The Effects of Lexapro (Escitalopram) on Those Who Already Have Tinnitus?

[Cape crusader]

There are many threads here of stories where people have "developed" tinnitus after using Lexapro.

I'm wondering if anyone can tell me the effects of Lexapro for us who already have tinnitus? My anxiety is very high from high pitch hissing 24/7 and my PC wrote a Lexapro prescription. I'm very apprehensive to take it.

Any comments, positive or negative please. Thanks.

 

[MikeL1972]

@Cape crusader

I have been taking a low dose (10 mg) of Lexapro for 2 years now and it has been a savior for me in terms of allowing me to sleep through the night due to anxiety and depression. About 6-8 months ago I stopped taking it for a while and the anxiety & depression (and consequently insomnia) returned with a vengeance. Therefore, in my thinking, it is a small consolation to pay in order to live and sleep normally. Also, know that you are not alone... it is estimated around 30-40 million Americans take SSRI meds.

 

[Cape crusader]

Thank you MikeL
That reassuring. I'm going to give it a try.

 

[Devorose]

Hi everyone. I am new to tinnitus. One day I just noticed a high pitched hissing in my ears and I could not ignore it. I do not know what caused it, and the audiologist does not think it is due to hearing loss. One ENT says stress and anxiety, and the other one says possibly TMJ.

I actually think I have probably had it a lot longer, but never gave it too much attention. I would notice it more when I would get home from seeing a live band or concert, but I just figured it would go away, and it seemed to. Well 3 months ago, I tuned into it, and since then, and it hasn't gone away since. It has gotten louder. I now have tones in each ear that are a certain pitch, that don't harmonize well I may add.
Since the beginning of June, it has literally been driving me insane. I can't ignore it. It is the worst when o lay down, especially when I am in bed trying to sleep. I have been getting 1-2 hours maximum of sleep each night. The only 7-8 hour sleep I got was when I had a fever 2 nights ago and I took a melatonin.


I am here asking for guidance. I read a list of at least 800 ototoxic medications that scared me to death. I don't want to take anything that could make my tinnitus worse. However, I can't keep living on such little sleep and anxiety through the roof.

My primary doctor wants me to take Lexapro, as he will not prescribe any antianxiety medications. He feels that Lexapro will treat my anxiety and control my obsessive thoughts surrounding my tinnitus. I read that SSRIs can cause tinnitus due to the increase of Serotonin in the brain. I do not know what to do. I have trusted my doctor my whole life since I was 12. I am so afraid of the tinnitus getting worse that I do t want to take the medication. I fear if it got worse, I would go completely crazy and not be able to function. Luckily I'm a teacher and I have one more month to try to get this under control before having to go back to work.

Does anyone have any advice for me? Has anyone had any experience with taking medication to cope? I really need sleep! Has anyone taken Lexapro and had good results? I am desperate for some advice.

 

[kpr42891]

Hey guys, hope you're well. I've actually been a visitor to this site on and off for the past 2 years, but finally created an account. I'm in the same boat here.

@MikeL1972
Did you have your tinnitus prior to starting the Lexapro? If so, do you remember any sort of impact it had on the tinnitus?

@Cape crusader
How's it been going with the Lexapro? Are you still taking it? If so, have you noticed any impact on your tinnitus?

@Devorose
I'm sorry to hear about your recent discovery! I've read multiple articles on the study I think you're referencing regarding the increase in serotonin, here's one:
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/319077.php

Like you, I've also been experiencing obsessive thoughts for some time now regarding the tinnitus. My OCD and anxiety have gone through the roof as well. I've recently been diagnosed with OCD and BDD, both typically treated best with SSRI's, hence the double-edged sword.

 

[Cape crusader]

I stopped Lexapro. Too many side effects. Not worth it plus it didn't work like everything else.

 

[PeteJ]

Any more feedback on this one? My dr won't give me a benzo. I don't want to take meds including SSRI but I think I need to try something, unfortunately.

 

[Chinmoku]

Any more feedback on this one? My dr won't give me a benzo. I don't want to take meds including SSRI but I think I need to try something, unfortunately.

If you don't like meds you could try serotonergic supplements like tryptophan, 5htp or St John's Wort. The latter is similar to SSRIs in terms of power. Be careful though, there is research saying that serotonin may increase tinnitus. Also, don't take many or you may risk serotonin syndrome

 

[TealD]

I was prescribed Lexapro to treat depression I had before tinnitus. Once my tinnitus settled to the point where I was living a somewhat normal life I started to treat my depression. Before I took it however I had told the psychiatrist that I have tinnitus and I don't want something that can make it worse. She said it should be good.

Well sure enough that night after taking the pill I started to notice it more and become louder. I thought for sure that it was the anxiety side effect they warned me about. I decided to keep taking it. By the fourth day when I went to sleep it was pretty much Chinese New Year in my head. So many different tones I had never heard before along with anxiety. I stopped taking it immediately after.

Now I notice two days after weening off that my tinnitus is still loud and it can lower, albeit not like it once was, and I am going through multiple spikes throughout the day.

So my advice is don't take this crap it made mine worse. I just hope to God this thing still has a chance to go to baseline and eventually cure itself (God willing).

 

[Jim Goose]

My tinnitus started when I began Lexapro. There is obviously more to it, possibly TMJ, but Lexapro gave me vertigo. So something screwy was going inside there.

Just know, if you start it can be very hard to get off. I know that from taking Zoloft 10 years ago.

I've had too many bad experiences, these are extremely powerful drugs which are prescribed without warnings.

There must be a better solution.