☼ shawny: off amitriptyline 10mg - need advice

[shawny]

Tanks guys ❤️

I thought IL goto ent as it more pronounced in the right than left so I think it’s kinda normal ! 

 

[shawny]

@ChessieCat : I saw that u also had tinnitus ?

how are you now ?

has it got better over time and faded away ?

[Rosetta]

HI Shawny,

 

I'm answering your pm here.  I rarely have tinnitus now, and when I do, it goes away within an hour or less.  

 

From reading your thread, I think that anxiety is a serious issue for you, and you are focusing your anxiety on tinnitus and snowy vision.  That's normal with anxiety -- to focus on something more concrete as a way of trying to cope.  You are trying to feel that you are in control.  By searching for an answer to how long the tinnitus will last you feel as if you are doing something instead of being passive.  That's normal human behavior, and it works well for us most of the time.  For illnesses that are longer term that strategy may not work so well.

 

Think of it this way: if you have a bad cold you know you have to wait for it to run its course.  You know you have no choice.  You can breathe steaming water or take a hot shower and blow your nose, but you know you will wake up congested in the morning.  You don't panic or ruminate because you have experienced this all before.  It will go when it goes, and all you can do is take steps to ease the misery.  You don't even worry about the fact that when its gone you will most definitely have another cold sometime in life.  The fact is that you know what to expect and you know it will all be fine.

 

Four months after taking an AD, you are still getting used to this longer term illness.  As time goes on you will learn what to expect and that everything is going to be fine.  Its been two years since I quit sertraline.  It's very frustrating to have anxiety.  It's my worst symptom.  Sometimes I cope better than other times and sometimes anxiety is more severe than other times.  When I have my period it's worse.  Two weeks after my period it's worse again.  Maybe you are seeing the same cycle.  The good news is that it gets better for me all the time just as it will for you.

 

Chessiecat talks about waiting in line.  She says you can be upset and angry that the line moves so slowly or you can distract yourself with pleasant thoughts.  The same amount of time will pass either way, but you can decide whether you will be miserable or not.  It seems so simple doesn't it?  It is simple, but not easy.  It takes practice to turn your thoughts to pleasant things and away from focusing on tinnitus or snow.  It takes practice to take control of anxiety instead of letting anxiety control you.  You will not succeed every time or for a long period of time at first.  But you will get better and better until your period arrives, and then it will be harder for a few days.  However, that challenge will pass, too.

 

Everyone heals.  No one can tell you when you will be finished healing, but I can tell you that as time passes your symptoms will become less severe and less frequent.  You will get to a point when you are still "in WD," but you won't worry that you will never heal.  You will have really good days followed by worse days until all your days are very managable.

 

Every so often you may notice the symptoms are worse, and that will be scary, but you have to remember that this is not like a cold turning into pneumonia.  The fact that symptoms get worse means nothing for long term recovery.  Recovery will happen anyway.  Symptoms get worse because a part of the system of neurotransmitters has been repaired, and the body is out of balance for a period of time.  Chessiecat gave you the building being repaired analogy.  The elevator starts to work, but it can't stop at every floor.  So, we ride the elevator to the 63rd floor and then have to take the stairs to our offices on the 61st floor.  Tomorrow, we might have to walk all the way up to the 40th floor to get on the elevator.  That seems like a huge set back, but the workers are not stopping their work.  Eventually, everything will be in order, and the elevator will stop on every floor again.

 

Learning how to cope with WD takes time, learning to ignore anxiety takes time, figuring out which distractions work for each of us takes time.  These are the activities that are worth your while.  Worrying about how long this will last isn't going to help you much, but you will do it anyway, and that's ok for a little while.  Letting that worry carry you off is a mistake.  Start to practice interrupting the worry, re-focusing your attention elsewhere, and re-directing your mind to something more pleasant.  The more you practice this the better you will get.

 

What can you do in the meantime?  Can you read? Can you learn to play an instrument?  Play video games? Can you cook?  

 

Whatever you do make sure you go for a walk everyday.  Gentle exercise is very good for anxiety.   

 

All the best, Rosetta

 

 

 

 

 

[shawny]

@Rosetta :

 

1. I was on it for a month ( 10 mg ) 

2. the place i stay it's a taboo to speak about antidepressants

3. I totally get it that i do have issues with asking ppl abt Tinnitus and ect , as i don't think there is a white or black here , there is grey area also , I have seen or heard a lot o ppl whose T has been there and those whose T has gone away , so im getting assurance here  its my only hope.

4. I was not aware it was an antidepressants until i was 2 weeks into it.

5. Three are a lot of issues which i have been through when im withdrawing .

 

 

I did write or ask ppl coz i feel i was feeble and I don't know what more to do , 

 

i have never had an ailment in my life before and this took me out of bounce , 

 

I totally understand all of ul are trying to assure me that its gonna be fine , but u know as the brain plays tricks , im busy most of times so , working but this somethimes scares me so i had no other places to went than here 

 

 

i WILL BE PATIENT AND I NEED TO BE PATIENT ❤️ 

[willowboy]

@shawny  have you found cases of people recovering from visual snow? Just curious. Btw I used to hear tinnitus all the time and now I only hear it when I am in a completely silent room.

[shawny]

@willowboy : 

ME ! 

ME ! 

 

I dont see it anymore not not not I used to see it way before , give it some time it usually gets better ,  

 

T also I heard from lot o ppl it will go so we need to give it some time 

[Miracle123]

Hi Shawny,

 

Great attitude is a key for you to keep going in your healing road. Always keep patience and acceptance and listening to your body reactions. Time will proof it. Take care and hugs.🤗

 

 

 

[shawny]

@Altostrata

@ChessieCat

@Shep

@Gracee

@WiggleIt

 

 

Went to the ENT today , he checked my ears and told me there is hard WAX in it and he said it can be cause of the Tinnitus , he s given me some drops which need to be used for 10 days ( 3times ) and Hydrogen Peroxide.

 

He said he will remove it through syringing.

 

do you think I should go ahead with this ?

 

I thought T is more of Withdrawal , now he says its due to Wax , he tried taking out some but its very hard so it didn't come

 

let me know you thoughts on this

 

 

[Gracee]

3 hours ago, shawny said:

@Altostrata

@ChessieCat

@Shep

@Gracee

@WiggleIt

 

 

 

I thought T is more of Withdrawal , now he says its due to Wax , he tried taking out some but its very hard so it didn't come

 

let me know you thoughts on this

 

 

 

Hi @shawny,   I think if a medical professional I trusted told me I had hard wax in my ears, I'd believe him.   I'd take the drops and go through with the syringing.   Something to ponder though:  1) Did you have ear problems before you began WD?   

[Gracee]

Shawny,  When you accept that tinnitus is nothing to be afraid of, it won't bother you so much.   In fact, I know that you will stop noticing it.   

 

First:   Stop fearing tinnitus.  It is nothing to be afraid of.

Second:  Accept it.

Third:  Distract yourself with activities.

 

 

 

[Altostrata]

Yes, clean out your ears.

[shawny]

@Gracee I know I had wax but not ear problem, as ppl mention here , WD jus got it to surface I don’t know . 

 

I was scared off off using the drops for removal of wax but think IL go ahead n do it now .

 

spoke to 2 more docs there is a possibility that T might be due to ear wax , and since cleaning your ear is good IL go ahead .

 

my T was fading but came to surface again due to T , had been to wedding with Loud music , it’s been spiked since then ,

thats why I chose to goto doc , he examined it and told me I have head wax n that’s the reason for T .

 

 

now may be I feel WD T is also there and ear wax T is also there , may be if I remove the wax , T which will be remaining is only the WD T ( the initial T during WD ) was way way less than what I have now .

 

so I’m thinkin IL go ahead and get the syiring done .

 

HOPE It works out fine 

[WantoffVen]

Shawny if you google "can ear wax cause tinnitus?" the answer is yes. So whether withdrawal is causing the tinnitus or ear wax at least you can remove the ear wax and eliminate that reason. I used to have a lot of ear wax problems. I think you will notice a big difference when that wax comes out. I'm surprised you haven't been able to feel it. But by all mean use the ear drops and hydrogen peroxide and get those ears cleaned out.

 

[shawny]

Thanks Guys ❤️ 

 

Hopefully it will be able to solve the problem , thanks a lot ! 

[Sunnyday]

Hi @shawny, how does the tinnitus feel now? Did you try cleaning out? 

[shawny]

Hi @Sunnyday

 

no I didn’t reason bein 

 

 

1. My sound is more on the inside like head noise 

2. If it was the ear wax it would b more on outside 

3. Tinnitus happened jus when 2 weeks after the drug was stopped

4. I weighed my options i taut my System is tooo fragile now n cleanin up nt ears might cause some other damage ,

5. IL wait for my rest o symptoms to morph n then have a look at tinnitus 

 

[Sunnyday]

1 hour ago, shawny said:

Hi @Sunnyday

 

no I didn’t reason bein 

 

 

1. My sound is more on the inside like head noise 

2. If it was the ear wax it would b more on outside 

3. Tinnitus happened jus when 2 weeks after the drug was stopped

4. I weighed my options i taut my System is tooo fragile now n cleanin up nt ears might cause some other damage ,

5. IL wait for my rest o symptoms to morph n then have a look at tinnitus 

 

 

I understand, you know what's best for you. Hopefully it will pass soon then. If not I have a relative who suffers from tinnitus and the usual treatment where I live seems to be cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), to my surprise. It could be worth looking up maybe if the problem continues. I don't know how successful that treatment is for tinnitus but it should be pretty effective for other problems.

 

Good luck and take care.

[shawny]

Tanx a lot 😀

will keep u posted , thanks for being helpful ❤️

[rupa]

On 8 March 2019 at 8:46 PM, shawny said:

@Altostrata

@ChessieCat

@Shep

@Gracee

@WiggleIt

 

 

Went to the ENT today , he checked my ears and told me there is hard WAX in it and he said it can be cause of the Tinnitus , he s given me some drops which need to be used for 10 days ( 3times ) and Hydrogen Peroxide.

 

He said he will remove it through syringing.

 

do you think I should go ahead with this ?

 

I thought T is more of Withdrawal , now he says its due to Wax , he tried taking out some but its very hard so it didn't come

 

let me know you thoughts on this

 

 

I had this experience of clearing my both ears in the year 1994.

That was a smooth process,.First they soften the wax with drops and  we do not even know , how the doctor removed it.

[shawny]

@Altostrata

@ChessieCat

@Shep

 

@WiggleIt

 

 

Can i take 2 spoons of Apple Cider Vinegar ( 3 times a day ) for  energy ?

 

 

Thanks

Shawny

[Altostrata]

I would clean out your ears. Tinnitus is always an inside noise.

 

I don't know what apple cider vinegar might do for you. I'd try a little bit at first and see if you like it.

 

This site's focus is on tapering psychiatric drugs, we don't provide general medical advice.

[Gracee]

Hi @shawny,  Today I had a busy, busy day.  Early a.m. doctor appointment followed by errands.   Then had to drive a neighbor to doctor appointment that lasted until late afternoon.    When I finally got home,  walked into my house noticed I had Tinnitus.   Funny thing, I wan't aware of it all day until then.

@Gracee

[shawny]

thanks @Gracee

 

YOU GIVE ME HOPE ❤️

 

[shawny]

@Altostrata : I Will consider that option , Im just scared , people have reported their ringin got worse post removing the ear wax so Im scared cause of that 

[Altostrata]

I would ask your doctor to very gently remove the ear wax. Again, we don't provide general medical advice here, you have to use your common sense.

[BfromNJ]

My daughter had the syringe done for ear way.  I would just be cautious about them putting water in your ear.  There are other ways they can remove it .  After my daughter had it done, she couldn't hear out of the ear and still cannot.  My mother always has them just pull the wax out gently with this little tool they have.  Maybe you can ask about that.

[shawny]

@BfromNJ : Thanks guys 

 

@Altostrata

@ChessieCat

@Shep

@Gracee

@Santino

@ten0275

@Leo1983

@mirage

@Matisse

@WiggleIt

 

THANKS TO ALL U GUYS IM STILL MOVING ALONG ❤️

 

Cold Turkey ( used it for 1 month , 10mg Amitriptyline  on Sept 28 TO  Nov 10th ,  April 12 th 2019 )  , ***************5th Month ********************DOING 20 % Better with the below symtoms ❤️

 

I have removed the wax and my hearing has been amplified  so good on that 

 

Now the T on the left is 0.5/10 and on the right 2 or 3 /10 , I can't hear it in noisy places but when its quiet and even when it's quiet i can manage , so it's been low , and I can't hear it much until i give it a thought !  , I don't know if its gonna come back tomorrow but for now 5 days after WAX , this is the situation.

 

Is it fading may be it is  ,  i'm not sure but tolerable  !! 

 

Thanks guys for ur help .

 

Now Symptoms I am left with 

 

*************************************************************************** 😬*************************************************************************************************

1. Tinnitus ( reduced ) 😬

2. Afterimages ( more ) 😰

3. Floaters ( I have never had them when i was on the drug , is this withdrawal ? )  ( more ) : Can someone answer this for me 😰

4. Grainy vision has subsided , may be not like before , but its still there very little ( reduced , varies ) 😬

5. When i turn to my left , I see flash of light and shadows (sometimes ) ( not sure again ) got my retina examined it looks fine and doctor says its fine ( new symptom) 😰

 

*************************************************************************** ❤️ *************************************************************************************************

Can u see darkness ( hypothetically u cant ::) cause of the grainy vision i Could not see darkness , now I can see see pitch black ( Yea h !!! )  ❤️ 

6. Anxiety gone  ❤️ 

7. Dizziness gone  ❤️ 

8. Eye /Muscle Pain Gone ❤️ 

 

*************************************************************************** ❤️ *************************************************************************************************

 

THIS IS an update when I stopped my drug  ,  I still do keep thinking why me , and feel low and have crying spells but everyday passes , some symptoms ramp up some reduces , but WITHDRAWAL IS A PHASE , I TELL MY SELF DAT 

[Santino]

1 hour ago, shawny said:

 

 

THIS IS an update when I stopped my drug  ,  I still do keep thinking why me , and feel low and have crying spells but everyday passes , some symptoms ramp up some reduces , but WITHDRAWAL IS A PHASE , I TELL MY SELF DAT 

Now that is a good news shawny.... you are on the right track. Just keep on telling dat to yourself time and time again... 🙂

All the best 

Santino

[composter]

Hi Shawny, I was also on 10 mg Amitriptyline for headaches for just a few months before I tapered (too quickly) and ended up in severe withdrawal. I don't see too many ppl on here who were on this drug but unfortunately many of us were started on it for "off-label" uses like headaches and muscle aches...But it still works the same way as any other AD. 

 

In my case, I reinstated and it took me about 8 months to stabilize. Looks like you did a CT and chose not to reinstate? Good to hear of the progress you are making in recovery from withdrawal. Do you go through windows and waves?

[shawny]

@composter hi 👋 

 

im nt sure about cold turkey as I took it for a month  but I know it falls into same category  

 

i dudnt know it was an AD until I took it for a week my bad  

 

my progress has been almost only WAVES , and it has been mentioned tat for ppl who took it for a short time it’s linear  so I think I fall into that category I don’t want to reinstate n none o the mods asked me to also I was there for a short time  

 

 

i might taje take a year to get better o ever less some symptoms have gone o reduced n some have come up which means my nervous system is still struggling so yea I rather chose to wait then take up more AD 

[composter]

I'm sorry it's been such a rough experience for you. Unfortunately one month is still long enough for the brain to develop the physical dependency. But don't blame yourself. We all did what we thought would be good bc we trusted our doctors and had no reason to question them. 

 

You have a good perspective. Patience and time will be key. I'm sure you will feel better within a year. Yes you don't have to reinstate if you don't want to. In my case it helped so much to bring me out of the deep hole I was in. But it will take me 1-2 years to fully taper. I'm personally fine with that.

 

Wishing you all the best! Hope you find lots of pleasant windows come your way.

[shawny]

@LexAnger : tried to ping u not able to send it across , can u let me know if ur floaters went away ?

i developed floaters in withdrawal  

[shawny]

@Altostrata

@Shep

@WiggleIt

@ChessieCat

 

Hi Guys , 

 

I have been eating carrots , garlic( antioxidant)  and flax seeds ( omega 3 ) since a week  , empty stomach .

 

I'm not sure if its due to this , but I feel my stomach is bloated and i feel dizzy and nauseous , is this withdrawal or due to the above foods , i'm not sure 

 

Tinnitus remains the same , may be a lil higher but manageable 

floaters look like they are getting better ( 10% ) 

afterimages also little better ( 10% ) 

 

 

thanks Guys ❤️ 

 

 

 

[shawny]

@Altostrata

@Shep

@WiggleIt

@ChessieCat

 

 

BUMP

[WiggleIt]

On 4/23/2019 at 8:16 AM, shawny said:

 

 

 

 

Hi Guys , 

 

I have been eating carrots , garlic( antioxidant)  and flax seeds ( omega 3 ) since a week  , empty stomach .

 

 

 

Garlic and flaxseed both cause EXTREME bloating, gas, and tummy cramps, even for people who are not in WD!  Are you eating these on an empty stomach?  If so, then that will make things worse with those foods.

Can you try reducing the flax and garlic, and adding some foods with more bulk and healthy fats?  Do you eat avocado, bananas, salmon, chicken, or eggs?
  

[shawny]

I started takin it everyday empty stomach now tats screwed me up  

 

i feel dizzy and very wozzy  

n nauseous  

 

i do eat chicken and egg