The 'Love Hormone' (Oxytocin) May Quiet Tinnitus

Hello, I am French. If I take a consultation online with Dr. De Ridder, they will send me a prescription for Oxytocin that I could pick up at my local pharmacy?

 

I don't know if it needs to be shipped or just a simple pick-up at the local pharmacy. Perhaps @Lurius can chip in & fill in the blanks of how he exactly got his Oxytocin?

 

It needs to be refrigerated, so shipping will need to be overnight in a cooler box or similar. In the US at least, it's not available in regular pharmacies, but needs to be made up in a compounding pharmacy from the raw ingredients as listed in the extract from the patent quoted on the previous page. On a positive note, it's not very expensive!

 

Perfect. Thanks for the info. Unfortunately the pregnant card won't work

 

I bought Oxytocin from Walmart without a prescription.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/OxyPure-Oxytocin-Spray-12IU/378166215

I don’t think it’s helping.

 

It's not doing anything for me either.

 

I'd be interested to know what was actually in those as opposed to Oxytocin bought from a pharmacy.

 

It’s definitely not the same thing.

 

I've begun to notice some pretty strong changes in mood, patience and emotional stability. To put it bluntly, I feel emotional like I was an unstable teenager who just got turned down by his monthly crush. I also feel very grumpy and my patience is unusually thin. I can only assume this is because of the Oxytocin, as my doctor told me this might happen (and was his reasoning for not giving it to me).

Because of the recent spikes I've had (with a really nasty electrical quality to it) I'm considering discontinuing the Oxytocin. I've sent an email to De Ridder so I'll see what he has to say about it first.

 

So the pharmaceutical Oxytocin does not improve your tinnitus at all? Maybe it's a bit early to conclude that it doesn't work?

 

I don't think so. Dirk De Ridder said it should work right away. It's been 5 days now and the tinnitus has mostly been worse, so I don't think it's working. Conclusion: It doesn't work.

 

No problemo @Suaimhneach

My pharmacist friend has sent me some useful details about the nuts & bolts of ordering + storing intranasal Oxytocin and it's pretty much in line with @ploughna's explanation.

So, at least in local Dutch context, pharmacies often order Syntocinon Oxytocin Intranasal spray from Sigma Tau BV. Another common supplier is Medcor Pharmaceuticals.

However, the products of these two suppliers have not been applied in clinical settings for patients with tinnitus. It's actually Novartis Pharmaceutical's Oxytocin nasal spray that is often used in those settings. I don't know if there are substantial differences between these products, but I think it's always safe to stick with the one of which we know offers potentially promising results in trials concerning tinnitus patients.

Another thing is that pharmacies generally have to order Oxytocin nasal spray for special occasions. They normally don't have it in stock. And the pharmacy stores this product normally in a cooling cell or large refrigerator and it needs to be stored around 2°- 8° degrees Celsius.

 

That's a shame, Lurius. I do hope there's a chance it will give you the sweet relief that you deserve, sooner or later. Have you tried the high Oxytocin dosage (45 IE 4x per day), as it has been used in the Brazil study? It also seems to improve incrementally for most patients, if we look at the results of the very same study



Of course, if you feel like it does nothing but give weird and annoying side effects, it's probably best to discuss it with Dr. De Ridder on discontinuing with Oxytocin. It sounds like the right move.

 

De Ridder told me to only do twice a day, so that's what I've been doing. The measurement is 6.7 micrograms.

 

I have had similar results, mine was prescribed as well. I feel like the electrical quality tinnitus (brain) felt worse. That is basically the one I'm trying to treat. The tonal isn't that bad and can be more easily be masked. I wish there was something specific to help this particular type of tinnitus.

 

Ok, to be specific, are you saying you got electrical quality on your tinnitus after using Oxytocin? Just to make sure I read you correctly.

 

Hi @Lurius. I already had the electrical quality but I feel like it made is slightly worse. I can't say permanently or not because I feel like electrical quality has been unpredictably going up and down over periods of time. I also felt like an unstable teenager (I like how you put it that way) - it made me feel a little insecure when normally I'm not too bothered by other people's opinions. But if it would have the helped the tinnitus, that would be a very small price to pay. I was on a pretty low dose but didn't feel going higher would be helpful.

 

You describe my exact situation. I already had the electrical quality, but I feel like that got worse after taking the Oxytocin. The electrical tinnitus is very hard to ignore, much more than what I had before. I also feel that going higher or taking it more frequently is a gamble and I don't have patience for this anymore. I'm sick of feeling like a lab rat.

Thank you for confirming. It's good to know I'm not the only one, even though this may be anecdotal. I think stopping the Oxytocin was the right call. But I'm fucking disappointed, I will say.

 

This post has opened a hole in the wall of all the testimonials and info I've read on this forum over the last five and half years. That's exactly what my tinnitus is all about. Electrical sound wich seems to be more in the brain and then two diferent tonal sounds, one in each ear which seem to be juxtaposed, what makes them be like waving the whole time.

Thing is the electrical sound is not there all the time, I suspect it changes while I sleep. If I wake up with it, it remains there for the whole day and makes me feel extremely anxious and depressed. Impossible to mask.

I guess if there is an electrical interaction between auditory cortex and whatever part of our brain determines our mood... Then, if I don't wake up to that electrical noise, my two tonal sounds are way easier to ignore and I feel 100% functional, upbeat and happy. There have been periods when I haven't had the electrical noise for months in a row. WTF is this?

 

Exactly what I have going on. The electrical is impossible to mask because it seems like it's already in the auditory cortex before the ears sounds (or external sounds, music, etc.) make their way there. It also has a very reactive quality to it and worsens hyperacusis on those days. This happens to me every other day after sleeping (I wish I could get a whole month off from it or even a week - most I had off was 4 days in a row). The days I don't have the electrical tinnitus, I feel close to normal, the days it's there, it's extremely hard to function and the other tones also seem louder. If I wake up really early, sometimes it hasn't kicked in yet and I get a "bonus" low day (like today). However, after an extended low day, it tends to get loud quicker like an hour into sleep.

My approach has been trying to reduce the electrical sound. So far regular exercise every day and vitamin E might have a small impact. Being angry seems to make it slightly worse for an extended period of time which is why I thought the oxytocin would be perfect but it wasn't.

 

The more you describe the way you perceive your sounds, the closer it gets to how I experience them.

What triggered your tinnitus? Mine was noise induced after a LOUD 5 minute song played by a band. I have used and abused headphones my whole life and played saxophone mostly in acoustic jazz settings but also electric ones. A life of hearing pounding I guess.

I'm almost 6 years in. I can't say it has worsened but it has certainly changed. I've been able to ignore it and be emotionally, psychologically and socially 100% functional until it spiked last week and the electrical sound has been overwhelmingly loud since then. Doctor lowered my Escitalopram dosage from 15 mg to 10 mg and that's the only factor I can track as the reason for this but it seems too minimal for me to have dominoed like this.

 

Did you end up trying Oxytocin?

 

Nope, not yet. I need a little break from being a guinea pig.

 

For the current clinical trial, it appears that adding a thickener to the Oxytocin helped stabilize the levels and made a difference. Below are "testimonials" for the patent:

Unless this is all BS, Oxytocin has promise for some out there.

Link to patent information:

Oxytocin compositions for treatment of tinnitus

This example describes clinical use of the present formulations to treat tinnitus. In a patient suffering for tinnitus an initial dose of less than 20 IU daily was tried, but this did not provide any relief A compounded formulation of oxytocin that provided a dose of 60 IU daily (30 IU twice daily) was then used. The formulation contained oxytocin, magnesium chloride, citric acid, and sodium citrate in sterile water. The patient reported partial benefit. The dose was then increased to 45 IU (3 sprays of 15 IU) 4 times daily. This produced a significant relief. A thickener was then added to the formulation keeping the oxytocin amount the same. The patient then reported several days of tinnitus free period. His score on the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory reduced from a pretreatment score of 96 (meaning a catastrophic level) to a current score of 14 (meaning mild or no tinnitus). The patient has remained improved over 1 year since initiating therapy. His current dose is 22.5 IU in each nostril 4 times daily. Since his tinnitus occurs in distinct cycles, at times when tinnitus severity is loudest, he increases the dose to 5 times daily for 2 days. Over the past 3 months, this dosage regimen has reduced tinnitus severity and has allowed him to go as long as 10 days without tinnitus. His current handicap inventory is 8.

In another patient with tinnitus, an oxytocin dose of 45 IU twice daily was found to be of significant benefit. This patient has reported that his tinnitus volume has reduced by 45-60% for the first time in several years and he also has some days in which he is tinnitus free. He remains improved on this dosing schedule for more than a year.

In another patient where tinnitus was caused by a drug, a dose of 30 IU twice daily was used without benefit. The dose was increased to 45 IU 4 times daily resulting in a decrease in tinnitus volume by approximately 30%.

In another patient, who developed constant tinnitus after a neck injury one year ago, a dose of 45 IU (22.5 IU in each nostril) 4 times daily was used for 30 days and is still ongoing. It has provided about 15% improvement. On occasions, the patient has raised the dose to 5 times daily resulting in diminished tinnitus volume.

In another patient with constant tinnitus a dose of 30 IU 4 times daily has been started and treatment is ongoing. After 2 weeks, he has noticed that for the first time in 3 years, he can go several hours per day without noticing the tinnitus. And that the tinnitus intensity has lowered.

While the present invention has been described through illustrative embodiments, routine modification will be apparent to those skilled in the art and such modifications are intended to be within the scope of this disclosure.​

 

Hold on, from 96 to 8 on THI? What the...

 

Seriously, WHAT?! This is amazing.

 

That is ONE person and is not a result of the current clinical trial. It does appear to confirm what seems to be developing though, is that:

1) Most tinnitus appears to be able to be modulated by one form or another, which means treatments (and sometimes cures) are possible.

If we can get funding for research on subtyping and targeted treatments most should experience some form of relief in the coming years.

We should all be thanking Texas Roadhouse below for their generous contribution to tinnitus research:

Contact Texas Roadhouse to Thank Them for $734K Donation to American Tinnitus Association

We should hear about the below clinical trial by the end of this year.

High Dose Oxytocin Nasal Spray for Treatment of Tinnitus

 

I've been on this regime for multiple months now and while last time I posted about Oxycotin, I wasn't sure there was an improvement, I now do believe there is. Nowhere near as significant as above, but most days now are 'moderate' with occasional 'mild' days and 'severe' days few and far between (see below), whereas 9 months ago, I was having multiple severe days per week which was really impacting my ability to concentrate for work. The acid test would be to come off the treatment and see what happens in case I'm simply witnessing a natural improvement, but I haven't been brave enough to risk that yet!

My biggest issue now is not the level - it's the reactivity to sound. If I don't wear earplugs while driving, flying, loud restaurants, etc, I'm guaranteed a bad flare-up and the stress of not knowing if it's going to be permanent or not. Had a multiple week setback over Christmas because of this. Are there any treatments or methods to improve reactivity I wonder? Will it improve over time?

My opinion is that even though results may vary, this treatment is worth a try. Certainly more so than all the supplements and/or 'magic pills' being touted (and I've tried all those too!)

 

Thanks for sharing your experience. Have you been on the same dose as stated above? 22.5 UI 4 times daily?