Did Mirtazapine Worsen My Tinnitus? Do I Have Hyperacusis? Help Me Figure Out My Problems

Hi,

I'm writing this in the middle of the night as the screaming in my head/ears won't let me fall asleep.

My problems started sometime in August 2019, and I think the main reason for it was a distorted electric guitar through headphones very loud (by mistake) at a band rehearsal.
It was not a long duration but I continued to play and listen to recordings for maybe an hour after it happened. I play the drums by the way which I heard is probably the worst for your hearing...

The day after I felt a weird sensation in my left ear when hearing sound from the TV or listening to music. In the beginning it was very mild, more like a itch in the ear.
After about a week I got slight ringing in my ears. It went up and down from day to day.
I went to see an ENT about 3 weeks after the incident and had a regular hearing test which showed no hearing loss.
I was told to protect my ears from loud sounds, but I guess I didn't understand that traffic and such were included so I was not wearing earplugs outside until my symptoms got worse.

Late November both the tinnitus and sensitivity to sound worsened severely and most sound were irritating my ears.
At the worst I had a burning sensation around my ear, part of my face and a bit down the neck and arm.
I had a maybe 6/10 tone in the middle of my head and others in both left and right ears that would come and go.
Felt much better for maybe a week in late December before it got bad again.

And today I experience even a new low point...

I started taking Mirtazapine (stopped taking Sertraline at the same time) mid January mainly for sleep. The first 2 - 3 days after I noticed the tinnitus changed a bit for the better.
Then a couple of days ago I started hearing new sounds, mainly some kind of hissing I guess I would describe it. I stopped taking Mirtazapine immediately after that.

I took a total of 9x 7.5 mg and 3x 15 mg pills before I stopped. Could you get withdrawal symptoms from that?
Now a couple of nights without it the tinnitus is the loudest I ever had. Can it permanently get worse after the short time I took the meds?

Also about hyperacusis, I'm not sure if that's what I have. I don't experience everyday sounds to be loud, it's more like something is physically moving in my worst ear from certain sounds.
For example hitting a cup with a spoon just makes my ear move or vibrate even if it's not loud. Possibly I had this earlier also but very slightly.
Is that hyperacusis or something else?

When it comes to hearing I have tried to compare my both ears. The left ear, which is my worse, surprisingly it feels a bit clearer but a bit thin. Is it possible to have mid frequencies hearing loss, and if so, is that included on a standard hearing test?

I'm seeing an audiologist later this month. Is there anything important that I should ask, mention or avoid?

Is it common that everything gets much worse before it starts to get better?

Almost 6 months in now... the hopelessness is real. I took for granted that I would always have music (playing instruments/listening) no matter how shitty I would feel about myself and life in general.
So if this is permanent there soon won't be much left for me in this existence...

PS.
Sorry if the text is messy, English is not my main language.


Take care everyone who is reading!

 

Amitriptyline caused the character of my tinnitus to change to a forceful sounding hiss. Mirtazapine and Amitriptyline are both Trycyclic Antidepressants.

Look into Tonic Tensor Tympani Syndrome. Can be comorbid with Hyperacusis though. I have both.

Yes not being able to make music has left a huge void in my life also. I can still listen but only briefly or I get spiking. I now have 2000 CD’s and 4000 LP’s that I can’t really use. Lots of rarities I tracked down from hours of digging across multiple states or got into bidding wars for on eBay. Now basically a huge waste of my time and money, but parting with them is painful.

 

Thanks for your reply.

Did your tinnitus stay that way or did it go back to as it was before?
Is your noise induced as well?

TTTS has some symptoms that I recognize for sure.. have you tried some treatments for this? If there are any.

Sorry to hear you can’t enjoy music either...
I don’t have nearly as many records as you, but my collection is something I have slowly been building since I was a child. I’ve even been buying a few new records after I damaged my hearing. I guess I have some hope things will be better in time..

 

I am using Mirt 7.5 for over 5 years now never made it worse.

 

How are you now?

 

I have taken Mirtazapine for over 5 years and I am fairly certain that mixing ANYTHING when taking Mirtazapine causes much worsened tinnitus.

It's almost like it rejects other drugs.

 

Thanks for asking.

I'm actually at my worst right now with both tinnitus and sensitivity to sound, and I'm not sure why.
The only thing I can think of is I dropped a frying pan into the kitchen sink about a week before I got worse again.. But I did not experience it was that loud so I don't know.

I took 7.5 mg of Mirtazapine some nights ago (really needed to sleep) and I did not notice any difference in the tinnitus. Going to avoid it as much as possible anyway.

Are you taking Mirtazapine as well?

 

You mean mixing it with other drugs?

 

I've also been taking Mirtazapine since 2016 along with other prescribed drugs that I take daily and have noticed no negative effects but that's just my experience.

 

Yeah, I noticed an extremely strong correlation with mixing other drugs such as painkillers when taking mirtazapine.

 

Yeah. Just went down from 30 mg to 15 to see if it makes any difference in my H & T. None of them are bothering me that much at the moment, but they're definetely there. I'm hoping it's just a side effect from the increased seratonin and that it's gonna pass once my brain gets used to it. Only been on it for 3 weeks

 

Were you improving before you dropped the pan?

 

Tinnitus and hyperacusis went down when I lowered the dose.

 

I have had some periods where the H were a bit better, but the T just seems to slowly get worse..

That's great!!

 

@AbeS I can really relate to the part a out something moving in the ear. I have this since a Word fight with my girlfriend in the car 8 months ago. It is like something is vibrating when sounds enter the ear. Voices are the worst but also music and tv and most other sounds too.

I am having trouble with my own voice because of this too. When I talk it vibrates in my right ear. Really uncomfortable and makes it hard to concentrate when in conversation. As both my own and others Voices break through so to speak. Like I have a broken speaker in the ear that starts to vibrate all the time.

Strange thing is when I put pressure to the ear with my hand I don’t get the vibrations from my own voice. So just like you I really feel there is something physical going on in there.

 

My tinnitus and hyperacusis was in the beginning caused by ear infection and antibiotics. And then a year ago I took another medicine. I was very cautious and searched the internet for anything linking it to tinnitus or hyperacusis or ototoxicity. I could not find even one Report of someone having problems with the medicine. I mean on the whole world wide web.
Nothing!

But of course I got it bad anyway. Both tinnitus and hyperacusis worsened from a low dose for four weeks. And has not improved since. And this in combination with the screaming in the car a while after has left me in a really bad state where conversation is hard to handle.

So my point is. If you have tinnitus and/or hyperacusis be extremely careful with ALL medications!

 

@serendipity1996
Do the sedative affects of the Mirt still aid in your sleeping after all this time?

 

I don't actively feel sedated anymore but if I skip a dose it's almost impossible for me to fall asleep without it.

 

So it still has a physical effect? Or is it just now habit?
I’ve just started a 15 and wondering how, if, duration it’s going to work..

 

You take it regularly?

Many people post the same questions repeatedly - did X prescription worsen my tinnitus? I find it difficult to believe a one-time does for anyone or occasional use. However, those that take it regularly or often, who knows?

That is what I would be reluctant to do. I only take something if I am absolutely desperate or if it's natural.

However, I suffer from poor quality of sleep so I understand people who take medication for sleep. I found amitriptyline didn't help me but I didn't increase the dose when a nurse practitioner asked me to. I am too paranoid of it affecting my tinnitus which is already at a severe level.

I bet you don't think this post helps you or is helpful advice but I am just suggesting to be careful. I tried a number of natural sleep aids but none worked well enough for me. But, they're worth trying.

 

I have been on Mirtazapine for 4 years and it hasn't worsened my tinnitus or hyperacusis. I take it every night. My tinnitus has never worsened in the 8 years since I have had it. It's a good idea to look into the natural sleep aids too though.

 

Good to hear. I'm glad.