Feeling Alone and Scared — Did Sleepeaze Cause My Tinnitus, Crackling and Ear Fullness?

Hi everyone.

Been feeling quite down. Had tinnitus and a muffled ear briefly in December. Then it started again but worse in February (18th or 19th.) This time I had ear fullness and felt lightheaded. No muffled ear. Crackling when I swallow.

The ear fullness still persists (but not as much) plus the crackling and the tinnitus is still there.
I am also scared I did this to myself by taking Sleepeaze (over the counter sleeping aid).

Waiting for a referral to an ENT. In the meantime I’m taking iron supplements and nose drops. No hearing loss as I went for a test.

I joined a few Facebook support groups and then found Tinnitus Talk. Feel like I have no support around me and it sucks. My mental health has taken a nose dive.

Thanks for listening.

 

Hey sorry to hear about your situation. Let me know if you want to chat.

 

Hi @Missmia87 -- I saw your post yesterday where you inquired about whether your taking diphenhydramine hydrochloride could have caused your tinnitus. I know Dr. Nagler said that it couldn't "be the culprit", but I just wanted to let you know that I actually think he's wrong about that. My understanding (and experience) is that literally any anticholinergic drug (such as diphenhydramine hydrochloride) can indeed cause tinnitus. Everybody's situation is different, but I would venture there's a good chance it's not permanent. -- I hope things improve for you soon!

 

See if any of the ingredients are on
http://hlaa-sbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Ototoxic_Brochure.pdf

It will likely begin fading in a couple of months. If you notice fading, it ought to continue to fade.

Don't take that. Look into it, it might not be safe. The body can't easily get rid of iron, and menstruation/blood loss reducing iron in the body might be the reason women tend to live longer than men.

 

Hi everyone. Apologies for being absent. It’s been a rough few months. Still suffering but have good days and bad days. The good days consist mainly of tinnitus that I can mask or ignore when watching tv. The bad days are when my tinnitus is so high pitched and intrusive that it’s hard to tune it out.
It has at least moved from the middle of my head to mainly my left ear (though I think it’s in my right as well just the left is louder so it covers the right!)
Thank you all for taking the time to reply and again apologies for being absent from the site. It’s been a lot to take in.

 

Hi,

I can’t manage anymore. Every day is different. I have days where it’s low and easy to mask. Then it goes loud then next day. Then it changes sound (from ringing to buzzing to screeching and then to low buzz/ring).

I’m tired and spend most days crying. I’m not the same person I was. Scared of losing my partner because I’m not my happy self and I can’t get myself out of this low mood. I feel like my life is over and I’ll never be able to relax and have fun with this thing in my head.

Doing what I can to help myself. Stopped dairy, less sugar and salt and no chocolate/sweets. Taking supplements, iron (it was low) and vitamin D. Started apple cider vinegar last week and manuka honey. Exercise everyday. But I’m always crying. Can’t cope much longer.

My tinnitus is probably from medication (sleepeaze - over the counter sleeping aid) OR sinus issues.

Any replies would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

It definitely sounds like you have serous otitis (glue ear) or at least inflammation of your Eustachian trumps. The ear fullness and the cracking when you swallow are 100% symptoms of that.

Ear fullness can be because of the glue and then fact there is pressure in your ear because your trumps are blocked. And the cracking is 100% the trumps trying to open.

You can trust me on that I had these symptoms and I can bet money on that.

Have you seen and ENT ?

 

Thank you for your reply.

I still have the crackling ears and they feel a bit full but not as much as before.

Haven’t seen an ENT due to the coronavirus. The tinnitus is getting me down and I don’t know what to do. My doctor just gave me steroid nose drops.

 

Well then that means your doctor think the same as me.
Steroid nose drops are for your eustachian tubes. They are meant to reduce inflammation there. I had a spray myself.
Take it and you should see that the crackling will disappear and probably your ear will "open" and the pressure will go away.

Don't lose hope and take your drops
It will get better.

 

Thanks. Hope it does go away along with the tinnitus but it’s been 12 weeks. I’m up and down like a yo-yo mentally.

 

I just want to say that if your tinnitus is indeed caused by ETD, it may simply take a while to clear up. ETD can take months to go away. I'm still dealing with it four months later, but it is very slowly improving. My tinnitus is likely caused by both neck issues and ETD/sinus issues, so I get you on how annoying and awful it can be.

Best of luck, hope it improves soon.

 

This sounds a bit crazy but I get a bit of relief from my ETD by taking a hot bath and letting my ears soak in the water. Maybe that will help?

ETD tinnitus can go away, it just can take a long while.

 

@ASilverLight thanks for your reply. Hope it does go away for both of us. I’m so upset because it spikes when I eat something like chocolate and I feel like it has taken so much from life where I can’t even eat a treat!
When you say yours is improving, has it slowly gone down or does it go up and down?

 

@Shera thanks, I don’t have a bath but I try to shower with the door and window closed so it all streams up. Hope it goes away because I can’t take it much longer.

 

It goes up and down. Mine fluctuates too - though food doesn't really spike mine necessarily.

 

@Missmia87 I also experience ear fullness and crackling along with a high pitched buzzing that seems to change in volume, up and down, day after day. This all started back on March 20th for me after a long period of intense stress and while the ear fullness has seemed to have gotten better, I still hear crackling every time I swallow. I saw an ENT and the doctor said both my ears were clean as could be, and did not have an opinion one way or the other on ETD.

I sympathize with you on how you're feeling emotionally as it has been quite the roller coaster. Some days I handle just fine and others, like today, have been incredibly difficult where there isn't much but a feeling of hopelessness.

Something I've noticed is that after each loud period, the low T periods seem to be lower than the the previous lows. ever so slightly. I'm not sure if this is actually the case or if it's my perception, as my T no matter the volume so far is unable to be masked by anything but the shower. I know you said that your T is all over the place but have you noticed your "good days" become more frequent at all? Many of Bill Bauer's posts provide hope that in time, it will fade.

I hope you begin to find relief from this soon, both with a reduction in T and emotional response.

 

Hi @Missmia87 ! I have similar symptoms with the ear crackling when I yawn/swallow - this still happens 6 months since onset, but the feeling of fullness is pretty much gone, tho I do feel it sometimes when I walk up - especially in my right ear, which seems to be the most affected. ENT said my ears are fine, didn't think there was ETD (although I don't feel like he did an adequate assessment), and sent me on my way saying it was probably TMJ. Went to a dentist who specialized in TMJ and he didn't think that was it. I'm wondering if ototoxic drugs can cause these symptoms as well (physiologically change the ear structure or just feelings?). My t is intermittent from day to day, which stresses me out. Anyway, if you want to chat let me know. Hope you're doing better today!

 

Hi,

I am in the UK and have an MRI scheduled for Friday. I watched a video with the sound of the machine and it terrified me and made me anxious and worried that the sound would make my tinnitus worse.

I sent an online consultation to my GP today asking if I could maybe get a CT scan instead.

They text me (not a call!) and told me that they will write to the ENT team and it’s up to them to decide and to call the ENT admin team in 2 weeks to see what is happening.

But now I have to find out what is happening with my appointment on Friday! I’m scared I’ll never get seen if I cancel it but the thought of that noise scares me! I’ve read so many stories of people being badly affected by how loud the MRI machine is.

I don’t know what to do. The ENT told me that they doubt they would find anything but I still want to know just in case. I would just prefer a CT scan as it’s quiet.

I feel so annoyed at myself for potentially losing this and any future appointments and having to start at the beginning again.

 

I did some research on MRI when I injured a ligament in my wrist. There are two kinds in use in Sweden. The weaker one has a capacity of 1.5 Tesla. They are loud, but if you carry double protection (properly inserted foam earplugs and metal-free earmuffs especially designed for MRI) then the sound level can be decreased so you might - might - be able to undergo the scan without worsening your tinnitus.

The stronger one has a capacity of 3 Tesla, and is used for medical conditions that requires sharp and detailed images. It's so insanely loud your hearing will take a severe beating no matter what precautions you take.

In short, MRI scans poses a very real threat when it comes to causing or worsening tinnitus.

The first thing you should ask yourself is if undergoing MRI is necessary.

If it is necessary, then you need to maximize the amount of protection. The protection offered by medical staff is in many cases junk. As stated previously in this post, you need to bring foam earplugs and insert them correctly. You also need to buy earmuffs without metal in them, which means rather expensive models designed to be used during MRI.

Don't believe doctors or nurses or other medical staff who ensures you "It's safe." MRI is not safe for the ear.

Unless you display medical symptoms that typically requires a MRI scan to be properly diagnosed and treated, you should think twice before you undergo the scan.

Something like: "Okay, judging from your symptoms, you probably have a brain tumor that will kill you. We have to do a MRI or the surgeon won't know how to approach the surgery".

If your ENT is skeptical, but is giving you a scan because you insisted, then you should seriously consider to backtrack.

 

I hhad an MRI scan to search for cause of my tinnitus - it was an old MRI.

I was given earplugs + you get these pads on your ears that then press against the "head brace" (to keep your head from moving).

I did not experience it as being too loud / loud enough to inflict further damage...
You could always bring your own earplugs + tell the MRI "person" that you would like extra padding so it fits snug into the head brace because you are worried about further damage - since you are there for tinnitus reasons already... I m sure they will understand.

As per your original post - I always wonder what people mean when they say "Crackling when I swallow." Pretty sure everyone has that. Pretty sure I have always had it. My girlfriend has it (she has no tinnitus) etc...

 

Hi @Missmia87!

I too have an MRI scheduled for this Saturday at 12:30am from my ENT. I'm pretty sure I'm going to cancel it. I already cancelled one that my neurologist had scheduled because she just wanted to rule out anything sinister, but I don't have any symptoms that lead her to believe it is necessary. From what I understand it is highly unlikely that an MRI will reveal anything that will be helpful. I also had requested a CT but haven't heard anything back.

My tinnitus fluctuates from day to day, which can be quite distressing (although it doesn't fluctuate throughout the day). Although I'm certainly glad for the quieter days, I have no idea how to habituate to it. I keep hoping that it will go away, but it's been a year, so unlikely. I am really trying to accept it, but it is so difficult. Sometimes I just can't believe that I have to live with this shit, like WTF! It's so hard to be strong when you're doing everything you can, but nothing changes.

 

My tinnitus also started the morning after taking a Sleepeaze tablet.

My tinnitus is a high pitched 24/7 pitch with occasional spikes. I found one other person in the USA on another forum/group that took the USA version of the over the counter tablet with very similar packaging. Please report your case on the Yellow Card MHRA website (reporting side effects).