Alternatives to SSRI Antidepressants That Are Safe to Take?

I have severe anxiety due to my chronic tinnitus. My doctor has prescribed me Lexapro 10 mg. This is a SSRI which when I look it up can make tinnitus worse. I am afraid to take them for this reason. I am taking Amitriptyline 10 mg which can help tinnitus.

Can anyone tell me have they been prescribed anti depressants other than ones which have SSRI in them?

Thanks Geoff

 

Sorry to hear this Geoff. I’m in the UK and I believe that Settraline has made my T a lot worse. Could you try talking therapy to try to manage your anxiety. I’m also very anxious due to T so I feel for you.
Could you try St. John’s Wort which is sold in health shops in the UK. I would complete avoid any SSRIs as they have horrible side effects.

 

Try Clonazepam. I take it before bed and it works pretty well for me. I have tried two different antidepressants and they had zero effect on me. They were small doses to clarify.

 

I was put on Mirtazapin because of depression and tinnitus isn't listed as a side effect as far as I know. Sadly I didn't take it long enough to tell you if it caused me any trouble because I was too scared due to a bad experience with ADHD medicine, hah.
However mirtazapin is a sedative as well so if you're one of those who already struggles with drowsiness from depression it might not be the best match. But if you struggle to fall asleep it might help that as well. Even though I didn't take it for more than a couple of days I can say that it definitely helped me sleep.

 

Some of the mood stabilizers like Lamictal or Gabapentin plus Klonopin would be worth a try. I agree with @Nanny chocolate that SSRI's, SNRI's have too many side effects IMO. Maybe they go away but I never last very long on them. Cymbalta (SNRI) was used by someone here and it worked well for their tinnitus, but I can't seem to get over the first few days.

 

Hi Geoff, i'm going through the same experiences you're currently having as my T flaired up big time after using NasaCort and was thinking about asking my ENT for Amitriptyline, but i see you're currently using it, so can you please tell me more about how the Amitriptyline is helping your Tinnitus? does it help you get the sleep you need? And fyi, I was recently thinking about asking for Regeneron as that is apparently used for anxiety and sleep and the lesser of the bad SSRIs.

 

Hi Bob,

Amitriptyline is 10 mg , I have read here users are taking higher doseges to try to quieten T. Mine is only week two now taking it, has had no effect as yet. I think it helps me get off to sleep as I take it early in the evening to maximise my chances to sleep.

 

I have recommended Clonazepam, which as you know is a benzodiazepine, on several occasions, but I must add that this drug is highly habit-forming. I used it intermittently, several times a week for a while, and developed a dependence which I hopefully am now over after stopping last month. I'm just mentioning this because, although it worked very well when I started it, I had no idea, until it was almost too late, just how powerful and addictive this drug actually is.

 

Are there an tinnitus patients out there who have had success with SSRIs? I don't get it. Why do doctors keep prescribing SSRIs over and over when there are so many reports of them causing tinnitus or making it worse. Are the (seemingly) many people who post here saying an SSRI made their tinnitus worse in some minority, where the majority are just getting so much better that they're not around to post? I understand SSRIs are still considered good drugs by many doctors and I don't doubt that they help people, but why are they so commonly prescribed for tinnitus if all they do is make it worse? It seems like the only safe drugs for tinnitus patients are some of the old school drugs that put you to sleep. I wish more research would be done with ketamine and magic mushrooms.

 

https://www.amazon.com/Emperors-New-Drugs-Exploding-Antidepressant/dp/0465022006

 

Thanks! I just put a hold on it at the library.

 

I too use it, stated it for tinnitus and it helped bring it from a 8 to a 3. It's been almost a year now, I take 1 1/2 mg every day. It does a great deal of good still, but the calming effects only last several hours, then I face my day with a level 5 tinnitus. At the moment the Clonazepam doesn't lower my tinnitus, it just calms my nerves enough to be my optimistic self.

My question for you is how long were you on it, what was coming off it like, and how is your tinnitus now.

I recently quit smoking using Chantix, which in itself is giving me a spike. But knowing and expecting the spike makes it easier to put it out of mind.

 

Mirtazapine does not list ringing in the ears as a side effect.

It just blows your socks off instead, in a nice way in the beginning.