Having trouble finding one that won't make the tinnitus worse. Plus, to make bad matters worse, I'm sleep dependant on amitryptyline at 30 mg. but it isn't helping the depression. Help please!!
I am not any medicine for sleep or depression so can't provide a recommendation as to one better than another with the ringing in the ears. But one thing that I do know is that there are SO many different meds available for depression and not one works for every person. If you have been on the one for a while, ask your doctor to test something else. Definitely be vocal with your doctor and if a new med is prescribed, get agreement on how long to know if it is effective...that way you have a timeline to monitor and your doctor is on notice that there will be follow through until you get this under control.
I find that exercising is the best way for me to beat depression. My wife sometimes has a hard time sleeping through the night. When this happens she takes Melatonin 300mcg. Very cheap and such a small dose. It works for her and many others. As far as the tinnitus. I don't have any answers. Best of Health to You!
Thanks for your responses. I really appreciate it. I've been on the amitryptyline for about 13 years so substituting anything from over the counter successfully is probably highly unlikely to work at this point but it is something I will consider. I am 62 yrs old with Sciatica which makes exercise such as walking difficult. I do, however, exercise this piriformis daily. The dr has recently diagnosed me with RSD as well and the burden of all these health issues has become quite heavy. Sciatica X 3 yrs alone would be enough, then there's Menieres X 32 yrs and the abdomenal burning of the RSD. I really find it hard to believe that there isn't someone here who isn't on an antidepressant. I guess some of the oldtimers got lost with the upgrade.
Thank you Nicmger for your input regarding medication and the doctor. My PCP sent me to a psychiatrist for help with finding a medication that would work for me. The psych put me on Cymbalta and all I can say is he obviously had no knowledge of treating someone with MM because now I know that Cymbalta is known for causing tinnitus even in healthy individuals. Surely any dr who understands tinnitus wouldn't put a patient on this med. I was nearly deaf the one day that I took it and when I called him back to tell him his instructions to me were, "keep taking it." I just don't understand how a person with kind of loss and absolutely raging tinnitus is supposed to function, let alone stay sane. So needless to say I didn't go back. Since then I've been trying to find another med that might help.
My mom had been on amitryptiline for years for her depression issues. After a while it was not effective any longer. Effexor worked for her; Klonopin did the best for her. She was on Prozac for years. She did not have Meniere's so I have no idea if it would increase the ringing or not. I have heard good things about Ambilify that is added to meds to increase effectiveness. Believe it is a very expensive drug though. Personally I have found benefits from Nucca. I don't know that it impacted my Meniere's but do know that it helped with my headaches and the limp I had remaining after I tore my ACL. Believe that some have found relief for sciatica with it so wanted to share. And your story of the doctors frustrate me. I have been there as well. To me the "key" is not whether it is a psychiatrist or GP - more important is finding one that LISTENS and understands that it is a process to find the right combination for you. I also am a fan of Dream Water. It is packaged similar to an energy shot but it is to help you sleep; all natural. I had a period of time that I kept having full vertigo attacks that would wake me up at night and it got to a point that I would not sleep because I would jolt awake wondering if it was another attack. The Dream Water helped me fall asleep with no ill effects the next day. (It isn't cheap though. Believe they run like $3/ea.)
Debated whether to post on this thread, but thought I should. I've had incredible tinnitus since my first huge Menieres attack on May 11, 2002. Anywhere from 6 to 12 sounds over the years (as you know, for most of us, they change in type, frequency, intensity, duration.) There are spans of time when it is so bad it jolts me awake at night. I have severe bilateral Menieres, a total absence of balance functionality in either ear now, and a lot of nerve issues (sciatica on the right side, among other things.) I am 66. Over the years, to address tinnitus, I have tried white noise, different kinds of ear plugs and headsets, acupuncture, increased diuretics, severely low sodium diets, etc. Nothing worked very long; acupuncture was the best as it substantially reduced higher frequency tinnitus for about six months, but then it came back as pesky as ever. But I have NEVER taken an anti-depressant. Does that mean I haven't been depressed? No. It means I have forced myself simply to embrace the tinnitus, as one would an amputated limb. It is just part of my life, and I have willed myself into accepting the delusion that it is normal, which it is for me and many here. Like you, I find exercise difficult; pre-Menieres I was a gym rat and loved the high I would get from intense weight or cardio workouts. So my only recourse is self-discipline at this stage. Not for everyone, I know. But just an alternative I thought I would put out there.
I do not take an antidepressant either, never have. Even though I have MM for 50 years, among other disorders, for some bizarre reason, I am usually an upbeat, positive person..... so far.
I have had a stomach virus for the last 5 days. Fever, no vomiting, some headache, no sinus issues. But, it was hard for me to sleep. The last two nights I took took 5 mg of diazapam (valium) and two Melatonins (300mcg's each) and slept all through the night. Feeling so good in the morning.