Severe Tinnitus Spike After Car Ride and Struggling to Cope

[object16]

Hi, I dropped my vehicle off for repairs, and I needed a ride back to work, which was about 5 or 10 minutes. The person was driving a VW Rabbit with a stick shift and was basically lugging the engine.

I've already got years of tinnitus, low-frequency hypersensitivity, on the verge of un******* myself.

I was wearing a noise-cancelling headset and musician-type protectors combined, except that low frequencies are extremely difficult to block. I've got a really bad tinnitus spike, and I am afraid.

Please don't suggest I call a hotline because they have no clue, and I can't go to the hospital. I can only nurse this one at home, in a controlled environment. The hospital itself gets random false fire alarms or fire alarm tests, which are even worse.

I have various sedative meds at home, like Clonazepam, which is fairly safe, although my doctor told me to watch my dose. My wife is at home, and she can check on me.

I'm just really upset. I enjoy life, and I've been doing really well lately. Someone, please help me.

 

[Nick47]

I'm just really upset. I enjoy life, and I've been doing really well lately. Someone, please help me.

@object16, I'm in week 5 of a setback, and it is frightening. You use Clonazepam, so just vary the dosage a little to help you through, maybe? I think you have Carbamazepine as well?

 

[object16]

That's right. I've got Carbamazepine 200 mg twice a day. Seroquel I took 100 mg, and I'm taking another 50 mg. Clonazepam was tapered to 0.25 mg, so I took 2 mg. Pregnenolone 1000 mg. Agomelatine 50 mg, and I just took another 50 mg. I found some cannabis brownie in the fridge. I usually take about 1 g. The exact THC amount is unknown, and it likely has some CBN in it since it's several years old. I took another 1 g and I'm now taking another 1.2 g. That amount of THC is sedative without spiking the tinnitus. I've also got an emergency supply of Morphine. I split 5 mg in half and took 2.5 mg. I also take Prometrium (along with Pregnenolone). That one goes up my butt, per rectum in medical wording, since that method floods my body with Progesterone. I've been checked by the urologist. They examined my testosterone levels and prostate, and they were satisfied with everything. Normally you won't get a doctor to prescribe Prometrium to a male.

So yes, I've got quite a lot of meds. I went straight home at noon as soon as my wife was free, loaded up on meds, and went to sleep. For me, sleep has a very beneficial effect. Many of my meds are used in the treatment of chronic pain, and it seems I have a chronic pain condition.

I just woke up after 8 hours of sleep, and the spike is certainly less.

My takeaway is that if I'm getting into an unfamiliar car situation, I should probably call my workplace and have someone from work come and get me.

/pm

 

[Jupiterman]

I was wearing a noise-cancelling headset and musician-type protectors combined.

Do you normally use this combination of protection?

 

[Nick47]

Woah, woah, woah. That is a lot of medication. Is cannabis necessary with all that? Wouldn't the Carbamazepine and upping the Clonazepam to 1 mg be sufficient?

Not sure about all those hormones.

 

[tobyharrixon]

Are you thinking the car engine's low frequencies were to blame for the spike?

Car/vehicle low frequencies are tricky, as you mention, sometimes overprotecting is worse, as you trap all the vibration in your ears. I've made that mistake myself a number of times.

Overall, I don't imagine 10 minutes in a car did any permanent damage. Not to diminish your experience, but given the protection you had on, even a spike from low frequencies during that time shouldn't do long-term damage.

 

[kingsfan]

I hate getting rides in unfamiliar cars. One time I broke down on the highway and had to sit in the tow truck to fill out paperwork since it was dark and cold out. Just the idle engine rumble was too much for me, even with earplugs and earmuffs. I ended up calling for a different ride home.

 

[object16]

I'm hoping the same, that it's about time rather than intensity. My noise-canceling headset is rather good for low frequency, except the driver was lugging the engine, which was horrible. I kept thinking, "I hope this is over quickly." As soon as I arrived at my destination, I called my wife to pick me up and take me home.

I know the hormones are over the top, but they are classified as neurosteroids, and there's literature supporting Pregnenolone in high doses for cocaine addiction, so I think that's safe. Prometrium is great for my prostate symptoms, and there is some older literature suggesting it helps promote sleep. There's lots of literature in female subjects, very minimal in male. About 10 years ago, when I had a spike, a very good physician prescribed Clonazepam at 1 mg to 2 mg. After a couple of weeks, I stopped the Clonazepam abruptly because I was getting oversedated. I use it now as an emergency medication. In the last 24 hours, I think I took 6 mg. Carbamazepine is tricky. I've taken too much in the past and I went into ataxia, which was pretty intense. You fall down and there's absolutely nothing you can do about it, so my maximum dose is 300 mg. I'm pretty sure my CYP450 enzymes are induced, and so my half-life is ultra low.

I've been taking these medications for more than 10 years. Mirtazapine has been around for about 20 years, the same as Seroquel. I've taken up to 1000 mg Seroquel, which resulted in a movement disorder that was frightening. Luckily, it went away. I've since learned that lower doses of Seroquel are for sleep, while high doses are for schizophrenia.

And cannabis — I've been using all kinds of cannabinoids over the years. Just a plain THC brownie in a low dose does the trick. Pushing the dose, as everyone here knows, will just spike the tinnitus. A THC-induced spike always goes away for me, but it's unpleasant while it lasts, so I avoid that.

And as @kingsfan said, unfamiliar cars can be dangerous. A tow-truck-like low-frequency rumble was exactly the situation I got trapped in. I was hoping it would end quickly, meaning I'd arrive at my destination fast enough, which happened, but I'm never going to let that happen again.

Today, the tinnitus is considerably less, and I plan to show up for work tomorrow. Showing up for work is great for mental health, at least if you've got a job like mine — a pathologist in his own office.

Thank you, everyone, for the thoughtful replies. I think you obviously understand what I'm going through, which in itself is helpful, and your suggestions are helpful as well. I appreciate all of it.

I basically stayed in bed for the last 24 hours, mostly in a drug-induced sleep. I just had a dinner heavy on natto, which is a fermented food rich in isoflavones. Those compounds are great for health in general and help promote sleep. I'd like to keep going as long as possible. My life is fulfilling and my work is fulfilling. Thanks again, I truly appreciate every comment and reply.

 

[object16]

@Nick47, I normally wear just a noise-cancelling headset. Since I was unfamiliar with the car, I thought I should wear double protection. Sometimes double seems to be worse, though. What @tobyharrixon said, sometimes the low frequency seems to get trapped and actually makes it louder. I didn't have time to experiment.

Even though I've attempted to suppress it for a couple of days and basically put myself into a drug sleep, it improved a bit.