Tinnitus Caused by Minocycline and Spiked by Augmentin?

Hi all,

I’m not sure if I’m doing this right. But my name is Samantha. It was in 2019, right before the pandemic, that I developed tinnitus. I had been on an antibiotic for my acne (Minocycline) for a few months, when all of a sudden, when I lay on my left side one night and noticed a ringing sound. I couldn’t sleep all night, and the next day I told my parents about it and my dad took me to the ER, where the doctor told me to stop taking the antibiotic as tinnitus can be a side effect.

So, I stopped talking the antibiotic, and low and behold, the ringing never went away. This impacted my life in a horrible way. I couldn’t ever sleep, I woke up each morning with horrible stomach aches and had to run to the bathroom, and I couldn’t even function. My anxiety literally took over my entire life. I cried all the time. I was only 18 at the time and felt like I couldn’t talk to any of my friends about it, as none of them have experienced anything like it and I knew I would sound crazy.

It all became so much worse when I had to return to college after winter break and live on campus, away from home. I couldn’t even function. I thought about the tinnitus 24/7- in class, while I was getting food, while I was trying to go to bed. And I also got a random roommate that semester who was a living nightmare. I got into an argument with her and they allowed me to move into a different room and live by myself.

I only lived in that room for 3 days but I was absolutely miserable. I was there by myself with the tinnitus all day, other than when I was in class. I thought about hurting myself so many times, just in hopes that it would relieve some of the pain that it was causing me. I also started counseling at my school at this time, which didn’t help me very much.

It took me about a year to habituate to the tinnitus. And it was the hardest, most miserable year of my life. I couldn’t enjoy anything- hanging out with my friends, spending time with family, going on vacation. I felt like such a burden to my parents, who were trying to be supportive but I knew it was hard for them to understand just how crippling tinnitus is, especially for someone who is prone to anxiety already.

Before I continue, I wanted to let everyone know that it is possible to get used to it. I reached a point where I never thought about it at all, except for every so often when I was going to sleep and my room was a little quieter than usual. If you are struggling with this, I know how you feel. You are strong enough to overcome this. It may not go away, and you may never be how you were before, but you can reach a point where you just live with it, and it will not induce anxiety or depression anymore, and you can be at peace. It’s not easy, but please, do not lose hope.

Anyway, fast forward to today. Now 20 years old, still in college. I went to get some routine blood work and a urine test done a couple weeks ago. My urine results came back and were indicative of a UTI, so I met with my doctor and he prescribed me Augmentin.

I didn’t even think about the fact that antibiotics are what caused the tinnitus in the first place, because I had been able to mostly heal and the tinnitus was not on the forefront of my mind whatsoever anymore. So, I took this new antibiotic for two days. TWO DAYS. 4 pills total. And, when I was laying on my right side yesterday night, all of a sudden, something changed. The previous sound that was there went away, and was replaced by a very loud, high pitched, ringing sound. I figured it would go away, as it’s very common for me to have a few seconds of a new ringing sound but for it to just be replaced by the usual sound. But it didn’t. And now, it is a constant, loud, ongoing sound in both ears and I feel like I can just hear it in my head in general. Much louder than before.

It hurts me to be writing this right now. Within the span of one day, I have reverted back to the extreme stress and anxiety and worry that I felt every single day those two years ago. I am hoping more than anything that this is just temporary and will go away after I stop taking the antibiotic, and I’m pretending that I didn’t just read a ton of things online saying that tinnitus caused by Augmentin is usually permanent. I keep trying to remind myself that I was able to tune it out before, so I can do it again. But it’s louder and more noticeable now. I really don’t think I can go through this again. The sleepless nights and the constant feelings of anxiety and nausea during the days. I cannot do it again. And now I just don’t know what to do. I can’t, once again, put my family through the stress or sadness that I caused before. The amount of money that they spent on trips to the ENT, tinnitus specialists, and medications for my anxiety. I just don’t know what to do or how to function. I am just so lost and sad right now.

I don’t want to stop taking the antibiotics, as I do really want to resolve the UTI issue. I’m also in nursing school, and I know that I’ll probably be exposed to various bacterial infections as a nurse and I will need to take antibiotics if I do ever acquire one, so I just feel like I need to learn how to take antibiotics. However, I’m just extremely nervous that the ringing will just get worse as I continue to take the antibiotics even though I only have 6 days left of the course. I am just hoping to god that this new, amplified ringing goes away after I’m done with these antibiotics and it has left my system.

(I’m also taking Lo Loestrin Fe, Metoprolol, and Hydroxyzine. Does anyone happen to know if these are ototoxic at all?)

 

You are so young, and it is sad you are dealing with this.

Augmentin doesn’t normally cause tinnitus. Your case is rare. I took Augmentin multiple times over the years and never had any issues. We give it to patients all the time.


If Augmentin caused your tinnitus to get worse, you should stop immediately instead of keep finishing the course.

Talk to your doctor or go to the ER to get another antibiotic.

Minocycline. You should not take it for months. That is very harmful. If I knew you, I would have recommended you to stop at that time.

So you are taking a beta blocker for hypertension or heart rate problem? You are also on an oral contraceptive. Are you taking any anti-anxiety meds?

 

Thank you so much for responding. I’m not sure how to respond or if I’m doing this right, but hopefully you can see that I’ve replied to you.

I don’t remember if I mentioned it but I was on Minocycline for my acne. It was prescribed to me by my dermatologist and I believe he prescribed me a 90 day dose if I remember correctly. And the worst part about it is that it didn’t even help my acne at all, so all I got from taking it was tinnitus.

I am on Hydroxyzine for my anxiety which I take as needed. But if I’m being completely honest, one of my family members has a prescription for Xanax which I do take somewhat often. It does seem to be extremely helpful and effective in calming me down when I am super anxious from the tinnitus or just worrying that I’m going crazy, especially at night when all I hear is the ringing when I’m trying to fall asleep which causes me to just lay in bed and worry for hours. I have started therapy sessions again so I am hoping my therapist can refer me to a psychiatrist who can perform and assessment on me and prescribe me the appropriate and safest medications.

I didn’t end up taking the full course of Augmentin, I took half the course (10 pills over 5 days) when I decided I probably shouldn’t continue.

I also was on Metoprolol at the time that I posted that but I only took it for one month as that is what my doctor suggested. I have heart palpitations caused by supraventricular tachycardia, which the Metoprolol was meant to treat. I’m wondering if that had any effect on the tinnitus, or if I should ask my doctor for another prescription for it as I do still have frequent palpitations.

My third semester of nursing school started yesterday and I was able to focus okay in my classes so far. I have clinicals at two different hospitals twice a week starting tomorrow, so hopefully the tinnitus and anxiety don’t affect me while I’m there. But I do feel like I’m going backwards. When the tinnitus first returned, I was a little worried and annoyed but kept telling myself that it would go away like it did before. Now that it hasn’t gone away, my daily bouts of anxiety are starting to increase and I’m finding it increasingly harder to feel happy or even hold conversations sometimes. I still have hope that through therapy and with a positive mindset, I will be able to go back to the “normal” state that I was in before when my tinnitus was virtually nonexistent to me anymore.

 

Did your tinnitus return to baseline?

 

Honestly, no

But I have sort of been able to get used to it after several months.

 

Really sorry to hear that. Tinnitus makes standard medication seem like a game of Russian roulette.

I’m on a cocktail of antibiotics. Luckily I’ve not had a spike (yet). I’ll finish the Augmentin tomorrow & Metronidazole in 9 days.

 

Hi,

I’m sorry you’re going through all this.

I think my tinnitus started due to taking Metoprolol also for SVT. It was the only medicine that was different and after a month or so one morning I woke up with hissing in my left ear. We were also on vacation in a higher altitude. I thought maybe that was the reason for my tinnitus. I stopped the beta blocker and did do some research to find out that Metoprolol can be ototoxic. But even though I stopped the medication, my tinnitus did not go away. Did it cause it? Hard to say.

I’m hoping your tinnitus will go back once you stop the course of antibiotics. I recently took one dose of Zithromax and my tinnitus spiked.

It’s very unfortunate that the drug companies don’t put more warnings on these drugs about tinnitus.

 

If you hadn’t noticed any changes yet, hopefully everything will be fine! And yes, I am so hesitant to take any new oral medication because of the risk of the tinnitus getting worse, let alone being worried about loud noise exposure anytime I go anywhere. It’s so hard to live like this.

 

Hi Samantha.

I came upon your post today after researching antibiotics. This is the first time finding this website, so I'm thankful my searching led me here because of your post.

In 2010, I was given Minocycline for acne and developed tinnitus. Everything you wrote about with your challenges was like hearing my own voice. So, thank you for sharing and I hope you are still learning to live your best life. It is a process!

I was searching today about Lyme's disease and antibiotics used to treat it. I live out in the country and yesterday found a tick that latched on and now have a rash. Anyway, even though I told my doctor that I have tinnitus from antibiotic use, he still wanted to prescribe Doxycycline because it is the gold standard with LD treatment. Very, very frustrating. I had to ask if I could try the silver or bronze treatment instead! Lol. Only because I asked he gave me a work around; otherwise, right now I'd be taking Doxycycline.

If my doctor had tinnitus, then there would have been understanding and he would have explained the standard treatment, then said the alternatives are... X, Y & Z. Also, I have been misled by a pharmacist in the past about drugs that cause/worsen tinnitus. I always seek more answers & don't trust easily anymore. Anyway, we have to be careful, educate ourselves and seek alternatives to protect our hearing. Anything we put in our bodies we need to be aware.

I wish you all the best finding peace with tinnitus and in nursing school. You will be a better nurse because at a very young age you understand that our bodies are fragile and ever changing. We are not invincible, and that is what makes life so precious. Your perspective will allow for what they don't teach you in school - kindness, compassion and understanding. Add a dash of laughter to stay sane & you are good to go!

Take care & all the best to you

 

Thank you so much for your reply! I will admit, it does make me feel better to hear that someone shares an experience similar to mine. I am sorry you are going through this.

Was your tick bite able to be treated without Doxycycline? After I got tinnitus, my mom called my dermatologist and asked if there were any alternative antibiotics for my acne that did not have tinnitus as a side effect, and he prescribed me Doxycycline. But, I was too scared to take it of course.