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Tenacious Tinnitus Club – Ear Pressure, Noise and Hyperacusis


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I have it in one ear. Its gone today. Itd a high pitched ring. Somet8mes your ears feel blocked. Does anuone gwt pain in there ears. Im sorry, I hope it leaves soon for us.
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Dehytq2

Yes the ear pain comes with it, pricking pain and sometimes pressure in the ears. The fact that yours comes and goes is good. Here is some ppl on this site who have healed from Tinnitus.

Idm27 - 14 months

mlmagic - 2 years

Julie4530 - 10,5 months

SaveMe - 1 year

Retire2010 - 3 years

Cupcake - 2 years

Tabbycat - 18 months

Dexter - healed

Stotched -  9 months

Minnie - 8 months

Natedogg77- 16 months

TigerLilly - 1,5 years

 

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Hi Pedro,

Sorry, I have constant 24/7 hissing Tinnitus. It used to be different ringing sounds in each ear but now it’s more hissing in my head and very soft ringing in my right ear which sounds like morse code. I’m sorry I can’t be of help. Hang in there... I’m hoping the silence in this group means people are healing and we will get some success stories with Tinnitus soon.

 

Thanks, Trying. I have it 24/7 as well, but a high frequency sound in sync with my pulse. I distract as much as I can. I’m thinking of wearing ear buds all day with music playing.

At this stage I’m not sure how much of it is still related to benzo damage and how much is stress induced. Doesn’t really matter I suppose.

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I still have tinnitus , hissing kind.  Lately every other day it bothers ,  mostly in the afternoon or evening ,  spikes during activity or when I get tired .  Sleep is mostly ok , but waking up in hissing as well,  it reduces after waking up and may return later on the day or not .
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  • 3 weeks later...

Hi guys - joining this club.

 

I was prescribed Lorazepam for insomnia resulting from tinnitus just over a year ago - I was taking around 2mg per day but I’m now at 0.75mg per day.

 

The Ativan wasn’t a cure but it 100% took the loudness of the tinnitus down to where I could lead somewhat of a normal life - this isn’t because I was relaxed the drug psychically made the tinnitus quieter - it almost happens instantly after each dose.

 

I’m at a point now where I’m quite low in dose and the tinnitus is back louder and more instructive than ever before - I’m also having bad anxiety because of this and just genuinely feel all over the place, insomnia, static vision, real bad light sensitivity etc - lots of weird symptoms.

 

The other day my tinnitus was unbearable and I couldn’t stand it - I made a decision to take 2mg Ativan and the tinnitus completely reduced in volume, it was like instant relief. Pretty annoyed I did this as I’ve worked so hard with tapering but whatever what’s done is done.

 

I would be able to kick this drug easily if it wasn’t for tinnitus - how am I supposed to get off something that is actually helping something? But is killing my body/brain in the long term? As I do want off the Benzos but I can’t see a way out with the tinnitus being maddening.

 

Any advice would be greatly appreciated! I’ve tried everything to just learn to live with the tinnitus but it’s SO loud, my brain just cannot habituate to that level of torture! I also have Hyperacusis, again Ativan helps with that.

 

Has anyone experienced anything similar? Did you get off the Benzos? Was your tinnitus hell again? But did you get used to it? I’ve read that tinnitus is the last thing to go in Benzo withdrawal, but as I had tinnitus prior the starting the Benzo, I’m not sure this is withdrawal if you see what I mean? This is complex. Is this new loudness my new normal or will it settle down?

 

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Hi DHUK88, I was in a similar situation to you, I got SEVERE tinnitus and hyperacusis in one ear following a sudden hearing loss. That's what got me on benzos to begin with, I could not sleep or function without them. Today I don't have hyperacusis anymore, I started working with an audiologist to treat it (mainly by listening to white noise for 4-6 hours a day at a comfortable level so my ears would adjust to sound stimulation). I was still on benzos when I started treatment and noticed improvement after a month. I think after a year I was pretty much back to normal hyperacusiswise. I don't think I had started tapering yet though. Sounds would irritate some days while I was tapering but it was more of an emotional reaction than a physical one.

 

The tinnitus I still have. Some days the ringing is very soft, more of a wind noise, and I can barely notice it while other days it can spike up. The spike days don't happen very much anymore, they are spacing out further apart. Most of the time I can hear it but it isn’t very loud. I take melatonin and play music and a fan at night and I can fall asleep. I'm not on any meds now and my tinnitus is way better than it was before or during benzos. I had rough days while I was still tapering, the volume would go up and down.

 

My main problem now is a second kind of tinnitus that sounds like electrical zaps in a Morse code pattern. My ear dr says that sound is caused by muscle spasms inside the ear which can be triggered by stress or lack of sleep. He said they can do surgery to cut the muscles and that would fix it, but of course that makes me nervous. I'm just waiting it out and trying to avoid stress for now. I haven't seen anyone else on here with that specific problem so don't assume you'll get it.

Theres also a success story of another buddie who started benzos for tinnitus but is fine now:

 

http://www.benzobuddies.org/forum/index.php?topic=57868.0

 

Edited to add: I was on a fast acting benzo, Xanax, similar to Ativan, but couldn’t taper directly since my symptoms were so bad. I crossed over to Valium and tapered from there. It wasn't easy, but it was so much better than continuing to taper Xanax. So that's an option if you can't get any lower on Ativan.

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Hi Grapejuice,

 

So happy to hear you’re off the Benzos and coping with the remaining tinnitus. It’s the hardest thing ever coming off this stuff especially when it helps the tinnitus (albeit fleetingly) - was your tinnitus super loud and was it multi-tonal/various pitches? Your post gives me hope that I’ll be able to live with some residual lower tone tinnitus, but the volume it’s at now is INSANE!

 

Good to be connected with you!

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It was super loud, the first day it literally sounded like I was pressing my ear against a car horn. It lessened a little soon after but was still extremely loud. I had lots of different sounds, from a soft whir, to a wind noise, to multiple sounds like someone running a wand over a xylophone, to a single loud tone.  Klonopin and later Xanax lowered the volume just enough and made me drowsy enough to sleep.
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Ok thank you for letting me know Grapejuice - I know everybody is different but your story is really useful to hear. How long was it from when you were completely off the Benzos until your tinnitus become bearable/manageable without meds.

 

I’m stuck at 0,75mg Ativan - 0.25 x3 per day - I’m getting minimal relief like 45 mins maybe after each dose and then it’s back to screaming Tinnitus! Minimal sleep as well, at these low doses which I know doesn’t help. I’m thinking of just jumping and roughing it out, but I need to give it more thought as my gut instinct is telling me that’s not wise, but I also feel like I’m just delaying the inevitable...

 

Thanks in advance!

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I can't really say a specific time when the tinnitus got to be manageable, there was so much variation up and down. It could be screaming one day and very quiet the next. I still get an occasional loud day where it really irritates me but if I can get a reasonable night's sleep my brain resets and it's much quieter in the morning. Even while I was still tapering it went up and down.  So I don't have a good timeframe. I just know sleep makes a difference in getting the volume down.

I wouldn't jump at .75mg Ativan if I were you, that's equivalent to 7.5mg Valium. I didn't jump from Valium until 0.25mg and even then I felt it.  Jumping at 0.0625mg Ativan would be more reasonable, that's  1/4 of a .25mg Ativan pill. I think most buddies on here would advise the same. You may have been tapering too fast and that's why your tinnitus is so loud.  There's some good advice on here about how to taper down super slowly and ways to cut an Ativan pill into equal small amounts. I'd ask around for suggestions on a taper schedule.

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[59...]

New on this threat. I developed "pulsatil" tinnitus two months after I was on lorazepan and an AD (zoloft). An antibiotic (Cipro) was also in the mix a month before taking those poisons. I was fighting a bad cold for a week when the wooshing sound in synch with my heart beat showed on my left ear. I had a lot of tests MRI MRV MRA ans CTA of the brain ordered by an Interventinal radiologist thinking that it could be a vascular issue but everything came back normal. The only thing reported was a flatten image of the optic nerve sheats that could be due to a mild intercraneal pressure. I noticed that most of the tinitus suferers here deal with what is call the regular tinitus. I also know of a few that have one similar to mine, pulsatil.

Please, would really appreciate any coments and how are you coping with this type of tinnitus.

Mice

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Hi Grapejuice,

 

So happy to hear you’re off the Benzos and coping with the remaining tinnitus. It’s the hardest thing ever coming off this stuff especially when it helps the tinnitus (albeit fleetingly) - was your tinnitus super loud and was it multi-tonal/various pitches? Your post gives me hope that I’ll be able to live with some residual lower tone tinnitus, but the volume it’s at now is INSANE!

 

Good to be connected with you!

 

Hang in there buddy. What i did is get a job in the kitchen of a restaurant. it was loud there all day. i would easily forget about it as i couldn't hear it. The shift downward startted happening for me then. As I wasn't thinking about it all the time while working, some nights after work I noticed it was just so low that i couldn't tell if it's there or not. Time just time

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Hang in there buddy. What i did is get a job in the kitchen of a restaurant. it was loud there all day. i would easily forget about it as i couldn't hear it. The shift downward startted happening for me then. As I wasn't thinking about it all the time while working, some nights after work I noticed it was just so low that i couldn't tell if it's there or not. Time just time

 

I experienced 3 days in a row last week where my tinnitus was super faint, nearly gone (but still there in the background). I would truly forget about it during the day. That was a really nice experience. It has since, unfortunately, come back. Maybe it's one of those windows people talk about...

 

I agree distraction is the key. Distraction of the mind and of the senses.

 

SG

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Thanks for the replies everyone - really positive to hear you got 3 days of silence, that’s definitely a good sign.

 

My tinnitus is constant but I’m hoping once I’m Benzo free my brain can start to recalibrate, as personally I do believe tinnitus is a brain and not ear problem.

 

One question, as soon as I take my dose of Ativan my tinnitus reduces in volume drastically - why is this? Of course it doesn’t last long, but I’m curious to know what this drug is doing that is causing such a reduction in pitch? It’s almost like my hearing goes back to normal, which makes me unsettled thinking that this drug is what it takes to feel normal. I also suffer from light sensitivity and again that settles when I take my dose. This drug has done something to my senses for sure. Thoughts welcome!

 

Cheers

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anyone get a clicking tinnitus

I do, it sounds like a Morse code, but it with zaps and clicks instead of beeps. My ear dr says it's due to muscle spasms of the little muscles inside the ear. He said they can so surgery to cut the muscles and that will fix it. supposedly there aren't any bad side effects to the surgery, but of course I'm hesitant, especially when many days I don't hear it at all. He said stress and lack of sleep can trigger it.

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I've been Benzo free now for 19 days and generally feeling better..  really my only issue seems to me my ears..  tinnitus, ear pressure and background noise is bothersome..  I fear that will never clear up..  if I did not have that I would feel like in on a good path to recovery..

 

any advice?

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Tinnitus Relief - I found this helpful

 

I will keep this brief as not up to long monologues at the moment but found Glenn E. Schweitzer's book, Rewiring Tinnitus and his website, rewiringtinnitus.com so helpful when it came to dealing with my tinnitus distress. Important to note the word, 'distress' there as lots of people have tinnitus but not everyone has distress associated with it and that's what Glenn's method is basically about, changing your reaction to your tinnitus. Funnily enough, people who suffer from anxiety, depression and OCD are more likely to suffer from tinnitus distress! He also does FaceTime consults with a free 15min one to see if you think they will be helpful for you. I have done one and, along with the book, have found it to be enough for the moment.

 

I hope this is helpful to someone.

 

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  • 1 month later...

Hi all, does anyone know if flying makes benzo induced Tinnitus worse or will it not affect it? Please, I’d appreciate your responses if any of you have been on a flight since withdrawal... Thanks

Yes, if you are sitting near the wing of the plane.  The engine makes a noise that could make temporary spike.
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Hi all, does anyone know if flying makes benzo induced Tinnitus worse or will it not affect it? Please, I’d appreciate your responses if any of you have been on a flight since withdrawal... Thanks

 

Nothing affects mine dear. The times that I flew, it actually suppressed mine for a while after

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  • 2 weeks later...

Where can I find information on this "symptom based taper" you have in your signature?

 

A symptom based taper means you adjust your taper rate based on how you feel.  Instead of sticking to a strict time schedule you taper according to how manageable your symptoms are.  Many members find this works better for them than rigidly following the general guideline of making cuts of 5-10% every week or so.  Instead, doing a symptom based taper you make small reductions and hold for longer if you're feeling too rough - it can make it easier to remain functional in your life.  In other words you use the general tapering guideline as a basis but remain flexible. 

Hope this helps!

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I have no ringing but my left ear drum feels quite full at time’s & it’s like a dull thrusting water sound. I’m not sure if anyone else has this?
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  • 2 weeks later...
[4a...]
Does anyone have hissing, hyperacusis, ear pain and inner ear pressure in both ears? Does it ever go away? Sometimes I get "regular" tinnitus (beeping) on top of it all but thankfully it goes away quickly and only lasts seconds.
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