3.5 Months Into Noise-Induced Tinnitus and Hyperacusis: Now on Prednisone

Hi All,

I am 3.5 months into noise induced tinnitus. I have tried a few sessions of HBOT and I am now on day 5 of 60 mg oral Prednisone. Has anyone had success with Prednisone this far out?

My tinnitus on average is about a 2-3/10 but when I'm indoors it can range between 3-7/10.

I also developed hyperacusis by like the 3rd day. Do people actually get rid of their hyperacusis?

Here's a short video I made detailing some things:

Tinnitus 2020 3.5 month update

Thank you very much for reading!

Best Regards,

Jassiel

 

Hopefully, some veterans post something helpful here, because I'm the same timeline as you, but I was a late Prednisone (probably a month after hearing loss), and Prednisone made me a total basket case, so I recommend waiting until the course is over before trying to figure out if it helped or not. While I was mid-course I not only became convinced everything (hyperacusis, tinnitus, hearing loss, my future life prospects) was getting worse, but that I was also developing new symptoms like light sensitivity, balance problems, strange head sensations, etc. It was all the steroids talking in retrospect.

Now that I've been off Prednisone for a few days, I'm feeling like I've made some ok baby steps in terms my tinnitus and my hyperacusis. Maybe it was the Prednisone, but I have no idea. My audiogram was identical before and after, but I'm more functional as a person than I was before the course.

 

Yes, and that happens more often than tinnitus going away. Has your tinnitus faded compared to how it was two months ago?

 

Hey @Jass, it sucks we’re going through this... I’ve had tinnitus for 2 months now and it does take a toll on the mental heath. I’m not mentally strong to begin with so it’s been tough. I have pretty much the same symptoms as you, maybe even louder... I notice it when I’m outside, it is like a 2/10 and indoors 3/10, in my room it’s like a 5/10.

Does yours get louder when you lie down? Because mine does...

I have many tones to my tinnitus as well. I experienced a decrease like you, and then suddenly it went up again. It’s been a hell of a roller coaster.

I hope the prednisone helps you out a little. I took prednisone the 5th day after my tinnitus but I don’t think it did anything.

Sorry for the long message but I’m praying my way through this and hopefully one day it will be gone and we’ll have our success story to tell.

 

Hi @n_li808 ,
Yes it gets louder when I lay down but I think it’s because that’s when I am in my room which is very, very quiet. I have multiple tones, 2-3. High pitch sound but low volume, static and hissing. Also some whistling at times. I’m 3.5 months in and I thought I was improving until last Sunday when it just spiked for no reason.

thanks,
Jassiel

 

Hi @Bill Bauer,
Not sure if it’s faded or I just notice it less. When I am in my room it can get very loud. Usually outdoors I can’t hear it which was always the case. When I yawn it goes up then back down. If I press on my chin it goes up then back down. It’s been a rough ride.

 

It might be because ICP increases when CSF goes to your head (compared to when you are standing or sitting) and puts more pressure on the inner ear from inside when you lie down (or even worse, if you bend over or do any kind of excessive straining) so try to sleep on 2-3 pillows to keep your head elevated (30 degrees) for some time.

 

@Jass How did the Prednisone make you feel?

I'm about 5 weeks post acoustic trauma and I'm about to start 60 mg Prednisone when I had requested it 2.5 weeks after trauma but didn't get it because it's primarily given for hearing loss.

Do you feel any better now that it's been 5 months since onset?

 

Hi @Theron L

I did not suffer anything weird while on prednisone or after. I felt the same as before mentally. I did have some minor hip pain but I’m not sure if it was caused by the prednisone or by jogging without stretching on a hard surface. I jogged on day 3 of prednisone and noticed pain the day after. It’s been a little over a month and I still have mild pain. Had an X-Ray and everything looked fine. Over the last two weeks my T did get very quiet or at least became less intrusive. I can sleep without background noise. I can even lay down in a quiet room without being bothered. I am also doing supplements but I think the prednisone did help me at least by like 10%.

Best regards,

Jassiel

 

@Jass Thank you for your reply, I just took the first 60 mg dose of Prednisone today and will take it for 8 more days and then taper. I will make sure to not go for runs or do anything strenuous while on the Prednisone. My doctor did tell me a scary story about someone needing a hip replacement while on Prednisone.

So how would you rate your tinnitus initially, before the steroids, and then after? I damaged my ears around the 21st of October, I think (?) I've noticed a reduction in noise but it's hard to determine because initially I was devastated by it; now I'm not bothered by the sound, it's moreso the presence of the sound.

How are you sleeping? I've been waking in the middle of the night a few times then get pissed about the sounds.

People have stated that tinnitus can resolve itself slowly over a long period of time and I'm really praying that this is the case for me.

How are you doing mentally? I'd say that my tinnitus is mild as I can't hear it unless I try to during the day. In a quiet room it can get loud and it's strange because I lay down and it seems to ramp up in volume then peaks.

Thanks for your time Jassiel, I hope you recover.

 

Hi @Theron L

Yeah it’s called hip necrosis or something like that. Usually happen to long term, high dose users. There is like a 2-3% chance of getting it. Gotta be careful with that stuff.

Before prednisone my T was like a 2-4/10. Two weeks after prednisone it is usually about 1-3/10. What did change was getting a less intrusive tone. Also, some mornings I have no ringing for about 1 hour then the normal volume returns. Before prednisone I was using white noise to sleep, now I don’t use anything.

I am sleeping better than before. Mentally I’m doing ok. Sometimes when I notice it more loud I do get stressed but then I slowly forget about it and return to normal. When I lay down it does seem to get louder but for me it’s because my room is really quiet and I sleep on the side so either ear usually gets covered. I heard with time it does get better. If your tinnitus is on the lower side just keep living your life and try to ignore it (easier said) but that’s what I have been doing. Avoid loud noises and long term medication that can cause more damage. Don’t train your mind to listen to it when it’s quiet. Worst case we will learn to live with it.

 

Good evening @Jass. I took the first 60mg Prednisone dose and I'm not sure if it's in my head or what, but I started noticing a slight left hip discomfort and discomfort on my right ankle. I've spoken to a few medical professionals and they all told me that Osteonecrosis is accompanied with high dose long term. I've only taken 60mg so I doubt that I'd see an actual change within 12 hours of ingestion. I'm going to take one more 60mg dose in the morning and if I feel worse at the end of the day tomorrow, I'm going to call the doctor and start tapering off.

Has the hip pain gotten any better? Did you take a bone density test?

I'm also taking some supplements, Men's 1 a day, calcium, magnesium, and turmeric. The calcium was recommended by the pharmacist, and the doctor prescribing the meds told me a <1% chance of severe Osteonecrosis of the hip. He didn't mention the length of the steroid to result in that though.

Hopefully the clinical trials for some of the drugs can save us within a couple years or something dude. We may know more by Q2 next year.

 

Hi @Theron L

As of now (about 5 weeks with mild hip pain) my hip has not felt worse. Pain is still about a 2/10. I am not sure if it was the prednisone or me running without stretching. Before this the last time that I ran was like 5 months ago. No bone density test but I am taking calcium pills. Also I feel pain in the hip at random times.

 

I've been lucky to have a doctor who gave me Prednisone after about 1 weeks in, or even less, I don't remember correctly.

Prednisone in combination with anti-noise ear plugs (I have worn them at work too, I didn't give a f*** about anyone) and I almost recovered in about 2 months (from high pitch to medium/low hiss)

It's been 2 years now, I still have the hiss but it's better than 2 years ago. I don't hear it anymore in public, just when I'm at home.

Stay strong.

Prednisone is really effective and it pisses me off when a doctor doesn't know what to do.