Tinnitus Worsening from Snorting 3-MMC?

Hi there,

I'm so glad I found this forum. The community seems very supportive.
I've had tinnitus since I can remember - ever since I was 4 I told my parents about it.

Long story short: my parents tried everything available back then, nothing helped. Eventually I guess I habituated. In the next couple of years I hardly ever thought about it. Sometimes I had short spikes, whenever I came back from a restaurant for example. Sleeping wasn't a problem anymore. I now realize how extremely lucky I was. I lived a happy life.

Since January 22nd, the tinnitus is back and it's worse than it's ever been. High pitched, like ten of those old TV's together in one room. I think it was caused by snorting 3-MMC, a type of 'designer drug'. As I'm typing this out, I cannot believe how stupid I was. I always said 'no' to drugs, hardly ever went to parties, was cautious. Until that one evening where I decided to make the biggest mistake of my life so far.

The next week, I went through hell. I couldn't help but blame myself over and over, mourning my life how it was before. Telling myself I threw all my progress out of the window. I couldn't sleep, had pains in my stomach and chest and even vomited - because of how anxious I was.

I went to see my GP and the ENT tested my ears: no hearing loss. Even though I suspect some hearing loss in my right ear. My ENT also said the 3-MMC is the cause of a spike and it's likely not permanent. I have problems with pressure behind my eardrums and Eustachian tube. My eardrums are basically all scar tissue, a result of many ear infections ever since I was a kid (probable cause back then).

I got Oxazepam to help with the extreme stress. It only made me more anxious and it resulted in a 'new sound' in my right ear, so I quit. I even talked about euthanasia, to my GP and my parents. That was so hard to do, but I really hit rock bottom and saw no way out.

The past week was a bit better. I switched to Melatonin (3mg) at night, during the day I do not take any meds. I get a few hours of sleep, so that's a huge improvement!
As for now the high pitch tinnitus hasn't improved. The 'new sound' in my right ear is a bit quieter it seems.

I am waiting on some psychological help, especially to help with the feelings of self-blame. Besides that, I am seeing a more specialized ENT in Belgium, next Friday. They can also help me with TRT, I hope that will help.

I'm sorry if my story is a bit all over the place - so are my thoughts the past few weeks. I hope I can find some support. And maybe someone knows something about the 3-MMC? Is it a spike? And maybe I prolonged it by extreme feelings of self-blame/stress?

P.S. My dentist told me that I needed to have my wisdom tooth (bottom left) removed, as it had no place to 'come out'. Could that also be a cause? I researched it but got mixed signals about it.

 

DO NOT BLAME YOURSELF. ALL PEOPLE MAKE MISTAKES. You wanted to have some fun, you were curious, you were brave to try something new. You could not have known it makes your tinnitus worse.

Very often drug-induced spike gets better in a few months' time. Your spike has lasted less than a month. I have hope it goes down for you. Please report back here how you are progressing since I've been thinking of trying some designer drugs as well.

 

I think the tinnitus will calm down with time. Try not to use headphones or earbuds even at low volumes.

 

Alright, I hope this goes for me! We will just have to wait and see and in the meantime I will protect my hearing like @Michael Leigh says.

Is it possible that it's my wisdom tooth?
My hyperacusis is getting worse, what can be the cause of that? I cannot seem to find an answer to that.

Thank you <3

 

I am currently roughly one month into what I hope is a spike. It's never been this bad. New sounds, no sleep, trying to manage my anxiety and not think of suicide.

I developed hyperacusis two weeks ago. Even though I had tinnitus ever since I can remember, the hyperacusis is totally new to me. What could've been the cause here? Is hyperacusis always related to noise induced trauma? Will this be permanent?

I just really need some kind words, or realistic advice. Thank you!

 

@Ylva, hang in there. Things are very likely to get better. In my recent experience with tinnitus and hyperacusis my symptoms hit their peak at the one month mark - crazy car horn, middle of head tea kettle, flock of birds sounds and nasty ear pain. A few months later and this is feeling much better. You are likely to be experiencing the worst of it before it starts to subside.

What I see is a beautiful woman who got unlucky. Please take this time to be kind to yourself. Reach out to family and loved ones to see if you can get some support. Things will get better but it takes time. Ears take a very long time to heal. If you are unable to sleep then I’d suggest going to your GP and getting some sleeping pills to get you through in the short term. Insomnia makes everything harder, so I’d give that some attention. Sleep is essential.

Protect your ears from loud noises, try to get some rest and give it time. After six months you’re likely going to feel like your old self again.

 

Hey there, hopefully things will become less intrusive and bothersome for you in the long run. Managing stress and anxiety along with getting quality sleep can have a positive impact on the perception of your tinnitus. Unfortunately it takes time to see if it will fade and develop coping strategies but you will be doing great in the future!

What part of Holland are you from? I used to live in Arnhem

 

Hi @Ylva

How are you coping today?

I see that you're in the blaming yourself stage at the moment. And you know, it's hard not to feel upset at yourself. I blame myself all the time for letting the doctor put me on ototoxic medication, which gave me my tinnitus.

I would be inclined to believe that the drug you took, has given you a spike, and that it will calm down. Im sure you've read the post about a member who took cocaine? He had a major spike, but he eventually got back to baseline again. Time is a great healer.

I'm sure you already know this, but anxiety can cause tinnitus to ramp up in volume, so it could be that your spike would have died down a bit if your emotions weren't running so high?

How long have you had the spike now? If it helps, I had pretty much habituated to my tinnitus, until one day, I woke up to the loudest tinnitus ever! It was soul destroying.

However, most spike are temporary, and do eventually go down. My spike took 5 months to get back to baseline! That's a long time to wait, but we don't have much choice.

So my advice would be, protect your ears. Get a pair of earplugs that you can use if you feel you're in a loud environment. Get as much sleep as you can. Sleep helps to heal. Drink plenty of water. Dehydration can make tinnitus worse. Take some supplements. I take magnesium, and have taken NAC in the past - but don't get too hung up of supplements. There's not a lot of proof that they help. If you need therapy, then get some.

And just remember, you can talk to us on here anytime you need support. Because we know better than anyone, what you are going through. We are your support system.

Hang in there, because I know it seems impossible now, but you won't feel like this forever.

Steph <3

 

Update

So I went to see the ENT in Antwerp, Belgium. Nothing came out of that, he said I have ETD and that my right eardrum was retracted and red. My left eardrum is basically all scar tissue because of the many ear infections I had as a kid. He gave me Avamys (nasal spray) and sent me on my way. No detectable hearing loss (but I know I probably have hidden hearing loss).

I have an appointment with an audiologist that specializes in tinnitus on the first of April, my boyfriend's birthday. Besides that, I'm talking to a psychologist and will do some EMDR. She said she can tell I still struggle with the 'trauma' from the night my tinnitus began (and the self-blame that comes with it).

I realize that I can reach out to 'specialists' and others all I can, but it is still me who has to deal with it. So I try to force myself (for now, hopefully later on I can do this naturally) to stay positive. Literally started talking to myself sometimes to tell myself that I cannot let this tinnitus win ('Hello, I've got a life to live?!'). In reality it's 50/50: one half of the time I'm in the 'Why me, I'm so young, I had my tinnitus under control and ruined my chance' and the other half I'm trying to accept it.

The pulsatile tinnitus started not long ago. Also my 'regular tinnitus' seems to become worse. As for now, I cannot seem to let go of wanting to find a cause. It's in my personality (I'm a researcher and journalist). I made a list with things I want to try, or any medical issues I want to exclude. And when I cross everything on that list, I will have to fully accept it. Then, it becomes a bonus if it fades. But I'm not just going to sit here and wait til it does. I have to start the process of acceptance earlier than that.

 

Thank you @Steph1710 for your support (also on my statuses). I'm not exaggerating when I say it is life-saving.

I read about spikes taking a long time to get back to baseline. I really hope so!

I'm from the South-West (Zeeland), close to Belgium I like Arnhem! Did you enjoy your time in this tiny country?

Sometimes I imagine myself in a couple of months. Either it will fade or I will have less of an emotional response to it. And then I see myself enjoying life again. It makes me emotional yet gives me hope! How are you doing so far?

 

Nooit geweest, maar het lijkt me leuk. Mijn Nederlands is niet zo goed, maar ik geniet echt van drop en patat met

Yes I did!

 

That could only make hyperacusis worse, as it will unblock your nose and will make you hear louder. You don't want that if you have tinnitus and hyperacusis.

 

Oh no! What should I do about my ETD then?

 

I think you can find other ways to unblock your noise, basically aiming your diet at that. Salads, onion, food with spices and garlic, fruit etc.

I tried Avamys myself and it was an experience to forget.

 

I had no idea what 3-MMC was until you mentioned it. Having looked it up, I understand that the drug acts as a dopamine stimulant, and, anything that increases dopamine levels can also affect tinnitus – this is the domain of Prof. Rauschecker's tinnitus research.

Having said that, perhaps a more plausible explanation for your onset of tinnitus might be related to noise exposure? Party drugs are – needless to say – often taken in a "party setting". And parties tend to be noisy. So... maybe a loud night is the real culprit here?

 

I talked to my psych this week about self blame, and my constantly going over and over and over and over in my head HOW this could have happened. I blame myself for taking the medications, lifting a weight wrong, having the MRI, contracting a virus and all the other things that were happening in my life at the onset of tinnitus. I also blame doctors, A LOT. I was begging for help for my daily headaches and they would just send me away and tell me to take Ibuprofen. Even now they still insist that Ibuprofen, viruses, blood pressure meds etc cannot cause tinnitus even though I know that is fundamentally untrue.

ANYWAY... (see I just get stuck in these feedback loops of anger and blame). The psych said to give these stories a name, so that when I am having them, I can label them for what they are and try to move on. I have named mine the "no one cares story" (which is a story about the 3 different GPs, and 8 emergency room visits I made before tinnitus started because I was so unwell and they wouldn't help). I have the "how did this happen" story, and the "why me" story.

Now that they have a name, and are compartmentalised, I seem to be able to move on quicker from them. It also stops me venting to my husband. He has heard these stories SO MANY TIMES.

It is hard to move on, and not go over in your head, but it does nothing for recovery. This is a work in progress for me. I hate psychobabble but this one does work a little for me. I hope it helps for you and your self blame.

 

I just read that Ginkgo Biloba increases dopamine.

 

I’m certainly doing better than the first couple of months. I’d describe the tinnitus as a persistent buzzing with crickets. At the moment I’m protecting my ears religiously and hoping for more fading. The Hyperacusis is feeling a lot better; the pain response isn’t nearly as intense thankfully. Sound distortions are also still there, but I’ve noticed they don’t completely overwhelm what I hear which is great. Hopefully with more time I’ll continue to improve.

 

I highly suspect that ETD plays some role in my tinnitus. I recently found that steam inhalation will soothe my symptoms a bit.

Warm drinks and hot baths, again with lot of steam, also helps.

 

I wouldn't worry about it, but also not likely to help. For supplements, try Creatine, Pycnogenol, Turmeric, and Magnesium. Perhaps also NAC, Zinc, and Taurine. Avoid foods loaded with MSG (Monosodium Glutamate) – but not super important (i.e. will probably only spike tinnitus). Protect your ears. Over time, you may begin to see an improvement...

 

I've been to the same clinic in Antwerp, no real help there, maybe you could go to the Brain clinic in Ghent, they also offer Lenire I just read.
Groeten