Once Again...Valium Does the Trick

[Paromita]

Ok, here it goes....once again Valium does the trick for me...! Low T today....took 2.5mg yesterday night

Yesterday I accidentally slept on my left side of the face pressing against the pillow, and the tinnitus shot high in the evening. And it remained the same throughout the night. At 2:30, I woke up and it was pretty high and I took half a Valium. and for sure it was low today morning.

I do not take Valium regularly....so thinking it might be the muscle relaxant thing in it which might be doing the trick ?

Are there any other muscle relaxers I can take related to the jaw ? Just trying to think if something else works, I may not need valium to do the job.

Best Regards,
Mita

 

[Richard zurowski]

@Paromita . Happy you have had some success with Valium . As for other muscle relaxers I don't know? Your doctor would be best to advise you on that question.

 

[Ears Hurt]

Flexeril is a common muscle relaxer

 

[grate_biff]

I do not take Valium regularly....so thinking it might be the muscle relaxant thing in it which might be doing the trick ?

I have thought about this alot and I think it is the GABAeric effect that quiet it down rather than the musclerelaxant effect.

 

[Paromita]

I have thought about this alot and I think it is the GABAeric effect that quiet it down rather than the musclerelaxant effect.

Why do you say so, I dont take it everyday. And once it goes down, it usually stays that way till I put pressure on my left side face again...! What do you think about that ?

 

[grate_biff]

Benzo will have the same effect on most people with T. bc of NIHL, including myself. There is no doubt the inhibatory effect benzo has on our brain will aleviate the T. for some time. Dependent of course of the particular halflife of the benzo of choice. I will not of course disregard the effect of more relaxed muscels either but then I just dont understand the mechanisms.

 

[Paromita]

Benzo will have the same effect on most people with T. bc of NIHL, including myself. There is no doubt the inhibatory effect benzo has on our brain will aleviate the T. for some time. Dependent of course of the particular halflife of the benzo of choice. I will not of course disregard the effect of more relaxed muscels either but then I just dont understand the mechanisms.

I understand, what is NIHL...sorry dont know about it.

Thanks for your help.

 

[grate_biff]

I understand, what is NIHL...sorry dont know about it.

NIHL= Noice Induced Hearing Loss.

 

[Paromita]

NIHL= Noice Induced Hearing Loss.

Got it....thanks!

 

[grate_biff]

Got it....thanks!

Don´t mention it!

 

[Jkph75]

I have the same thing. Ringing louder and numb face if I sleep on it. Valium has the same effect for me. I took Cyclobenzaprine for a while. I think that helped some too but not nearly as much. Can't keep taking the Valium though.

 

[Paromita]

I have the same thing. Ringing louder and numb face if I sleep on it. Valium has the same effect for me. I took Cyclobenzaprine for a while. I think that helped some too but not nearly as much. Can't keep taking the Valium though.

Any other symptoms on your face ? I have tingling and numbness that comes on my nose randomly...a part of my tongue burns or at times feels cold to touch...the inside of my jaw feels inflammed...and burning/slight pain on left edge of my face....and slightly puffed cheek bones...

do you have any other symptoms..?

 

[Jkph75]

I sometimes feel like there is an earthquake when I am lying in bed. I have this weird pressure that I get on the bridge of my nose and roof of my mouth. Sometimes my bottom lip and chin feel numb.

 

[Paromita]

I sometimes feel like there is an earthquake when I am lying in bed. I have this weird pressure that I get on the bridge of my nose and roof of my mouth. Sometimes my bottom lip and chin feel numb.

Did you ever have a dental abbcess or a tooth surgery gone wrong ? Or any indication of trigeminal nueralagia ? Ever been to a nuerologist with these issues...?

 

[Jkph75]

No tooth problems. I have a neurologist. He is having me get an MRI of my neck. He thinks it's related to my ear. Something about my brain not being able to process the ear problems and creating other things. Idk

 

[Paromita]

No tooth problems. I have a neurologist. He is having me get an MRI of my neck. He thinks it's related to my ear. Something about my brain not being able to process the ear problems and creating other things. Idk

Oh cool! Atleast you will get some answers....I am stuck because I do not want to go for a MRI with contrast. And so the nuerologists cannot see anything. I already have had one MRI without contrast and its normal so no tumors etc.

 

[Paromita]

No tooth problems. I have a neurologist. He is having me get an MRI of my neck. He thinks it's related to my ear. Something about my brain not being able to process the ear problems and creating other things. Idk

But I am sure its got something to do with my jaws/left side of the face...

 

[LadyDi]

As others have said: think your reduced tinnitus is due to the effect of the Valium on your brain and neurological system, not on your muscles. Research has shown that Xanax, a benzodiazepene like Valium, does the same thing for many people. Benzos are not the same as muscle relaxers.

However, your symptoms -- the burning and tingling, etc. -- do sound muscular.
Glad you are getting some relief, regardless.

 

[LuluLulu]

What kind of doctor are you guys working with to get drugs like valium, Xanax, flexeril? My current doc (PCP) is wanting me to stop Xanax which works for me, will not prescribe valium even though it helps me a lot too, and won't consider flexeril. New doc I've just started seeing will prescribe Xanax as long as SHE is "comfortable with it" but will only do so if I take a drug test to make sure I'm not taking anything else. Well, except for the antidepressant class of drugs she'd like me to take for anxiety. I have horrific side effects from antidepressants in the past so I won't take those.

ENTs have been no help.

Neither the PC doc I've been seeing or this one I was considering switching to really GET what I'm going through. What type of doc do I need to be looking for?

 

[linearb]

What kind of doctor are you guys working with to get drugs like valium, Xanax, flexeril? My current doc (PCP) is wanting me to stop Xanax which works for me, will not prescribe valium even though it helps me a lot too, and won't consider flexeril.

I have a neurologist who basically has given me anything I've asked for, but I also only take benzos about once a month.

Your doctor sounds pretty skeptical of drugs, but IMO you're better off taking fewer benzos than more. They can definitely provide short term relief, but long term use is pretty dangerous.

You may have to go to a bunch of different doctors until you find one who wants to be more helpful, but be careful about "drug-seeking behavior" that's not something you want in your medical file.

 

[LuluLulu]

My doctor has been prescribing Xanax and valuium for more than 2 years. It helps. Now suddenly she has an issue with xanax which is the only thing that helps. I am tapering off the valium (from a whole 3mg down to less than 2mg/day) because the new doc I *might* switch to will not prescribe it.

Of course I'd rather not take any benzos but if it's a choice between going insane with ringing in my ear and taking benzos long term, the latter is my choice.

I had thought to see yet another ENT but the last one it was just another lecture about benzos and I got a letter clearly so he could cover his butt - reminding me I must get an MRI with contrast to rule out one of the rarest tumors. I can't afford that, don't want the contrast, and can't afford to go from doctor to doctor. And yes, I don't want to be labeled as a drug seeker!

So do most of yall here (yeah, I said yall, from Texas!) work with neuros because they are more open to prescribing what works for the patient?

 

[linearb]

I actually found the neuro because I wanted to try a more exotic drug; personally I've always found it only too easy to get benzos prescribed. They do reduce the ring, but after some research I got concerned that they might make it worse over a long period of time.

 

[LuluLulu]

What's the more exotic drug and did it help?

I agree, it's always been too easy to get benzos but that's been the only thing that's helped me for years. No side effects (other than dependence of course) and taking daily. Kidney, liver, etc all still perfect.

 

[linearb]

What's the more exotic drug and did it help?

It was Trobalt/Potiga, and I developed side effects very quickly that made me say "this isn't worth it even if it cures the tinnitus".

I agree, it's always been too easy to get benzos but that's been the only thing that's helped me for years. No side effects (other than dependence of course) and taking daily. Kidney, liver, etc all still perfect.

Yup, there's nothing else that knocks the volume of my tinnitus down and also makes me feel totally okay with life in general in quite the same way; unfortunately I think I burned the candle at both ends too much during my years of benzo use, and just don't trust myself to take them more than very infrequently. And, of course the taper off and withdrawal was miserable; if I ever went back on daily doses I think I'd basically be committing to just doing that forever, and that makes me nervous because I'm only 35 and I'm afraid that another 10-20-30 years of benzo use might cause all kinds of really horrible problems, not the least of which is increased tinnitus. But, it's a very personal thing: some people are able to withdraw even after long term use without much fuss, and some people do take these drugs for their whole lives. Who knows.

Finding a sympathetic, good doctor can be a challenge; you might want to see if there's any resources around you for people with chronic pain, and then see if anyone has any suggestions. IMO, the long term effects of severely distressing tinnitus, are more similar to chronic pain conditions than not.

 

[Sen]

i'm going through a slow taper from benzos at the moment, and even a very small reduction has my symptoms, including T & H, going insane.

it's a shame that there are so many problems with long term use. i would take them forever if it was a realistic option.