Hi all,
I'm not sure if I'm doing this right. But my name is Samantha. It was in 2019, right before the pandemic, that I developed tinnitus. I had been on an antibiotic for my acne (Minocycline) for a few months, when all of a sudden, when I lay on my left side one night and noticed a ringing sound. I couldn't sleep all night, and the next day I told my parents about it and my dad took me to the ER, where the doctor told me to stop taking the antibiotic as tinnitus can be a side effect.
So, I stopped talking the antibiotic, and low and behold, the ringing never went away. This impacted my life in a horrible way. I couldn't ever sleep, I woke up each morning with horrible stomach aches and had to run to the bathroom, and I couldn't even function. My anxiety literally took over my entire life. I cried all the time. I was only 18 at the time and felt like I couldn't talk to any of my friends about it, as none of them have experienced anything like it and I knew I would sound crazy.
It all became so much worse when I had to return to college after winter break and live on campus, away from home. I couldn't even function. I thought about the tinnitus 24/7- in class, while I was getting food, while I was trying to go to bed. And I also got a random roommate that semester who was a living nightmare. I got into an argument with her and they allowed me to move into a different room and live by myself.
I only lived in that room for 3 days but I was absolutely miserable. I was there by myself with the tinnitus all day, other than when I was in class. I thought about hurting myself so many times, just in hopes that it would relieve some of the pain that it was causing me. I also started counseling at my school at this time, which didn't help me very much.
It took me about a year to habituate to the tinnitus. And it was the hardest, most miserable year of my life. I couldn't enjoy anything- hanging out with my friends, spending time with family, going on vacation. I felt like such a burden to my parents, who were trying to be supportive but I knew it was hard for them to understand just how crippling tinnitus is, especially for someone who is prone to anxiety already.
Before I continue, I wanted to let everyone know that it is possible to get used to it. I reached a point where I never thought about it at all, except for every so often when I was going to sleep and my room was a little quieter than usual. If you are struggling with this, I know how you feel. You are strong enough to overcome this. It may not go away, and you may never be how you were before, but you can reach a point where you just live with it, and it will not induce anxiety or depression anymore, and you can be at peace. It's not easy, but please, do not lose hope.
Anyway, fast forward to today. Now 20 years old, still in college. I went to get some routine blood work and a urine test done a couple weeks ago. My urine results came back and were indicative of a UTI, so I met with my doctor and he prescribed me Augmentin.
I didn't even think about the fact that antibiotics are what caused the tinnitus in the first place, because I had been able to mostly heal and the tinnitus was not on the forefront of my mind whatsoever anymore. So, I took this new antibiotic for two days. TWO DAYS. 4 pills total. And, when I was laying on my right side yesterday night, all of a sudden, something changed. The previous sound that was there went away, and was replaced by a very loud, high pitched, ringing sound. I figured it would go away, as it's very common for me to have a few seconds of a new ringing sound but for it to just be replaced by the usual sound. But it didn't. And now, it is a constant, loud, ongoing sound in both ears and I feel like I can just hear it in my head in general. Much louder than before.
It hurts me to be writing this right now. Within the span of one day, I have reverted back to the extreme stress and anxiety and worry that I felt every single day those two years ago. I am hoping more than anything that this is just temporary and will go away after I stop taking the antibiotic, and I'm pretending that I didn't just read a ton of things online saying that tinnitus caused by Augmentin is usually permanent. I keep trying to remind myself that I was able to tune it out before, so I can do it again. But it's louder and more noticeable now. I really don't think I can go through this again. The sleepless nights and the constant feelings of anxiety and nausea during the days. I cannot do it again. And now I just don't know what to do. I can't, once again, put my family through the stress or sadness that I caused before. The amount of money that they spent on trips to the ENT, tinnitus specialists, and medications for my anxiety. I just don't know what to do or how to function. I am just so lost and sad right now.
I don't want to stop taking the antibiotics, as I do really want to resolve the UTI issue. I'm also in nursing school, and I know that I'll probably be exposed to various bacterial infections as a nurse and I will need to take antibiotics if I do ever acquire one, so I just feel like I need to learn how to take antibiotics. However, I'm just extremely nervous that the ringing will just get worse as I continue to take the antibiotics even though I only have 6 days left of the course. I am just hoping to god that this new, amplified ringing goes away after I'm done with these antibiotics and it has left my system.
(I'm also taking Lo Loestrin Fe, Metoprolol, and Hydroxyzine. Does anyone happen to know if these are ototoxic at all?)
I'm not sure if I'm doing this right. But my name is Samantha. It was in 2019, right before the pandemic, that I developed tinnitus. I had been on an antibiotic for my acne (Minocycline) for a few months, when all of a sudden, when I lay on my left side one night and noticed a ringing sound. I couldn't sleep all night, and the next day I told my parents about it and my dad took me to the ER, where the doctor told me to stop taking the antibiotic as tinnitus can be a side effect.
So, I stopped talking the antibiotic, and low and behold, the ringing never went away. This impacted my life in a horrible way. I couldn't ever sleep, I woke up each morning with horrible stomach aches and had to run to the bathroom, and I couldn't even function. My anxiety literally took over my entire life. I cried all the time. I was only 18 at the time and felt like I couldn't talk to any of my friends about it, as none of them have experienced anything like it and I knew I would sound crazy.
It all became so much worse when I had to return to college after winter break and live on campus, away from home. I couldn't even function. I thought about the tinnitus 24/7- in class, while I was getting food, while I was trying to go to bed. And I also got a random roommate that semester who was a living nightmare. I got into an argument with her and they allowed me to move into a different room and live by myself.
I only lived in that room for 3 days but I was absolutely miserable. I was there by myself with the tinnitus all day, other than when I was in class. I thought about hurting myself so many times, just in hopes that it would relieve some of the pain that it was causing me. I also started counseling at my school at this time, which didn't help me very much.
It took me about a year to habituate to the tinnitus. And it was the hardest, most miserable year of my life. I couldn't enjoy anything- hanging out with my friends, spending time with family, going on vacation. I felt like such a burden to my parents, who were trying to be supportive but I knew it was hard for them to understand just how crippling tinnitus is, especially for someone who is prone to anxiety already.
Before I continue, I wanted to let everyone know that it is possible to get used to it. I reached a point where I never thought about it at all, except for every so often when I was going to sleep and my room was a little quieter than usual. If you are struggling with this, I know how you feel. You are strong enough to overcome this. It may not go away, and you may never be how you were before, but you can reach a point where you just live with it, and it will not induce anxiety or depression anymore, and you can be at peace. It's not easy, but please, do not lose hope.
Anyway, fast forward to today. Now 20 years old, still in college. I went to get some routine blood work and a urine test done a couple weeks ago. My urine results came back and were indicative of a UTI, so I met with my doctor and he prescribed me Augmentin.
I didn't even think about the fact that antibiotics are what caused the tinnitus in the first place, because I had been able to mostly heal and the tinnitus was not on the forefront of my mind whatsoever anymore. So, I took this new antibiotic for two days. TWO DAYS. 4 pills total. And, when I was laying on my right side yesterday night, all of a sudden, something changed. The previous sound that was there went away, and was replaced by a very loud, high pitched, ringing sound. I figured it would go away, as it's very common for me to have a few seconds of a new ringing sound but for it to just be replaced by the usual sound. But it didn't. And now, it is a constant, loud, ongoing sound in both ears and I feel like I can just hear it in my head in general. Much louder than before.
It hurts me to be writing this right now. Within the span of one day, I have reverted back to the extreme stress and anxiety and worry that I felt every single day those two years ago. I am hoping more than anything that this is just temporary and will go away after I stop taking the antibiotic, and I'm pretending that I didn't just read a ton of things online saying that tinnitus caused by Augmentin is usually permanent. I keep trying to remind myself that I was able to tune it out before, so I can do it again. But it's louder and more noticeable now. I really don't think I can go through this again. The sleepless nights and the constant feelings of anxiety and nausea during the days. I cannot do it again. And now I just don't know what to do. I can't, once again, put my family through the stress or sadness that I caused before. The amount of money that they spent on trips to the ENT, tinnitus specialists, and medications for my anxiety. I just don't know what to do or how to function. I am just so lost and sad right now.
I don't want to stop taking the antibiotics, as I do really want to resolve the UTI issue. I'm also in nursing school, and I know that I'll probably be exposed to various bacterial infections as a nurse and I will need to take antibiotics if I do ever acquire one, so I just feel like I need to learn how to take antibiotics. However, I'm just extremely nervous that the ringing will just get worse as I continue to take the antibiotics even though I only have 6 days left of the course. I am just hoping to god that this new, amplified ringing goes away after I'm done with these antibiotics and it has left my system.
(I'm also taking Lo Loestrin Fe, Metoprolol, and Hydroxyzine. Does anyone happen to know if these are ototoxic at all?)
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