Benzos and Tinnitus

Thanks, @linearb, for a very balanced perspective. Last night, I did better than the previous three. So I am moving forward on my goal of no longer taking benzos, period, even at night. But as you said, this decision is not for everyone. And I will say that Xanax got me over a very serious panic attack hump in the beginning. Don't know if I would have survived without it.

Just curious: How old are you? I am wondering also if these worsening sleep issues have anything to do with my age. I am nearing 60 (gawd, never thought I would be typing THOSE words!) Also, my doctors are wondering if my insomnia is the result of a stroke/cerebral hemorrhage that happened in 1999 that left me with an area of brain death. My sleep architecture started going downhill shortly after that.

 

I'm in my early 30s. My parents are in their late 60s, and I know that they have both told me that their overall quality and quantity of sleep has gone down over the last 10 years. However I will also add that my father also took Klonopin for several years, and withdrew a few years ago. The first time he stopped taking it (after ~2 years of use), he had no problem just stopping, but went back on a few months later. Two years later, he wanted to stop again, and it was very hard and took him about a year to taper down. Anyway, I know that it really messed his sleep up when he'd been on it for a long time and then when he went off it, and his sleep stayed pretty messed up for close to a year, but improved, and now is much better than it was during that first year he was off.

 

Thanks for the input, @linearb. One big problem for me is that I still am working, and probably will be for some time. So it's pretty hard to function on a crummy three, four hours sleep on a regular basis.

 

Sorry for another long-winded reply here, I have strong feelings on the sleep subject I had that exact same problem. The end of my taper off benzos (meaning, the last 8 months or something ridiculous) was terrible, and the doctor I had been seeing kept throwing stronger drugs at me which a) scared me and b) didn't actually work that well (seroquel and stuff like that).

Ultimately I went way out of my way to find someone who was an MD but also was not enthusiastic about psych drugs, and then when I would panic about not sleeping, I would call him insisting that I needed to just take an Ambien or something, and he would talk me out of it. We did that over and over for weeks.

Anyway, what I figured out was that all my anxiety about "what if I can't sleep?" was a big part of the problem. One thing the doctor said that stuck with me was that I needed to "trust my body to get the minimum sleep it needed", and he even told me that even if it seemed like I wasn't sleeping at all, if I could lie in the dark and be calm for long enough, I would get rest.

So, I also had a lot of fear about getting so sleep deprived that I wouldn't be able to work and then I'd lose my job and then I wouldn't be able to pay rent and then and then and then.

What I found out was that it just didn't happen. I was severely sleep deprived for weeks, averaging yes four hours or less for most of that time. It was not any fun, I didn't enjoy any of my free time, and getting through work was hard. But, I did it! My worst fear -- of becoming non-functional or insane, just never happened! And then at some point, it was like a lightbulb going on and I figured out "ah ha! This situation I am in is no fun, but there's nothing dangerous about it, I don't need to be afraid of not sleeping, I just need to tolerate it!" And I realized that I was spending a lot of time during the day worried about whether or not I'd sleep, and all that thinking was just, toxic, and was making the problem worse.

At some point my sleep got better. It's still not perfect, and I still have the odd week where I don't sleep well at all for several nights in a row. It's not fun, but it's less of a drag than it used to be -- it doesn't make me particularly anxious, just exhausted. And, it doesn't happen that much -- when it does, it's often a sign that I've been slacking on diet or exercise. It seems like if I eat pretty well and get moderate exercise at least every couple days, that keeps me asleep for 6-9 hours most nights (usually with at least one pee break, but I've had an active bladder since I was tiny).

I will confess that sometimes during weeks where sleep is a challenge I resort to smoking a little more weed than I might otherwise; I don't think this is especially great (or even that useful, since pot messes up your REM cycles), but it freaks me out a lot less than benzos would, based entirely on what I know about my body's reaction to different drugs.

 

Me too. Came off benzo to quick and high pitch T.. Caused a few relapses because the the T was to brutal.

I tapered from 2 mg to 1.5 then to 1 then to .5 then to .125 then stopped. That took 4 months, I also dieted for 2 months prior to starting the taper and continued to diet the entire time of the taper. When i finally jumped off i started taking 2 Benadryl and 1 Melatonin and after about a week i started to feel better and the T has dropped off a lot. Still there but i do have windows of good days, bad days.

 

Oh great. So there are SOME medicine that can make things worse if you STOP taking them? Please tell me that Clariten isn't one of them, because Iv been taking it on and off for a few weeks now and every time I skip a couple days I swear my tinnitus gets worse! It goes down again when I'm back on it but could that mean I have to take it for the rest of my life? And cant it damage the ears if taken for long periods of time? Am I doomed to get worse tinnitus no matter WHAT I do JUST because I have it!!?

 

Don't worry, claritin is NOT frightening in the way benzos are.

There can be an inflammatory/immune-mediated response driving tinnitus perception; perhaps your allergies adversely affect your T, which is why it seems worse without the allergy pill?

 

So what your saying is I DIDN'T mess myself up more by taking the Clariten? That I'll be ok even if I stop it?

 

Benzo me outta here!

 

Hi... IVe had T for 6 weeks now and although it seems to have lowered a bit after finishing the prednisone 2 days ago my anxiety is through through the roof... I had a really bad panic attack today I almost passed out ... I went to the doc and she prescribed Xanax. She only gave me
3 .5mlg pills to help me until I see the neurologist this coming Thursday with the MRI results... I have 2 little ones at home... After reading all these comments I don't know what to do anymore... But I need my sanity! I don't know if I should take it or not anymore...

 

Okay -- I'm new to this forum, with much gratitude for no longer feeling so alone. I am now a little over a year getting off of benzos completely. I tapered for six months before that. It's a hard, hard road. While tapering and recovering I did therapy to look at the underlying cause of my anxiety. I also continued my meditation practice (Zen Buddhism). The withdrawal from benzos has definitely upped the tinnitus I've had for decades. But I am very glad to be off of those drugs. I am stronger and clearer than I've ever been, but I have also had to accept both tinnitus and the fact that I am high strung. I don't need as much sleep as I used to think I did and need to push through hard times in order to increase my self-confidence. Avoidance and medicating just postponed the warrior's work I needed to do and will probably need to do for the rest of my life. I would suggest that one avoid taking benzos.

 

I totally agree - but paradoxically, at the time I went on benzos, I wasn't really capable of doing that work, nor did I even understand the nature of it, or the degree to which my own ego mechanics were creating my anxiety and suffering.

So, as much as I think that in an ideal world I would never have been on benzos, if you put me back in the shoes of 19 year old me, trying to come to terms with life, living on my own, the stress of needing to complete college and start a career... I'd probably take the benzos and do it all again.

Ultimately it was trying to get off benzos that forced me to do the hard work I'd been clawing like mad to avoid. I wish that hadn't been necessary.

 

Just reporting back. During my stay in the USVI I was able to taper and remove xanax completely. I did it in about 2 weeks, from 0.5 to 0.25 to 0. I didnt notice any side effects, and I dont feel any different with regards to tinnitus. It still spikes, still has good and bad days, etc.

I have since taken xanax once or twice when I felt really bad, which I think is what it's really for.

 

I take 2mg of clonazepam a day.

I am VERY scared to taper.

 

Don't be. When you want to get off, just do it, and do it slowly and carefully.

No sense in psyching yourself out. Some people have very minimal withdrawals!

 

Thanks @linearb I sometimes feel like there is a trend to who's H gets better or worse dependent on benzo usage. I am probably wrong though.

I should probably also stay off the benzo boards.

Yes..very, very slow.

 

I have been very active on one of those boards over the years. I think they are good places as far as helping people get educated and not feel alone. However, if you're already in the position of understanding how benzos work and how to get off them safely, I agree that it might be wise to stay away, simply because (just as with tinnitus forums), the people who post the most/loudest, are often the minority of people who are suffering the worst, and this can scare people who would otherwise not even be thinking about those very severe cases.

 

Yes, the most important thing is to be kind to yourself, not judging no matter what you need to do. Life is hard; the human condition is hard. We need to give ourselves a break for doing what we need to do to get through tough times. It also helps to know that we're not alone in these struggles and that they do pass, one way or another. Truly it's the anxiety more than the withdrawal that has been my challenge. The withdrawal just amps up the anxiety for a while; if you know that that is a temporary spike it's easier to endure. The fundamental psychology of Buddhism has been the most helpful for me as well as non-judgmental loved ones. It feels like the spiking tinnitus is the latest challenge in my process to handle life's downside.

 

Yes I agree 100%. Helpful but at times I feel very overwhelmed reading the posts.

 

Thank you, a very helpful post

I recently started an SSRI too, because of my depression. .scared to be on it, unsure it really works (placebo? ) and scared ir will worsen my T..as you can see I have alot of anxiety..I have been really drawn to Buddhism lately and it's teachings.

Anyways, thanks again and I agree regarding the anxiety aspect.

 

Hello,
i've been on benzos for around 4 weeks now. I got bremazopan and I took 1,5 g of it which corresponds to 0,25 of alprazolam. Meanwhile there were a few nights when i didn't take it at all..and some nights when i took even less then this. From the very beginning i was rather rluctunt to take it every night, but i needed to sleep and function somehow..then on this fprum I read that stopping benzo will only increase my T...and i just fell apart into pieces..does it mean by starting them i ruined my chanced of the t backing off? I've only had it for less than 5 weeks...are there people who got rid of T no matter they stopped or withdrew from benzos?
Today my tinnitus is the lowest ever. I can't go to the doctor before in 2 weeks time. I was supposed to rake bromazepan for 4 weeks which are now gone and i don't know how to'procede now. .

 

In my eyes you're on the right track Gosia... you're off the meds and having a good day! I say: keep it up and you wil be fine. Stay strong, Maria

 

I have been on low dose
Of benzos for
Most of
My adult life and I have no plans of tapering off at this time.
I can only speak for myself but they have helped me manage severe anxiety and I really don't know how I would have carried on without them. I only got the t a few months ago, so there isn't a correlation for me with the benzo.
And, they have helped me deal with the t as otherwise is would have stayed in a state of panic and fight or flight syndrome making me even worse.
That is only MY experience and I am not suggesting that someone does or does not take benzos for whatever reason. And yes, they are extremely difficult to withdraw from.

 

Benzos are usefull in short term use.
In long term use can be dissaster because tolerance and addiction appears after some time

 

still miss you Larry.... you left us on January 31 th, 2015.
You could not live with Tinnitus anymore.

I don't think in Heaven there are laptops... but if so, maybe you read this and I will let you know I think of you almost every day.

xxx

 

Who's Larry? And it's a shame life is wasted because life saving drugs take so long to come to market....

 

LarryOT, he was a member here.

 

Oh, ok. May he rest in peace.

 

I have been in benzo hell for 7 months now, ever since I went to rehab to detox from clonazepam. I was on it for ten years and I had started to abuse it the last two years. Instead of a slow taper, the rehab made me go cold turkey and T appeared almost immediately not to mention a slew of other withdrawal symptoms. I in fact am experiencing protracted withdrawal syndrome, which can last up to two years and in some cases result in permament structural damage. My CNS is shot and my cognitive abilities and memory are affected. I remain hopeful T will eventually subside, but bummed it could still take another year. For insomnia I take trazadone; a mild anti depressant which makes you drowsy, without the addictive qualities of benzo's. If you take a benzo here or there or for short periods of time I am sure you will be fine, but long term high dose usage leads to a world of misery. I am even considering suing the rehab for taking me off cold turkey. If you taper slowly you have less chance to get withdrawal symptoms especially T.

 

Quick question for who have withdrawn from clonazepam (or another benzo) with already existing tinnitus... have you had any change in your T? Either to worse or to better?

I've read most of the thread and it looks like it's kind of unpredictable, I've been withdrawing from 1 mg clonazepam (taken for approximately 3 months, then down to 0.75 and to 0.5) for the last 16 months, so it has been a really slooow taper, still have at least couple months to jump off. I'm in the last stages and have recently started to feel the usual withdrawal symptoms, anxiety, insomnia and a mild depression, combined with a slight spike in my already unstable tinnitus.

Can I expect the spike to ease as the insomnia has eased in the last weeks?? Any thought? It's terrifying, I can't believe that psychiatrists are that reckless giving benzos without warning you about the withdrawal dangers, I've been lucky to find the Ashton manual instead of going cold turkey.