Tried Cocaine and It Has Made My Tinnitus Worse — Help

This can’t be a serious question lmao

 

I think you both are actually talking about the same thing. Cochlear damage, but FGG used the term disease instead.

 

I highly doubt that a single instance of using cocaine would cause permanent tinnitus, it's a stimulant and perhaps it knocked your nervous system for a loop, which should resolve itself shortly.

 

If someone really believes that they work and has debilitating T, to the point of suicide, then you all ought to do anything to get surgery and have one, even assaulting doctors if it is needed to have it.

 

People get T permanently from taking MDMA, Mushrooms, why it makes you so surprised that one instance could cause worsened T?

 

Assaulting Drs doesn't get them to risk their license. I think you have a very unique perspective on things.

 

Well, I don't believe cochlear implants can treat tinnitus, people get hearing loss without tinnitus, I think the improvement that can be achieved at best with a cochlear implant is too minor, like 1 point reduction in tinnitus volume, from 8/10 to 7/10, so if we take cost + risks in consideration, then of course it's not a good path, only for the desperate, but you @FGG made it sound like cochlea is responsible for tinnitus and that treating it with an implant will reduce tinnitus, at least to 40%, when that is probably not the case. Tinnitus is a brain disease based on the theory of thalamocortical dysrithmia and the only effective treatment would be that of University of Minnesota and their revolutionary device. I don't believe in Fx-322 and that the restoration of hair cells will eliminate tinnitus, that it will lead to brain neuroplasticity, like just think about, a lot of people go deaf with no tinnitus, people who lose hair cells or get other types of damage to the ear, and are free from this torture. This is saying that it is a brain disease, one that you can even be born with (as some have said they had tinnitus since they were born).

 

This post title had me lol'ing hard, sorry...genuinely hope you get better though.

 

I suggest you read the clinical studies related to CI/tinnitus (PubMed is a good source). You will be surprised by the data.

 

Those stats probably don't mean a lot in the real world. Can you give me a link?

 

Why not? That's the whole purpose of designing a clinical study: be statistically significant.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=cochlear+implantation+tinnitus

 

Citation needed.

Who said 40%. Who said I was recommending everyone get one? I actually recommend holding out for regenerative medicine personally which I actually specifically said.

Not everybody gets tinnitus after hearing loss because some people do not seem to have the same neuro-excitability as a response to hearing loss that others do. Genetics and other intrinsic factors probably play a roll.

Not everyone who has HIV will develop AIDS. It doesn't mean HIV doesn't cause AIDS. Genetics play a roll in all health conditions.

Anyway, all I can say is the end of this year, we will have tinnitus data on regenerative medicine. Frequency Therapeutics has added it to their phase 2 and it is clear it is not just for the fun of it. Listen to their Q and A. They said they saw positive trends in this metric (tinnitus) across all their hearing loss patients But the hard phase 2 data will resolve the ambiguity on this matter.

 

It might not eliminate tinnitus totally, but it may be enough to put it in the "I can only hear it when I listen for it" zone. That's good enough for most sufferers.

 

@Rust hey mate, got mine from cocaine too.

All over the internet I found some people who got tinnitus from it.

Mine was almost psychologically unbearable first couple of months, just as for other guys. Also, like other, I received a gift called "anxiety disorder", which makes it worse on bad days but comes back to baseline on normal days.

There are some good and bad news.

The good news are: People I read reported it healed over time, though they used some things like Ginkgo (I used it at second month of tinnitus but wouldn't really understand whether it was for good or bad, but it was constantly changing while on it, so I skipped this part)

The bad news are: It is going to take a long time to heal, although I haven't heard it healed "completely" yet, since the "oldest patient" was healing for like 3 years. But he said it was really quiet on third year.

My experience is that, after like 4-6 months, I started to habituate, and my tinnitus is more in the background now. But don't let anxiety get worse, it is really, really hard to find a proper medication without side effects on tinnitus (which can make it better or worse, you never know). SO DON'T WORRY! I hope for good.

@Rust Btw, actually I have been a member here since November, and you had it worsened just almost two months later. How is it going?

 

What's his scientific explanation for why it won't work? Is it like mine, just skeptical and pessimistic?

What's your scientific explanation for why it'll work?

Lots of people think these treatments will work but there's no evidence.

 

Did the OP's spike ever go down?

I replied to this thread because I think that the brain 'equation' or relation with tinnitus seems like it's not as discussed or concentrated on? Maybe I am wrong about that. I think that is a major concern as it's probably difficult to treat if the brain is a major factor/influence w.r.t. tinnitus. I just hope that researchers figure out how to deal with the relationship between the ears and brain. It's complex enough trying to repair/treat the inner ear?

 

@peter91 -- You might find this interesting: Cocaine can cause other very serious brain issues as well besides tinnitus. I met a man once who had a severe case of ME/CFS (Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome). After just a single exposure, he was no longer able to work, and barely able to function throughout his day. -- There's a fair amount of overlap between ME/CFS and tinnitus, expecially as it regards brain and/or neurological function.

 

Hey mate, thanks for reaching out. I haven’t checked back on this thread for about 4-5 months - which is a good sign! I did improve, definitely, by how much is hard to say as I have experienced a few minor gradual spikes from other things during that time. Personally speaking, I have been feeling better and not letting it affect me as much. I definitely have bad days when I get a spike or noise exposure, and I worry about it staying worse - but one thing that has always been the case when I have had tinnitus is that it always improves. It doesn’t necessarily improve always to the exact same level as before, but that is not necessarily a bad thing as my acceptance of it improves and I continue happily living my life - which is the most important thing really.

I’m glad that you have been feeling better and habituated. It really is a terrible drug which I will not be taking ever again! A Eest Coast IPA will be the hardest drug I try from now on!

Thanks again
R

 

Wow - this thread has really had some activity since I last checked in!

I just want to say thank you to everyone who has offered their help, advice or opinion. I appreciate it.

The good news is I have definitely improved. I can’t remember the exact moment, but gradually I have got better. My tinnitus may be a little worse still, but that’s not necessarily due to the cocaine, since I have experienced many spikes since then.

The main thing is I saw improvement and I feel back to myself.

Take care all
R

 

Just as well I now feel better then! I do admit that I can see the comedy value in the title! Thanks mate.

 

That's true, now imagine risks of mixing it with steroids. Probably, I got not the worst part.

Although in the beginning, anxiety was that bad so I really was not sure one can continue working with it. I asked for medical help, but after reading about "side effects" and "dependence" on benzos anti-anxiety drugs, tried to cope with it with herbs on bad days (valerian) and got somewhat improved to a level where one can properly work and function.
Although it releaved some of the anxiety symptoms, it didn't heal it completely... but that's a different story... I am on a long road of treating it...

WILL NEVER TOUCH IT AGAIN!

 

Hi Pete.

There exists a theory that tinnitus is part of a group of neurological disorders originating in the thalamus including epilepsy, tremors and neuropathic pain)
It is called thalamocortical dysrhythmia, or TCD.
It's caused by loss of peripheral input to the brain.

There was one neurologist in Switzerland who performed experimental tinnitus procedure using HIFU (high intensity focused ultrasound) at a cost of $40,000 USD. His theory is that if he ablates specific targets in the thalamus, destroying tinnitus causing cells, that he could cure tinnitus.

Well I personally know a person who did his operation and his results were marginal, something like 30-40% reduction in tinnitus.

Results for tremors were most robust at 90% reduction. Epilepsy was also successful. Hence, patients who could not control their symptoms with medication and had money to blow, underwent his treatment.

Tinnitus is a real prick.

His clinic is called Sonimodul by the way.

The reason many tinnitus sufferers would not want to try this treatment is because the beam is guided by a 140dB 4Tesla MRI machine lol. 4 hours long!

Tinnitus is the end result of a long series of events. His explanation of why it won't work is because the theory that once this change of events reaches the thalamus, it cannot be reversed by simply restoring lost peripheral input.
This is all theory.

Deaf people without tinnitus, the chain of events did not reach the thalamus.
Maybe they have top notch functioning Potassium channel gates...

Nobody proved TCD cannot be reversed by restoring hearing or restoring ion channel function (AFAIK)
Х

 

CIs are a very primitive almost archaic way to restore hearing. They give you very crappy hearing, everything sounds robotic and distorted.

Even still you conceded a 1 point tinnitus improvement, which means the brain is plastic and TCD isn't permanent.

If it were, then tinnitus wouldn't improve at all... right?

If you receive brand new set of hearing cells and ribbons, synapses, functioning ion gates and whatnot, who is to say the improvement won't be 8,9, or10 points?

It's like getting your worn out engine overhauled with new pistons/rings, new valves, injectors, timing belts and chains, replace all sensors, etc. The on board computer (thalamus) will stop compensating for a shitty engine and will now run back at peak efficiency.

Our bodies are just biological machines.

 

Deaf people born deaf or who eventually went deaf?

Is my tinnitus caused by periodic damage to the inner ears and then one acoustic trauma is the final trigger? That's my theory so far. It's related to hearing loss but ringing in the ears can be temporary as well. For lucky people, it eventually stops.

I don't remember all the health/scientific explanation and terminology but hair cells dying and peripheral input terminology I don't sufficiently understand.

What would cause the ear and brain to be brought back to pre-tinnitus state? What treatment would be closest to getting there? An operation or pill in the ear - cell regeneration? Combined with laser treatment to the related brain area? What?

 

Ok there is evidence that tinnitus is like phantom limb pain. The limb was cut off but the brain still feels the pain as if there was an arm or leg still there.
I think there was an experiment where they showed the patient a mirror image of the lost limb and the pain subsided.
Same can apply to tinnitus, if lost input can be returned, the brain should replasticize or reset.

RL-81 med can be used to give the brain a boost in the right direction

I'm just as hopeless as you mate.

 

@FGG promised me by 20 years from now there will be a cure 100%.
So it's just a matter of suffering thru to get there in 1 piece and then retire in peace and quiet (literally).

I mean who wants to die with the last thing they hear is tinnitus screech?

 

I hope that is true. I am interested in the science of it but I don't care how it's done as long as the tinnitus is eliminated. Heck, I think most people myself included would take a massive reduction. To mild status, at least. I know people in real life with hearing loss and they either have NO tinnitus or very mild, barely perceptible tinnitus.

It makes me think that it starts or worsens by some sort of impact or sudden damage. Not the gradual or periodic damage. That might lead to tinnitus but it's one major event or trauma. I guess this has been speculated before but I wonder if researchers and "tinnitus scientists" (?) are approaching treatments with that concept or whether it's not just speculation but probable, at this point?

If the brain is also involved, I hope they can treat all of it. I just want silence or near silence. Treating the pain would help too. :-(

I don't think I can accept a life of this further than a year or more so I hope they have something available soon. I still think about the exit bag. I have little enjoyment out of life. I don't care about people who say they habituate. I think that topic is useless. It's a subjective thing that only pertains to the individual and their own tinnitus condition.

 

Off subject, but I have always wondered why some people who are deaf, do not have tinnitus. My brother in law is deaf, and does not have tinnitus. He also was not born deaf, it happened suddenly when he was a toddler.

To this day, he rides motorbikes, etc. Has never protected his ears, and still no tinnitus.

 

ONLY 20 years? I hope you are a teenager. P.S. her crystal ball stinks.

 

A tinnitus researcher told me that he felt this article has the best basic short explanation and I sort of agree.

https://dealwithtinnitus.com/tinnitus-and-the-brain