Sudden Hearing Loss and Tinnitus in One Ear — ENT Put Me on Prednisone 50mg

[matthew_bk]

Hi everyone,

I have lurked on here since I got a sudden onset of tinnitus in my left ear only 2 Wednesdays ago. I waited a week to see my primary care doctor who said the ear looked a little red, probably early infection, and put me on Amoxicillin. When the ringing didn't go away after a few days I booked an appointment with an ENT. I went to the ENT today and just returned home.

The tests confirmed that I am having some hearing loss in my left ear, which explains the unilateral tinnitus. Since it's been less than 2 weeks since this started, she started me on 50mg of Prednisone.

A lot of the day if I'm kept busy or have other noise going on I can forget about the ringing. But I haven't slept well in nearly 2 weeks and I'm just throwing this message out there to introduce myself and hope that I can become one of the success stories I've read.

If anyone has a bit of advice on how to proceed while hoping that the drug works, or any words of encouragement, I'd love to hear it.

-Matt from Brooklyn

 

[matthew_bk]

Hi all,

I know this is a kind of stupid thing, but I'm terrible at taking most pills larger than those tiny allergy pills (Cetirizine or whatever). I mentioned this when my ENT prescribed Prednisone, and she suggested that those pills go down easier with Greek yogurt, something thick to cover it on the way down. She specifically said that water isn't a great idea for this pill - it will just get stuck in the back of the throat.

The first time I did it it worked pretty well, but the next morning I ended up just swallowing the yogurt around the pill. I tried to quickly add more yogurt, then water, but nothing would get it down. I ended up spitting it out before it dissolved in my mouth - I figure it really needs to get into the stomach to work. I calmed down and tried again with a new pill, which worked.

I put in a call to get another pill (it's 1 of 7 and my follow-up is the day after the last pill), but I'm just wondering if anyone else has trouble with pills and found a good way to handle this. I think these can be split (they're 50mg and have a score line down the middle for easy breaking) so I might try that tomorrow.

 

[matthew_bk]

Nobody's been responding to these so far, but that's okay, it is therapeutic to write it all down and get it all out anyway.

I hadn't mentioned anything to my parents yet, to avoid possibly upsetting them, but I spoke to them last night. As it turns out my father had the same exact thing at pretty much the same exact age as me. He hasn't noticed it in years outside of very quiet rooms, which really took a weight off. I know clearly a lot of people here have wildly different experiences but this gave me some hope.

Today was Day 3 on Prednisone. Most of the day tinnitus was very quiet - having a tiny bit of a spike now in the evening. Hopefully as I keep moving through the treatment the volume stays lower like it did during the day. At one point I'm pretty sure the typical high-pitched "eeeee" tone I'm hearing dropped into a very low, quiet rumble - almost like clothes in a dryer... which would be much preferable.

And just as a side note, I've also been taking 1mg of Melatonin to help with sleeping and I think it's making a difference.

 

[matthew_bk]

Well, last night didn't go well and today ain't any better. I didn't get any consistent sleep despite trying a few different masking - white noise machine, nature sounds stuff. And today was bad too. I also had a little bit of a meltdown when I realized that I should've cleared my 1mg Melatonin with the doctor since I'm taking the Prednisone. I left her a message, as it was after-hours by the time I called. I called the pharmacist, who said it wouldn't be a problem, but I Googled and found on very reputable sites that Melatonin should not be taken alongside corticosteroids like Prednisone. Melatonin can kick start the immune system, and the point of the corticosteroid is to suppress it - as I understand, reducing the immune response will reduce any inflammation that is causing the damage to my inner ear.

https://www.mountsinai.org/health-library/supplement/melatonin
"DO NOT take melatonin with corticosteroids or other medications used to suppress the immune system."

I'm really hoping that I haven't negated whatever expected benefit the Prednisone is meant to have. I started taking both of them on the same day - Monday - which is within the 2 week window of my symptoms. I'm now outside that window, so if I have to start the course over I'm at much lower odds of recovery, which would be totally devastating. I had already been beating myself up for not seeking treatment sooner, but between COVID-19 and deciding to visit primary care before a specialist, I still had managed to get to the ENT before 2 weeks.

 

[matthew_bk]

What an odd night. Friday was a pretty low volume/intensity day, and I went to sleep rather easy. Tinnitus actually invaded my dream, became part of it. I was in a taxi ride with friends, me in the rear passenger side seat. My typical high-pitched 'eee' noise begins, and my friend ahead of me points my window, like it needs to be closed. I try but it's already closed, so I try to explain it must be coming out of the rear window. At that point I wake up, and it's around 4:45am, and the ringing is clear and high pitched and kind of loud. Struggle to fall back asleep, but once I do I'm out until around 9am. Ringing pretty quiet this morning so far, but picking up a little.

I have to hope that while this is still very invasive and worrying and troublesome, the fact that my tinnitus seems to recede at points, sometimes for a good chunk of the day, is a good thing. My last of 7 Prednisone pills is tomorrow, and the day after is my follow-up. Hoping my hearing test comes back with less hearing loss than last time.

 

[Brian Newman]

How is your tinnitus doing?

 

[billie48]

I have to hope that while this is still very invasive and worrying and troublesome, the fact that my tinnitus seems to recede at points, sometimes for a good chunk of the day, is a good thing.

Living with intrusive tinnitus, we need to be as positive and calm as possible as stress and anxiety will likely aggravate the ringing. So try to focus on the positives. You seem to have a milder form of tinnitus or sudden hearing loss such as SSHL which can have devastating profound loss of hearing and many other nasty symptoms such as vertigo, dizziness, aural fullness, extra loud tinnitus 7/24 as well as ear fullness, pressured and plugged ears, brain fog etc.

So try to focus on the positives of your situation and hopefully your tinnitus will continue to lengthen the quiet days. Perhaps your father's mild case of tinnitus is an assurance that your may follow the same course. Keeping positive and calm as much as possible will help habituate to the tinnitus in due time very much like your dad.

Good luck. Take care. God bless.

 

[matthew_bk]

How is your tinnitus doing?

I had a very rough night, I think in part due to stress/anxiety from the medication & also today's exam.

Today's audiology tests showed no improvement over last week, before starting prednisone. So for now, it did nothing.

Further, my ENT thinks that since my hearing loss is pretty mild & asymmetric, it might not be ISSHL at all. Might just be some asymmetric hearing loss that isn't sudden, but was gradual.

I have been to hundreds of concerts, but have worn hearing protection at nearly all of them (and certainly all of them since my early 20s, starting 15 years ago). I would expect trauma from concerts - which I haven't been to in over a year, obviously, since pandemic - to be balanced evenly between my ears. So I'm not sure why the loss is asymmetric, or why it's happening now, in the undoubtedly quietest year of my life!

Going in for an MRI to hopefully rule out acoustic neuroma once insurance clears.

 

[matthew_bk]

Living with intrusive tinnitus, we need to be as positive and calm as possible as stress and anxiety will likely aggravate the ringing. So try to focus on the positives. You seem to have a milder form of tinnitus or sudden hearing loss such as SSHL which can have devastating profound loss of hearing and many other nasty symptoms such as vertigo, dizziness, aural fullness, extra loud tinnitus 7/24 as well as ear fullness, pressured and plugged ears, brain fog etc.

So try to focus on the positives of your situation and hopefully your tinnitus will continue to lengthen the quiet days. Perhaps your father's mild case of tinnitus is an assurance that your may follow the same course. Keeping positive and calm as much as possible will help habituate to the tinnitus in due time very much like your dad.

Good luck. Take care. God bless.

Thank you. I'm trying to stay hopeful that before I know it I'll be habituated and be able to move on.

 

[Beg321]

Hello, I'm wondering if there's any update on your tinnitus journey, please?

 

[matthew_bk]

Hello, I'm wondering if there's any update on your tinnitus journey, please?

Well, it's actually coming up on 1 year since I went into my ENT. My tinnitus is still present, but thankfully I am able to go long stretches - hours - without noticing it or thinking about it at all. Sometimes the whole day. I do use a white noise machine at night still, but at this point it's probably more to reduce the occasional apartment building noises (heating pipes, etc) than my tinnitus. The tinnitus is always there, but I just don't quite notice it as much.

 

[billie48]

Well, it's actually coming up on 1 year since I went into my ENT. My tinnitus is still present, but thankfully I am able to go long stretches - hours - without noticing it or thinking about it at all. Sometimes the whole day. I do use a white noise machine at night still, but at this point it's probably more to reduce the occasional apartment building noises (heating pipes, etc) than my tinnitus. The tinnitus is always there, but I just don't quite notice it as much.

Congratulations! You are now habituated to your tinnitus from your update. This usually happens from 6 months on. Keep living life normally and ignore the tinnitus. It will get better and better. Take care. God bless.

 

[Beg321]

Awww I'm glad to hear that things are better.