Tinnitus from Loud Concert — Doctor Suspects Costochondritis & Presribed Steroids and Ibuprofen

No, I’m too afraid to try them. I don’t want to do anything to make it worse, but at the same time, I’m getting impatient and something is going to give.

I’ve been on a waiting list for CBT for nearly a year now. Hopefully I will get to see someone soon and avoid medication.

 

@makeyourownluck - To learn CBT quicker, I chose to find a group therapy class. Not sure if that's an option you would consider. I wonder if there are any group therapy class in your area.

 

I just wanted to write on my own thread that I’ve decided to go ahead and try antidepressants. Just that I made the decision that I want to try. I still have to make the appt to see the doctor. And likely I’m going to ask for Sertraline/Zoloft (or Lexapro?) because I’ve taken it before without too many bad side effects plus it may be better to tackle my anxiety + depression combo.

I did a lot of thinking about this for a long time now. I looked up anecdote after anecdote, positive and negative experiences... all it left was the option to try it. That tinnitus is as individual as the person in which it resides. I’m partially influenced by the fact that meds haven’t seemed to affect my tinnitus all that much. Found a list of 20 most triggering tinnitus meds from most to least and guess what? I already take a med that is listed as higher than Zoloft. In fact Zoloft is lower on the list than my blood pressure meds I take everyday. So screw it, I’m going to try it. And if for some reason it screws me over and makes me unhappy and worse, I don’t want anyone to quote this in the future as a way to scare people off of trying to alleviate their mental anguish.

Truth be told I’m scared as HELL. but I’m ready to finally take care of my mental health. I’ve reached a point where my anxiety and depression is really just compounding with the tinnitus. So much so that even though my tinnitus is stable and not too bad, and yet all I do is ruminate and agonize over every could be. Constantly worrying about a worsening that hasn’t even arrived? I don’t know if many of you understand what it’s like to be obsessive BEFORE tinnitus - then enter tinnitus. It makes everything much worse. I’ve had tinnitus for two years with no massive improvement. It’s relatively stable. It’s not affected by meds from what I can see. I just need to give this a chance and I really hope it pays off.

I’ll update here for anyone who is curious how it ends up going. I’m so scared but I guess I’m always scared anyways.

 

I think you're being very smart about this. You have done your research and know your body. I myself take an antidepressant and it is probably paramount to my stability, considering when I tried to ween off a few months ago, my tinnitus spiked and so did depression/anxiety. I currently take Fluoxetine 20 mg and it seems to have little to no side effects.

I would remind you that when you first begin a regimen, your mind will try and play tricks on you and convince you every little sneeze is a side effect. Be patient and give the meds time to work. Generally it takes about 2 weeks. And then the depression/anxiety just seems to fade a little til you stop responding to it.

Tinnitus will continue to try and pull focus but after some time you just won't care as much.

I hope whatever meds you decide on, give you the relief you deserve. Best wishes!

 

Just dropping this link in here for reference:

Antidepressant Microbes In Soil: How Dirt Makes You Happy

I can honestly say that 'through thick and thin', being out in the garden and amongst nature (sat with the bees the other day while they gorged on lavender) is the only pastime that has consistently healed me both spiritually and to a degree physically by lowering my tinnitus.

Being in the garden, or a garden, or just sitting in the park on the grass should be a serious consideration when one puts together a regimen for better mental and physical health.

 

Thank you so much for your support and kind words, truly. I know antidepressants are a tricky topic especially here where some come to this forum because antidepressants have hurt them. However, many of my friends and family who suffer from depression have basically shared their experiences with me and it's made me realize how it could potentially help me. Now your words have a similar effect for me I've also been avoiding taking them for most of my life and I think it's time that I get serious about my mental health.

Thanks for the advice. I'll try to keep that in mind Of course I'm an anxious person so I'm sure I'll be worried a lot at first but I really hope it settles and works for me. I'll likely update here if you or anyone is interested in the aftermath. Hopefully good things come.

 

100% agreed! Slow bike rides thru quiet neighborhoods are nice as well. Just being outside in general.

 

Hello there @Shelbylynn, how have you been lately? Do you notice a change since being on Sertraline/Zoloft?

I tried it very briefly when I got my tinnitus in 2015 but was to scared to take anymore than a few doses in case it made my new tinnitus worse. It's a minefield with these antidepressants and even worse so if you already have tinnitus. I hope it's going all good with you and them though