise induced? I'm sure mine's from meds. It's been pretty much the same for 6 months. One day loud, one day quiet, one day non-existent. Tho I've been having more 2-3 days in a row of quiet/nothing.

 

[tbuzz89]

@LilSass

I truly don't know. Since January I have been living a very quiet life after moving from NYC to rural Virginia. While I have been a loud earbud user in the past, I had not listened to loud music since December 2019. I had gone through serious stress induced anxiety and depression with major insomnia from January through late March, and on March 20th I woke up with tinnitus. There were a couple of times I was around an electric leaf blower and power tools, but for very short instances, so again, I can't pinpoint if acoustic or other onset and mostly blame this stressful period of my life.

I'd say in the first 6-7 weeks for me, the T (an electrical buzzing/hissing sound) did not decrease in volume short of a few quiet mornings. In the last week or two, I have had some moments of near silence and then yesterday my first full day of relative quiet.

I'm definitely hoping that by you having more 2-3 days of silence that the frequency of those days continue and begin growing longer and longer ultimately leading to total quiet!

 

[LilSass]

Thank you for your wishes @tbuzz89 ! I hope the same for you as well. As much as I appreciate the quiet days, it is a bit psychologically difficult, as I'm not sure what the day will bring when I wake up. I can deal with it when it happens, but I lay in bed thinking about my life before this happened and start to feel anxious. It's been six months, and I've been okay and still had a lot of happy moments (it hasn't completely consumed me), yet I don't want to feel this way. COVID's not helping. I also get migraines, so that sucks. Anyway, it can only get better, right?

 

[Joe Cuber]

Hi there @LilSass, it's not often that I run into a thread that describes symptoms that I experience. The part in your post that describes my experience rather well is this:

Intermittent tinnitus (i.e. from onset: one day high volume, one day low, one day unnoticeable, repeat - resets next morning) now with more 2 days of near silence, six months from onset

Since onset, mine has been unwaveringly intermittent, a loose pattern of loud days and very quiet/silent days. Sometimes it's 2-3 quiet days in a row and sometimes 2-3 loud days in a row. It's still intermittent to this day (8 months since onset), though I get more quiet days these days on average.

One thing I've noticed--which sounds like something you've noticed too--is that it seems to be correlated with my neck. On my loud days, I happen to wake up to a stiffer neck.

I'm wondering how you're getting these days and whether you've happened upon a solution. I'll be seeing a NUCCA chiropractor next week. I read that you've tried NUCCA which resulted in being maladjusted and also have done Upper Cervical. If you have any wisdom to bestow, I'll be very grateful.

In any event, I hope you're doing better these days! Thanks -- Joe