Relationship Between OCD and Tinnitus

[Ben Johnson]

I was wondering if there are many on Tinnitus Talk who have both of these conditions. I had been suffering from hyper-awareness/somatic OCD for a few months when out of nowhere my mind latched onto tinnitus. The tinnitus has always been there. I just hadn't been aware of it.

I believe my OCD is what causes my focus on tinnitus.

Can anyone shed any light on this? Does anyone else suffer from this sub-type of OCD along with tinnitus?

 

[Frayact]

I was wondering if there are many on Tinnitus Talk who have both of these conditions. I had been suffering from hyper-awareness/somatic OCD for a few months when out of nowhere my mind latched onto tinnitus. The tinnitus has always been there. I just hadn't been aware of it.

I believe my OCD is what causes my focus on tinnitus.

Can anyone shed any light on this? Does anyone else suffer from this sub-type of OCD along with tinnitus?

I've never been officially diagnosed with OCD, but I definitely have some form of it. To be clear, I do NOT wash my hands repeatedly, count things, or feel the need to open a door several times before I enter a room. Mine is closer to anxiety and depression. In fact, I've been on antidepressants for over 20 years.

I think we all obsess over the noises in our heads at various times. Those of us who are lucky enough to habituate to it can let go of the obsessing and get on with life. I've had a high-pitched hissing in my head since 1996. Once it was determined that I had no tumors or other physical causes (idiopathic), I was able to ignore it after a few months. But I also occasionally hear a loud, low-frequency hum. THIS is what sets my OCD into gear. The humming is so painful and disrupting that it's all I think about when it enters my life. I had a relapse of it back on March 27 of this year after being free of it for nearly four years. A few weeks ago, my doctor switched my antidepressant that I had been on for 15 years (Lexapro) to a couple of newer ones (Pristiq and Abilify). The humming in my head has quieted down again I'm happy to report, at least for the past several days. The new ADs apparently did something to my brain chemistry to help alleviate the noise.

Ben, you might consider talking to your doctor about medication to help you. I know that SSRI's come with a warning about making tinnitus louder, but I've been on at least six different ones, and none of them ever increased the volume of my tinnitus. And if your tinnitus never really affected your life or bothered you before, treating the OCD may help return you to "normalcy." Keep us posted.

Craig