Antidepressants (SSRIs, SNRIs, MAOs, TCAs, TeCAs)

Hey @serendipity1996 - would you say it's effective for anxiety and how long did it take for you to feel effects?

 

I first started taking it 4 years ago - it took a couple of weeks to kick in but it got me out of a depressive episode.

 

I see, my Doctor wants to prescribe it for anxiety. I am not depressed but I do get severe anxiety sometimes hence why I was asking if it did anything for any anxiety you may have had.

 

Ultimately I have changed my mind about ADs. I am going to try to naturally help my depression through exercise, diet, sleep, etc. rather than relying on the pill.

 

I was on 15 mg initially and then upped to 30 mg which helped more but I still get anxious (although to be fair this was exacerbated mainly by stressful events in my life).

 

The idea of the pill is to be an absolute last scenario for those who are in a rut too deep to dig their way out of. To help get them out of it, do what else they can do in terms of lifestyle changes and then get off the medication in time. Rather than rely on a pill as you say.

But if anyone can do that without the medication then all power to them!

 

I was diagnosed with tinnitus back in March of 2020 when the coronavirus pandemic started. I think my tinnitus came from stress of the unknown and the loss of my job.
I saw the ear doc, got all the hearing tests and an MRI and when everything came back normal, he said it was tinnitus. He also said there’s nothing to treat it and I’ll just have to get used to it and live with it and eventually it may disappear. Cut to August and I’m @ my regular doctor and he’s writing me a prescription for Lexapro and Xanax. Lexapro has been a savior to me! My tinnitus has been severely reduced, almost completely gone except for @ night when I try to lay on the ear that the tinnitus is in. If I do that, then I hear the clicking and have to sleep on the other ear. I take the Xanax only when I’m feeling anxious. I don’t know if the Lexapro is a cure for tinnitus but it’s really helped me!

 

@Michael1122 -- Congratulations on your improvements. Unfortunately, some people have negative reactions to taking Lexapro. The following is from this website: Tinnitus Can Be Terrible.

"I developed screaming high-pitched tinnitus after taking Lexapro (escitalopram) for 10 days. I was given samples by a nurse practitioner (NP) without the drug information or leaflet that the pharmacy usually provides. I asked my NP if Lexapro was causing the tinnitus, and she said she had no other patients who had complained of this side effect. She told me to keep taking the drug. I did, and the tinnitus increased and went to both ears."​

 

Yikes I didn’t know that about those side effects with Lexapro!

 

Are there any anti-anxiety drugs that are not ototoxic? I’m ready to take the plunge. I can’t keep living with this anxiety.

Reading through the thread there seems to be for everything: ‘insert drug here is not ototoxic’ and then a reply saying ‘I know a person who developed screaming tinnitus from that drug’.

I need something. I’m just anxious all the time. And the more anxious I am, the louder the tinnitus is.

 

Hi @corza000 -- Sorry to hear how difficult things are for you. -- You may want to check out the following thread:

Three Supplements to Treat Severe Anxiety Symptoms

 

I don't believe there is anything out there that is currently believed to be entirely safe for the ears.

Everyone is going to receive some varying degree of effect when taking a drug. This symptom very much leads to a "your mileage may vary" situation with everyone involved. It's important to know that while some people might perceive a drug as a cause, it could be the case that a change in intensity would have happened regardless, either due to the fluidity of the condition or some other cause instead. There's just no way to objectively know for sure.

The two antidepressants I see recommended the most to sufferers would have to be amitriptyline and Mirtazapine. I would suggest looking into these two specifically and discussing them with your doctor.

 

My inclination is to follow the advice of the psychiatrist although her telling me she has never had a patient experience this side effect in 30 years doesn't bode well for how informed she is about this particular issue. I do have an in-office visit with her on February 11th.

I consider my case "moderate" since I am able to sleep without masking though it has drained me of all joy in life at present. While I believe I could eventually habituate to the level of tinnitus I have now, I am extremely anxious that prolonged use of the ototoxic, SSRI Sertraline has and will make my tinnitus worse. Therefore, I have anxiety about the drug that is supposed to reduce my anxiety.

• Tinnitus spike/onset was early December, 2020 (~1.75 months).
• Have been taking Sertraline for over five years with no noticeable side effects until now (if this is a side effect).
• ENT told me I have sensorineural high frequency noise induced hearing loss.
• Same ENT recommended not stopping Sertraline since I have been on it for a while with no side effects. He put me on a blood pressure medication since my BP was very high when I was at his office. GP thought I should discuss it with Psychiatrist. Psychiatrist thought it was good idea to cut back 50 mg per day every week until I am off (currently at 200 mg per day). She thought since it is not helping my anxiety now it is basically ineffectual anyway. She explained that side effects can happen even after five years. She has never had a patient with hearing loss side effect.
• Psychiatrist will prescribe Mirtazapine if I need it. I was also told about Atarax from a family member.
• Moving my desk at work to a slightly less noisy side of the office to help with anxiety about being too close to our shop with constant electric sawing (yes, I'm a wreck).

Feedback appreciated. Thank you. For now, I do plan on cutting back 50 mg per day starting today.

 

Hi @apple core -- I'm not sure how you feel about what your ENT told you, but it doesn't make sense to me. My understanding is it's not uncommon for some people to experience tinnitus shortly after starting to take a drug, and also not unusual for it to start after a period of time. -- I think you're on the right track by starting to slowly wean yourself off this potentially tinnitus inducing drug. -- Best...

 

Thank you for the reply @Lane. I ordered Turmeric Curcumin with Bioperine supplements yesterday to see if it can offer any assistance.

 

50mg a day is too hard a wean. I could understand 50mg a month maybe, but certainly not 50mg a week. That is crazy. You are on maximum dose of Sertraline and have been on it for a long time. Your tinnitus could skyrocket. Mine went crazy after 10mg per week taper on Paxil from 70mg to 40mg. I am still dealing with it and get brain zaps all the time. Please read up on SSRI discontinuation syndrome. Most people prefer to taper 10% maximum and take it slowly. I wish I had known all this before I cut my dosage.

 

Thank you for the input. I asked my psychiatrist about withdrawal symptoms and she made it sound like I would not have symptoms tapering off of Sertraline (Zoloft). I then asked about a slower taper plan, like cutting 50 mg every two weeks, and she said that was fine.

 

BMAT - any update on the Lexapro? How are you doing?

 

Hey Koz - how is the Venlafaxine working for you? I hope it has helped stabilise mood without any troubling side effects.

 

Hi mate, not on Venlafaxine anymore. Initially I was on it for 4 months but couldn't notice it doing much, I could have upped the dose but decided to drop it. Side effects more or less subsided around about one month in.

Not currently on any medications.

 

It's getting harder to cope with my tinnitus which is worsening for some reason.

Is there an AD that can possibly help take the edge off of the tinnitus?

 

For some, Nortriptyline and Amitriptyline do just that.

 

But in your post above from November you said you were starting it again. Didn't you go through with it?

 

Yeah, I couldn't handle the first week second time around. I'm okay with meds for now.

 

@Jrblovsky, I saw you mentioned suffering with OCD. Are you taking any meds for it, if so, which one and do you find it helps?

 

I seriously doubt an SSRI would help unless you have depression and your tinnitus came out of nowhere (idiopathic).

 

@apple core, any update on your situation/medication? I hope you are doing better these days.

 

I am considering Luvox (Fluvoxamine) for OCD.

I had a tinnitus spike after 10 days on it when I tried 25 mg, but I also cut my Zoloft to 100 mg (from 106.25 mg) so withdrawal might also be the culprit.

I am going to try Luvox again after some days but tapering up really slowly, like starting at 5 mg.

It might be that our CNS are sensitive so I wonder if starting on a low dose and tapering up slowly might do the trick.

 

All antidepressants make my tinnitus so loud I can't take them anymore and I need them for my mental health.

I hope this is not the case for you - good luck.

 

I am sorry, I feel you, as I think I also need them. Are you med free now?

I wonder if is there something to protect us while trying an antidepressant, or a biomarker to show if it's not the time to try.