Tinnitus Made Worse by Naproxen / Baclofen

Hi All,

I suffered an acoustic trauma from an exploding bike tyre mid last year which left me with significant hearing loss above 10k, hyperacusis, diplacusis and tinnitus. I've had a deep love for music and sounds since I was a child and became an audiophile and musician. The accident completely turned my world upside down, the sense off loss and debilitating depression were like nothing I thought possible.

However I was lucky and made great progress, by October the tinnitus reduced to a level where I only noticed it several times per day (quiet high sizzling / shimmering). My brain adjusted and I didn't notice the missing frequencies too much, I even managed to get back to listening to music as a moderate volume. I took NAC and Magnesium which may or may not have helped. I felt very lucky having read many experiences here.

I suffer with chronic pain (fibromyalgia) which is already extremely difficult to live with. After Christmas this became unbearable with new symptoms I hadn't had before so I took a strong dose of Naproxen. I knew it was ototoxic but my ear had recovered so well for a number of months I thought I would just stop taking it, should it cause any problems. My tinnitus gradually became worse over the 12 days of taking it, I stopped the Naproxen and asked for an alternative. I took low dose Baclofen instead for a few days. However my ear became progressively worse with intolerable piercing pressure, fullness, high pitched tinnitus and a sharpness over anything with white noise (trees in the wind, running water, etc). The worst of this came on some time after stopping both medications. I was also suddenly aware of all missing frequencies again, as if my brain had "forgotten" all the adjustments it had made. These symptoms were far far worse than those I experienced from the initial injury. Most of these symptoms come with sound, sitting in silence isn't too bad. The only way I could cope was by wearing an ear plug which masked some of the sensations.

These symptoms became progressively worse over time after stopping both of the drugs so I do question if they are even the cause at all. The only issue I had for some time after the Naproxen was louder tinnitus. Does anyone know if this is the case where there can be quite a delay between the ototoxic medication and symptoms experienced?

That was all back in January, today things are not much better and my life is falling apart, I feel traumatised. I cry throughout the day most days and struggle with motivation to carry on. I should probably take something to help manage this but am now terrified of taking tablets, noting that almost all anti-depressants are ototoxic. I hope each day my ear will recover to how it was last year but as more time passes, I'm losing hope. Things are so much worse than even the first few weeks after the initial injury. I have seen an ENT who simply doesn't know much about ototoxicity. He claims to have spoken to other colleagues, none of whom have experience in the area. I was due to speak with a tinnitus therapist who recently went on long term sick leave. I stopped wearing any earplugs since it will slow any recovery although there are times where it's just too uncomfortable such as driving.

The reason I'm posting here is because I feel isolated within an isolated community. The tinnitus isn't what I'm struggling with most, it's the piercing pressure, fullness and sharpness over any white noise type sounds. Curiously my hearing is the same on an extended audiogram as last year, (I have audio equipment where I do my own audiograms). It is as if my ear now gets "over loaded" with high frequency sounds very easily compared to before, while the response itself is unchanged. I am constantly clearing my ears.

If anyone has any information on this, similar experiences, suggestions, etc I would really appreciate the input as am currently at rock bottom.

Thanks,
Jack

 

Hi @Jack08.

I have exactly the same problem as you.

I had a noise trauma in February 2019 that caused me several tinnitus and hyperacusis.

I was starting to get better last summer, sleeping much better.

Unfortunately in September 2020 I took Naproxen as well, for 6 days, due to foot pain.

And after 6 days my tinnitus which was already terribly disabling became at a level that is described on this forum as "suicidal".

That is to say that now I hear it ABSOLUTELY everywhere: in the car, on the transport, in the street, even over my tinnitus masker at night.

My nights have become horrible, I wake up every 30 minutes at night, I am constantly tired.

I have already taken Amitriptyline for 2 years to sleep, between 5 and 20 drops per night. But it doesn't help me to have a good sleep anymore since I took Naproxen 8 months ago.

Like you, I hesitate to take antidepressants but I am afraid because they are ototoxic.
My psychiatrist recommends that I take Amitriptyline in an antidepressant dose (about 60 drops). According to Tinnitus Talk it is the safest antidepressant.

But having had a huge worsening of my tinnitus because of an ototoxic drug, I don't know what to do.

I am only 30 years old and my life is already ruined...