Zoloft

Can sometimes make one's tinnitus louder, but usually only temporarily.

It's the same as with all antidepressants; people respond differently.

Here's one tinnitus + Zoloft (sertraline) study: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16415703
RESULTS:
The intention-to-treat analysis showed sertraline to be more effective than placebo (P = 0.024) in decreasing reported tinnitus severity according to the Tinnitus Severity Questionnaire at 16 weeks' follow-up. There was also more improvement (P = 0.014) in perceived tinnitus loudness. There were significant correlations between reduction of tinnitus according to the Tinnitus Severity Questionnaire over 16 weeks and improvements in depressive (r = 0.42-0.46) and anxiety symptoms (r = 0.34-0.42). Sertraline was well tolerated after a somewhat high (17%) dropout rate within the first 2 weeks.

CONCLUSIONS:
Sertraline is more effective than placebo in the treatment of severe refractory tinnitus.
 
I understand that it's interesting to find out how a certain medication is working, I always read the side effect enclosed myself and I read up on general effects from global databases. I do this to find out if the medication is something I could consider, the best and most authentic filter is talking to others thats been using it for some time. However, in context of T the medication lead has gone totally overboard now. If you look at every substance that can lead to T it basically covers the whole pharmacy. I think the report rules are too sensitive, as soon as one individual could report an onset of T the same period of taking arthritis medication then the GP in many countries are obliged to report this as a potential side effect, as much as I appreciate awareness this also creates a too sensitive system overloading those bi-effects lists. It's become almost a parody. I thinks its established that we get drowsy by sleep medication and can loose short time memory etc. Also we know that many SSRI products actually can create depression instead of suppressing it, but when it comes to T it seems like everything under the sun CAN create it. I think this is a typical result of ignorance and lack of general knowledge.

If you look at the list of potential side effects from taking traditional vitamins and minerals you'll sure to find obscure stuff like psoriasis, confusion, blurred eyesight and temporary parallelization. Murphy's law seems to be the common rule. As long as it can happen it will happen. Where I live this has lead to a ridiculous ban on totally safe stuff like amino acids and strong B-vitamins. I guess some people get hospitalized by overdosing on coffe as well, so in many ways every substances available could carry the potential for all sorts of dramatic things, including T. Especially if one concludes that the med. the person were taking had anything to do with the onset.

When I got T I was on Ibuprofen with codeine, some mild doses of benzo's and antibiotics. I've seen all of these substances on that very long list of potential T promoters. I also took multi minerals, vitamins and salmon fish oil. I guess if I got severe arthritis or angina instead of T some could blame those products saying "it's been known to happen" - as in 1 out of 500.000 cases etc. I don't know to what extent this information is helping us progressing in T research, in most cases its misleading and counter productive.
 
Hi, I took zoloft for about 8 months and it worked very well. It has quite a high anti-anxiety effect so although my tinnitus did not change, I couldn't have cared less and over time (only a few weeks) I got to the point where I was mostly unaware of it. When I came off it I gradually became more troubled by the t again so I know it worked. When you first take it. it stirs things up a bit so you may feel worse for a week or two but if you expect that then it's easier to deal with. It certainly seems one of the best SSRI drugs available to help people with the anxiety caused by tinnitus.
 
Zoloft will not make your tinnitus worse. It can, however, in the early stages of treatment, be a stimulant and make anxiety worse in some people before it starts to work - so the tinnitus may be perceived as louder.
 
I'm on 25mg sertraline (generic) now for about 5 weeks. I guess 25mg is pretty low because someone told me standard dose is 50mg and they increase from there. I haven't noticed any difference in the tinnitus. I'm going off it though.
 
I am 9 weeks into T, noise induced. I also have a bit of H. My doctor Put me on 50mg Zoloft for anxiety. I have been taken them for 9 days now. And besides the terrible side effects at the beginning, nausea, bad stomach and brutal new level of anxiety my hyperacusis is running wild. During the last 4-5 days. I cant stand the noise from the fridge or the radiators at our house, today i even noticed that flushing the toilet is awful to my ears. Any of you with a similar experience with Zoloft? That is a side effect i cant take.
 
I am 9 weeks into T, noise induced. I also have a bit of H. My doctor Put me on 50mg Zoloft for anxiety. I have been taken them for 9 days now. And besides the terrible side effects at the beginning, nausea, bad stomach and brutal new level of anxiety my hyperacusis is running wild. During the last 4-5 days. I cant stand the noise from the fridge or the radiators at our house, today i even noticed that flushing the toilet is awful to my ears. Any of you with a similar experience with Zoloft? That is a side effect i cant take.

From my point of view, H is only a straight pain(a lot easier than a pulsatile pain), it's not a sign of anything going bad and normal level sounds don"t do any damages.

i suffer from H in my right ear only and not everyday.

Some days i wake up and i have a feeling that a firecracker just exploded right next to my right ear, this usually stays for the day but not always.

Some days it's only after few hours of driving my bike or being outside working that i actually notice i don"t have any H...

It doesn't really draw too much attention from me, i just ignore this meaningless pain signal.

Jjust think of this pain as going out of a dark room to meet the mid day light, you suffer but that doesn"t do any damage...
 
Thank you! That is another way of seeing it. My T & H goes pretty much hand in hand so i prefer to keep it down. Still early days for me and maybe i will find a better way to cope with it in the future.
 
Hi Nick, I have h and t. Anxiety always makes h worse and some meds do too. It's possible your h will settle as your body continues to adjust to zoloft. Otherwise maybe try a new med for anxiety. I take a benzo for my H and t and it helps alot for the pain and also lowering the volume on all accounts, however it is not a longterm solution. If I were you I would research everything you can on hyperacusis and then draw your own conclusions. Do what feels best for you. Some say do not use ear protection in normal environments and some say to protect. It's hard to know who is right, but it seems that the majority of time h fades away or else trt helps "cure" it..of course there is no cure for t but it's possible for it to go too..or else you habituate.
 
Thanks Lynn,
I dropped the Zofoft and was prescribed Remeron instead as i have sleeping issues as well. I will try them first time today. So much scary things to read about H. I try to not overprotect but go easy forward.
 
I started Zoloft just over 3 months ago , I have t for nearly three years in my right ear.
Initially it was really helping with anxiety but now I have new problem.
A month ago I started to get hissing/sizzling sort of noise from my healthy ear (left).
Spoke to my dr and he dismissed me straight away saying it's not from Zoloft.
To make things worse now I have another sound from the same ear that I can hear when in semi silent room, but definitely when I block the ear with finger.
To say I'm i. panic is an understatement, Zoloft hasn't made my old t any better or worse but this new sound is what worries me a lot.
Not sure how much more I can take, I was struggling as it was but now it's even worse.
Is this permanent now?
 
hello everyone. i started experiencing tinnitus around september this year. Circumstances of life pushed me to make a decision to try with antidepressants (ive been on Zoloft 5 years ago). Ive only started with Lustral (which is basically the same as Zoloft) 6 days ago but ive noticed last couple of days that my t seems to be louder, and the sound in my left ear often switches to some strange chirping sound. I also noticed that today both of these symptoms seem to be milder. Now my questions is: should i stop with antidepressants or would it be better to stick with them for a while and see? Due to some other side-effects im not sure if i want to stay on them much longer but i would like to give it a try since i can see they are doing me good in some areas, then again i am scared that this could leave me with permanently worse tinnitus...
 
Whats your thoughts on taking zoloft .. im having talot of anxiety and I think thats making my tinnitus worse or causing it .. Im worried it will make it worse or cause tinnitus in my other ear since I only have it in one ... i took a small amount beforr of a tab and felt little sick and head felt wierd next day but thinking maybe trying it again
 
Whats your thoughts on taking zoloft .. im having talot of anxiety and I think thats making my tinnitus worse or causing it .. Im worried it will make it worse or cause tinnitus in my other ear since I only have it in one ... i took a small amount beforr of a tab and felt little sick and head felt wierd next day but thinking maybe trying it again
It's not common for Zoloft to make tinnitus worse. Not permanently at least though it may cause a flare up for a few weeks before settling back down. The unfortunate thing about tinnitus us it can change over time, for better or for worse, regardless of what you do. I have never taken any medication and my tinnitus spread from left ear only to both. Sometimes it's easy to blame a medication because it seems so obvious. The reality may be that the tinnitus would have changed anyway. It's impossible to say either way for certain. If your anxiety is bad I would recommend trying Zoloft for 2-3 months and re-evaluating.
 
Now my questions is: should i stop with antidepressants or would it be better to stick with them for a while and see? Due to some other side-effects im not sure if i want to stay on them much longer but i would like to give it a try since i can see they are doing me good in some areas, then again i am scared that this could leave me with permanently worse tinnitus...
Stick with them for a while. If they have made tinnitus any worse it is like to settle upon discontinuation of the drug. It is common for tinnitus to become worse at the start of treatment however and any side effects from Zoloft usually settle within a month. It's early days for you on the medication. As stated above I would try it for 2-3 months before re-evaluating the situation.
 
Thanks for the advice I need something ..cause im always worried about stuff now .. I wont even go ob trips no more cause im worried they wont have a hospital close by anxiety plays a mean game with tinnitus its hell ..talk about going nuts
 
Can sometimes make one's tinnitus louder, but usually only temporarily.

It's the same as with all antidepressants; people respond differently.

Here's one tinnitus + Zoloft (sertraline) study: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16415703
RESULTS:
The intention-to-treat analysis showed sertraline to be more effective than placebo (P = 0.024) in decreasing reported tinnitus severity according to the Tinnitus Severity Questionnaire at 16 weeks' follow-up. There was also more improvement (P = 0.014) in perceived tinnitus loudness. There were significant correlations between reduction of tinnitus according to the Tinnitus Severity Questionnaire over 16 weeks and improvements in depressive (r = 0.42-0.46) and anxiety symptoms (r = 0.34-0.42). Sertraline was well tolerated after a somewhat high (17%) dropout rate within the first 2 weeks.

CONCLUSIONS:
Sertraline is more effective than placebo in the treatment of severe refractory tinnitus.
Thank you brother
 

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