chris111: Zoloft - Ringing Ears

[chris111]

Hello.

 

 

My PCP prescribed me ZOLOFT (100mg) for anxiety along with trazodone (100mg) for sleep.

 

 

I took 1 ZOLOFT (100mg) pill and had a bad experience and never took it again. I took TRAZODONE for 7 days to help me sleep (25mg) then I switched over to AMBIEN (5mg) and now melatonin (3mg). 

 

 

I found out later on that I did not have an anxiety problem and that all I had was a breathing problem of which I have already corrected by doing 1 simple breathing exercise..  (I should of known better.. ).

 

 

So I guess I am going through a withdrawal? (This is my first time experiencing these things in my life)

 

 

So now I am stuck with the withdrawal symptoms that many of the users on this forum are currently experiencing. 

 

 

I can deal with the other general withdrawal symptoms such as 

 

 

- Dizziness and the feeling of fainting (They have subsided)

- Insomnia (Getting better sleep without any medications lately 6-8 hours)

- Appetite (Getting WAY better than the beginning)

- Restlessness (Improving, since I only force myself to sleep at night and not during the day)

- No Sex drive (Came back, but holding everything back till I fully recover. lol)

- Numbness (Not feeling it on my pinky and ring fingers anymore, but on my arms now during sleep)

 

 

 

It has already been a little over 4 weeks since I took the pill.

 

 

What bugs me the most is the sound of a million crickets (its like a "swooshing") sound that is going off within the region of my left ear.

 

 

In the beginning it was going off all day and night, now, it is not as intense because when I do light exercises, it stops. When I am in class, it stops, when I am driving, it stops. When I listen to music, it stops.

 

But right when I lay down in bed, (sleep for example) it goes on but not as much, and this happens when if I were to sit still. And in the mornings when I wake up (I think its anxiety produced by the withdrawal).

 

 

So I am guessing that it tends to happen only when there is silence.

 

 

 

 

I heard the average withdrawal period is 6-8 weeks and that full recovery is within that duration of time (correct me if I am wrong).

 

 

 

Is this a sign of progress and does this particular sound go away (along with the other symptoms)? 

 

 

 

 

Thanks.

[Wondering]

First, let me say I am so sorry that this happened to you, beyond annoying. I have a couple of ideas, but will wait until the peeps in charge chime in, in case I am wrong. They should be along shortly. Again, how awful to take those various drugs and find out you didn't even need them and adding insult to injury, you get withdrawals. That swooshing sounds beyond annoying. Wondering

[chris111]

Thanks for your kindness.

 

 

Sorry, but I didn't quite get a part of your post.

 

 

Who are the peeps in charge?

[Fresh]

Hi Chris ,  welcome to the site.    I'm so sorry you had such a bad reaction to Zoloft.

 

All the symptoms you describe are common in withdrawal , and as you're finding they tend to become less intense and less frequent

as you heal.

Unfortunately , there is no "average" withdrawal period to my knowledge.  

Many may fully recover in 6 to 8 weeks , but for others it takes longer , as you'll see from the threads you've read.

 

The important thing is that you are continuing to improve . . . your symptoms are lessening , and should reside with time.

 

Best wishes ,  Fresh

[Flowers]

Hi Chris111 - Welcome to SA.

 

 

 

So sorry you had to take these meds unnecessarily and are now suffering the consequences. Just in case Wondering isn't around I will answer your question re 'peeps'. Hope you don't mind Wondering?

 

You have found a great site here with lots of info and advice to help you. I am just a member like you but we have Moderators( ie peeps) who are very knowledgable and experienced and are the best to advise you regarding your meds.

 

I am sure a Moderator will talk to you soon.

 

Best Wishes

 

Flowers

[chris111]

@Fresh 

 

Thanks for the input. I hope a full recovery with a few more weeks.

 

 

@Flowers

 

Ohh, I see.

 

Thanks for the heads up.

[mammaP]

Hi Chris, welcome to SA.  It is awful that you are getting withdrawal from so few pills but sadly it is not unusual. It is a good thing that your symptoms are becoming less as time goes by.  The tinnitus, or strange sounds will ease too in time. It seems worse when it is silent because you are more aware of it. When you are busy or there is background noise it isn't as noticeable.   It is encouraging that you are feeling much better now and hopefully the last symptoms will soon be gone. 

Have you stopped the ambien too and switched to melatonin or are you still taking ambien, I'm not sure from your post if you have stopped it. 

You will find this topic interesting...

 

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/603-what-is-withdrawal-syndrome/

 

I don't think I need to tell you  to avoid  psychotropic drugs after the reactions you had!  We have a great topic with lots of suggestions for non drug ways of dealing with emotional symptoms. http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/1112-non-drug-techniques-to-cope-with-emotional-symptoms/

[chris111]

@mamap 

 

 

Thanks for the support.

 

 

I am no longer taking any sleeping aids at the moment, but If I do, then it would be Melatonin.

[chris111]

Hey guys,

 

 

I forgot to mention that I did some research and it seems that trazodone also has similar side effects to the zoloft, and they both have withdrawal effects.

 

 

 

Has anybody experienced this sound off trazodone alone?

 

 

Could it be the trazodone that is causing the ringing sound within my ear, instead of the zoloft?

 

 

 

Also,

 

I took a blood pressure test and it looks like I have prehypertension, my heart rate is at 120/79.

 

I read up that tinnitus can also be caused by blood pressure that is above normal.

 

It looks as if the zoloft or trazodone withdrawal produces high blood pressure causing tinnitus?

 

 

O_o

[Fresh]

It's not really possible to tell which of the drugs is causing the different w/d symptoms.  

It could be one or the other , or both.

Tinnitus (ear-ringing) is a feature of w/d from a whole range of antidepressants , ssri's , snri's , tricyclics , MAOI's , tetra-cyclics.

 

I'm pretty sure if you did a search for Trazodone and tinnitus you would find some threads where people have had tinnitus after taking just trazodone.

[Petunia]

My ears started ringing after I stopped taking Lexapro, but my drug history is much longer than yours. I'm sure your symptoms will go away in a little more time, focus on making healthy lifestyle choices and taking care of yourself the best you can.

 

6 Ways To Lower Blood Pressure By Changing Your Diet

 

Taking a magnesium supplement can also help to lower blood pressure in a more natural way, see:

Magnesium, nature's calcium channel blocker

 

 

[chris111]

@Petunia

 

I have magnesium glycinate at home of which I took towards the beginning of the withdrawal, and it gave me insomnia (a few other members on here experienced this as well.)

 

I might take it again and see what happens since it has been over a few weeks since the initial withdrawal day.

 

 

When it comes to the semi-high blood pressure. I will try exercising again along with taking a blood test to see if I am deficient in MAGNESIUM because I did take a blood test a 2 weeks prior to taking the ZOLOFT pill and it indicated that I was semi low on magnesium and therefore I think it could be contributing to the blood pressure along with the sound because a deficiency in magnesium can also cause the "ringing".

[quitpaxil2015]

Good evening,

 

My ears have been ringing non-stop for the duration of my Paxil taper (approximately three weeks). It is very upsetting and, as previously mentioned, much more noticeable when I am in bed or there is no background noise.

 

I have just made my second cut to 20 mg of Paxil today, so I hope this doesn't get much louder.

 

Good luck to all of you brave souls who are going through w/d!

[chris111]

Giving everyone an update on my condition.

 

 

I expected a full recovery with 6-8 weeks. But it looks like it will have to take a little longer.

 

 

 

I am still hearing the sound within the left region of my ear, but I still see very little progress. As I mentioned from my first post, I still hear the sound when I lay on my bed and even when I go to sleep. In the mornings when I wake up, I hear it.

 

But when I go on with my day, it is masked by other "sounds" making me not hear it at all.

 

So, I believe when there is silence, along with a resting position, then it occurs.

.

 

 

I will also get a blood test to see if I am low in magnesium, because before all of this, It was indicated that I have a low magnesium level of which can contribute to the blood pressure along with the tinnitus. 

 

The condition is called "magnesium deficiency".

 

 

 

The withdrawal symptoms are still hanging out, but they have lessened. Although it seems like everything is at a "standstill". 

 

 

And I will look into 5-HTP again, although I did take 5-HTP a few times in the beginning, I stopped taking it since I have read on this it was best for me to avoid the natural serotonin meds within the process of healing.

 

 

Or does the serotonin supplement only apply to those with long term use of antidepressants?

 

 

 

Any additional advice or tips would definitely help.

 

 

 

 

Anyways.. hoping for a full recovery soon.

[Petunia]

My PCP prescribed me ZOLOFT (100mg) for anxiety along with trazodone (100mg) for sleep.

 

 

I took 1 ZOLOFT (100mg) pill and had a bad experience and never took it again. I took TRAZODONE for 7 days to help me sleep (25mg) then I switched over to AMBIEN (5mg) and now melatonin (3mg). 

 

 

Hi chris,

I've quoted part of your first post because I wanted to make sure I understand your drug history.

 

You took zoloft for 1 day

Trazodone for 7 days

How long did you take Ambien for?

 

Is ear ringing (tinnitus) at night, the only symptom you have now? When exactly did the ear ringing start? Was it after you took the one pill of zoloft? That night? The next day? After you stopped trazodone? What was the bad experience that zoloft caused?

 

If you could add some dates to your history, that would be helpful. Putting it in your signature makes it even easier.  Here are instructions for how to do it:

 

http://survivinganti...your-signature/

 

Are you or did you take any other drugs or medications recently?

 

It sounds to me like you are suffering from an adverse effect from something, not withdrawal. Taking one pill does not cause withdrawal and its unlikely you would still be suffering withdrawal from 7 days of trazodone use, one month later.

 

I suggest you don't take any serotoninergic drugs or supplements, that includes 5-htp, you may be one of a group of people who are sensitive to these kinds of substances.

 

If you have had an adverse effect, you will recover, it may just take a little more time.

[clearday]

.

[Altostrata]

Welcome, chris.

 

Please read What is withdrawal syndrome?

 

Topics about fish oil and magnesium supplements, see
http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/36-king-of-supplements-omega-3-fatty-acids-fish-oil/
http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/1300-magnesium-natures-calcium-channel-blocker/

 

How long did you take Ambien and how did you go off it?

 

Why do you think withdrawal syndrome lasts 6-8 weeks?

[chris111]

Guys, 

 

 

My apologies for the late reply, I am trying to keep my mind off from the forums too keep my mind clear.

 

 

But, now that I have logged on again today, reading all the posts again, and trying to connect the dots relating to this condition before this happened.

 

 

 

I do not think I am not suffering from a withdrawal, but something else, like Petunia mentioned.

 

 

I did not post what I was experiencing in full detail at the beginning of this thread, because I thought that I would recover in a short period of time, therefore I did not post other relevant information.

 

 

Let me start over from the beginning, so you guys can get an snapshot of what I have went through and my condition as of today.

[chris111]

I started to experience a variety of symptoms, much like a antidepressant withdrawal, during the beginning of this year.

 

I was not on any medication at all before these symptoms started appearing.

 

 

Here is the rundown.

 

 

(January)

 

 

At first, I started developing insomnia, and then other symptoms started stacking on top .

 

-Headaches (light and intense)

-Heart palpitations (Skipping beats, high pulse rate)

-Sensitive to sound and bright lights

-Ringing in ears (I was experiencing the ringing sound towards the edge of both of my ears)

-Unsteadiness while standing, along with dizziness while walking

-Pins and needle sensation (when the temperature around me gets hot)

-Fingers became numb during the middle of the night

-Muscle Spasm (Occurred once)

-Head felt heavy and my body felt light during most of these days from January - March

-Vision was not accurate, blurry from time to time

-Vibrating and tingling sensation throughout my whole body during the days

-Fatigue and dizziness

-Short term memory and mood swings.

-Episodes of heat flashes

 

 

These symptoms started occurring from January to March. So I decided to seek help, because I needed answers.

 

 

In March, I took a blood test and the only item that was low was my magnesium. So then I decided to take MAGNESIUM GLYCINATE, and my symptoms started to dissapear, and I thought I was going to do okay. But they came back a few weeks later.

 

 

 

Then, I made an appointment to go see a neurologist, and he thought that I had ANXIETY and therefore prescribed me the anxiety medication by the name  of BUSPAR (or buspirone).

 

I took it for a few days and it did not work. So i decided to make another appointment to see the neurologist, but it was not till a month later so I decided to go to a general physician instead.

 

 

My physician told me that I could have anxiety, so she then prescribed me ZOLOFT and TRAZODONE, both at 100mg. 

[chris111]

@Petunia

 

 

After reading your post, I believe you might be correct, and that it is not a withdrawal, but it could be something else.

 

 

Let me answer the questions from your post,

 

 

How long did I take the ambien for?  

 

   - I only took it a few times at 5mg, because I could not sleep on some nights after I stopped using the TRAZODONE.

 

 

Is ear ringing (tinnitus) at night, the only symptom you have now? When exactly did the ear ringing start? 

 

   -The tinnitus happens throughout the day, but it stays continuous when I lay on my bed. The ringing started before the medication but the sound was towards the end of my ear, now I only hear it inside my left ear.

 

 

Was it after you took the one pill of zoloft? That night? The next day? After you stopped trazodone?

 

 - It got louder the next day after the ZOLOFT. That day along with the next 6 days, it continued when I started the TRAZODONE and after I quit the        TRAZODONE.

 

 

What was the bad experience that zoloft caused?

 

 

- The night that I took it, I was fine for the first 4 hours, The symptoms I mentioned all started to go away within minutes. I thought I felt normal and cured. I was energetic and up and going  and then it hit me. I started experiencing heart palpitations, sweating, frequent urination, blurry vision, weird thoughts, insomnia, almost every side effect, of which lasted for 2 and a half days. 

 

 

Are you or did you take any other drugs or medications recently?

 

- I did not take any medications beforehand. 

 

 

 

Symptoms I am expericing at the moment.

 

  -Episodes of heat flashes (mornings and night, they last for about 15 seconds or so and then they stop and come back hours later)

  - Ringing in ears (throughout the day, a little more serious at night, but not to the point where I can not take it. It seems to be getting better, but I cant really tell? o_o) (The ZOLOFT brought the sound to "surface")

  - Bloated stomach  (Getting better and still eating 3 meals a day)

  - Light sensitivity (Towards the mornings, it wakes me up, and at night when I am on my computer, it irritates my eyes a little (bright     lights).

  - Arms jerking (Happens every now and then before I go to sleep, its like that twitching feeling, "popping up and down")

  -Eye zaps? (its like the brain zap, but it happens once a couple of days ago, did not really happen a few days after that day. 

  -Light blurry vision (Not as bad as the beginning, but it starts happening at night if I were to stand far away and focus on a object or something,)

  -Body vibrations (Towards night time, its like a light vibration feeling) sort of like a massage thing. lol..

- Shortness of breath (Happens throughout the day, on and off)

 

 

All of these symptoms are very similar to the ones I was experiencing before all of this. 

 

 

I think I might have a magnesium deficiency (most likely), dehydration (most likely), or it could just be anxiety (not quite sure now..).

 

 

I HATE DIAGNOSING MYSELF AND BEING WRONG AT THE END !!

 

 

but...

 

I stopped taking the ZOLOFT because of the side effects I experienced that night. It could of just been the dose of the pill (100mg) I have yet to try any other antidepressant.

 

 

 

I believe all of this started (I could be wrong) to occur due to the alcohol that I was consuming. I was consuming more alcohol than water before the beginning of this year. I was consuming 40oz beers on the daily and some hard liquor every now and then.  It could of depleted a lot of my vitamins and minerals.

 

 

 

I will take another blood test and start to drink more water and see how it goes.

[chris111]

@Altostrata

 

 

I took fish oil a couple of weeks ago and I got a weird reaction and it gave me insomnia, but I'll try it again in a week or two..

 

I also have magnesium glycinate, I took it a few weeks ago as well and I got insomnia from it with some anxiety, just like the fish oil. I will also try it again once the another blood test results come in.

 

 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

I took the ambien for a few days and I just stop taking it. 

 

The 6-8 weeks number came from a number of individuals from different forums.

[Petunia]

Hi Chris,

I'm glad you decided to come back and post. Thank you for filling in some more details of your history. After what you have added I'm fairly certain that your current and previous symptoms aren't withdrawal, they began before you took any medication.

 

If fish oil and magnesium make you feel worse, then don't take them or start with a very small dose. Maybe try one at a time. If taking magnesium helped before and you tested low for it, then maybe start with that at a tiny dose and build up slowly.

 

If you think you may be dehydrated, drink more water and see if that helps.

 

Saying that it might be anxiety is pretty meaningless really. Anxiety is a normal human emotion, not an illness, its a word that describes a set of reactions and sensations. If you are experiencing higher than normal levels of anxiety, something is causing that to happen, you need to find out the cause, not take a drug to suppress the symptom.

 

I think the most important thing is NOT to take any psychiatric medications to try and suppress these symptoms, but find out what might really be causing them. Perhaps try some non-harmful therapies to manage symptoms like acupuncture, reiki, exercise, dietary changes, meditation.

 

This is a support site to help people safely come off medications, and we are not medical professionals, so I can't say for certain what might be causing you to feel the way you are. One thing comes to mind, perhaps this thread might lead you in the right direction:

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/91-kundalini-shamanic-initiatory-illness/

 

Its good that you are getting some tests done, its important to rule out anything medical which may be serious.

 

Do stay in touch and let us know what you find out.

 

Petunia.

[Altostrata]

Petunia said everything that I would have said.