Tinnitus at New Heights: Clonazepam Withdrawal Combined with Slap on the Ear

Hey guys,

I was taking Clonazepam 2-4 mg once every three to four days for about six weeks.

I stopped taking it and then immediately experienced pretty pronounced withdrawal on the 3rd day, thus I reinstated on 2 mg and tapered over about two weeks with the last four doses being Valium.

I felt kind of crappy for the first four days off but could feel myself getting better.

However, just as luck would have it, I got slapped on the ear while wearing custom molded ear plugs and 24 hours later my tinnitus skyrocketed in that ear to levels I had never experienced.

I truly have no idea what to do, I told my GP who is really lovely and understanding and he said I tapered too fast. He put me on Keppra 500 mg x2 a day and 15 mg of Valium and has me on a benzo withdrawal plan of around 3 months.

I have no idea if I should take a higher dose of benzos and if this bad tinnitus is caused by withdrawing too fast or if it was caused from the slap on the ear.

Should I try and take a higher dose of Clonazepam for a bit or is it too late now?

I just feel so shit and stupid right now and have no idea what to do.

On the plus side the Keppra has been amazing for my hyperacusis. And the doctors are talking about starting me on LDN as I have had enough steroids for a lifetime.

Should I switch back to Clonazepam at 2 mg and see if the tinnitus goes away?

It's been like 4 weeks now since all this happened and I'm down to 10 mg of Valium daily.

 

Could be either. Both can cause worse tinnitus.

What does your doctor think? I don't think you should, but I'd listen to your doctor.

I think things will improve for you when you get rid of all these nasty benzos out of your system.

 

Pretty sure my doctor wants me off the benzos so I think I might just learn to live with this new noise instead of going further down the benzo hole.

 

I feel your pain because I have hyperacusis and have also been taking Klonopin about as frequently as you were. If it were me, I’d follow the doctors orders and use the Valium to taper since it’s a longer lasting benzo.

Can I ask you more about the Keppra and how it is helping your hyperacusis? How severe is your hyperacusis and do you have ear pain? Is the Keppra helping with both pain and sound sensitivity?

Sorry for so many questions. I have severe pain hyperacusis with very low sound tolerances, and I’m very interested in trying Keppra for myself.

 

Yeah Keppra helped with just how I react to noise, it just straight up doesn't hurt as much, also only side effect I experience is sleepiness which has improved over time. I have both pain and sound sensitivity and my LDLs were pretty low last time I got them checked.

 

Wow, @Liam_Cairns, that’s fantastic. I’ve been wondering about Keppra for a while, but I haven’t been able to find much about it besides the one old thread here on Tinnitus Talk. Thanks for sharing! I’m happy that you’ve find something to give you some relief.

 

Yeah I honestly just thought I would try it for the sake of it. I wasn't super hopeful but it seems to have done something, from my understanding it can't make tinnitus worse as it's not a side effect so it seems like you might as well.

 

Hi @Liam_Cairns, I hope you don’t mind me asking a couple more questions about Keppra. Did you start right away at 500mg x 2 or did you work up to that dosage? Also, how long did it take for you to notice that it was helping with your hyperacusis?

 

@linearb has a good knowledge of benzos, so maybe he could give an opinion?

 

Sorry, I really don't.

This is a complicated situation; multiple drugs plus a physiological and auditory trauma, and it's already in the hands of what sounds to me like a doctor who has a grasp on benzos.

The duration of use and cessation plans for the benzos seem fine to me. I'd expect mild to moderate discomfort which could include temporarily spiking tinnitus.

 

Did it help at all with reactivity, if you have that? E.g. tinnitus competing with noise or spiking in response to noise.

 

When my tinnitus hit on September 1, my GP prescribed Xanax 0.5 mg to 1.0 mg/day as needed. I pretty much took 1.0 mg every day for 4-5 weeks during the initial freak out phase, and then I started a long taper with .25 mg cuts every 4 weeks or so. Not the best way to do this, and I had days of horrible anxiety, depression and insomnia. He switched me over to Ativan in late November as it is the half the strength per mg as Xanax, and I have continued to taper with that. I am down to 0.25 mg/day of the Ativan and will cut this to 0.125 mg through January and hopefully be done.

However, over the past 2-3 weeks since I switched over the Ativan and made my last dosage cut my tinnitus has been horrible!!! Louder, more shrill high frequency and continuous with relief ever throughout the day. According to the Ashton Manual for benzo withdrawal, new or worsening tinnitus is a common withdrawal symptom. Although I was totally freaked out in the first few weeks of tinnitus onset, I don't think I would have jumped so far into the benzo bandwagon if I knew then what I know now. Now, I have a benzo withdrawal issue, and my tinnitus is way worse than it was in the beginning. Nothing can be done now but to finish out my taper and hope my tinnitus subsides as my brain chemistry gets a little more normal

Interested to hear anyone else's experience with increasing tinnitus related to benzo withdrawal.

 

Yeah, it does also seem to reduce reactivity.

 

Thanks - I may have to give it a try then.

 

Hi Doug,

I can't speak to all of your situation, but I have experienced a taper on Clonazepam. Once I read about benzodiazepines, I immediately told my doctor I wanted to stop taking them. She recommended an immediate withdrawal which I knew I was sensitive to medication so I started a micro-taper. I used a scale and tapered incrementally over 4 months. It was so subtle that the last dose came uneventfully, I did not even have problems with insomnia. Ironically, this is when my tinnitus started. It was very, very low and never changed over the next three years. I can see how a larger withdrawal or taper would cause increased tinnitus. If you would like to talk, feel free to message me.

twa

 

Just started today on 250mg 2x per day - will report if any positive effects.

 

Also don't forget to bring up any side effects you experience just so people can have a better understanding.

 

Hello GBB, did Keppra help you?

 

Maybe marginally - it definitely was not a cure for me. Tinnitus still spikes to external sound.

 

In the context of this thread, do you think a 10-day course of Clonazepam could prevent a possible progress after getting a spike from such an incident as a slap?

Also could a 10-day regimen be risky for possible complications on hyperacusis?

 

Thank you.

Is there a standard dosage plan?

 

I’m on 500 mg 2x per day. No idea if there is a standard.

 

I don't have any reason to think that short-term use of benzos is neuroprotective in a way that would prevent damage from occurring after an acoustic trauma.

"Spike" is a nonscientific word that means different things to different people. I imagine most people taking a 10-day course of Clonazepam would feel less distressed during that time period, beyond that it's sorta hard to reckon, sorry.

 

Any insight on steroids instead?

 

sorry, outside of my wheelhouse. I think they're more dangerous than people give credit for.

I do have a course of prednisone on hand for Reasons, but I don't think I'd use it unless someone fired a gun next to me or similar. I've been through a number of minor acoustic traumas and spikes and haven't even thought about it, prednisone is the third or fourth most unpleasant drug I've ever used, and that says a lot because I spent a bunch of my youth cataloging the effects of weird drugs.

Protective potential aside, it creates strong anxiety and insomnia in me which persists for days.

 

How are you doing after your taper now?

 

Better man. Like I still struggle, but overall things are definitely looking up. I also started taking HCTZ, which is a diuretic and it seems to have helped immensely, likely meaning I have Hydrops.

 

What was your initial dose of Clonazepam when you started the taper?

 

Uhhh, I didn't taper Clonazepam. I was taking doses all over the place. When I tapered I just stayed with Valium, started at 20 mg and worked my way down 1 mg-0.5 mg a week.

As far as the doses of Clonazepam are concerned, I was taking doses as high as 10 mg and as low as 0.5 mg. It was an absolute shit show. Do not mess with these drugs.

 

Thanks for the info, I quoted someone else though, @twa, asking her about what she described.