Tinnitus, Serotonin and other thoughts....
 

My tinnitus is out of hand for now, making me crazy. The cicadas are in rare form in my head. Anyways. I was reading about tinnitus and it says that serotonin levels can cause the tinnitus to worsen. It also states that tinnitus is a central nervous problem, which serotonin is a huge part of.

So, my first question, do you think that some of us are just predisposed to have neuropic problems? I have had tinnitus for as long as I can remember. I also remember learning to crochet and my hands always hurting, my mom just said it was because I didn't do it enough. But, was that nerves acting up even then?

In the central nervous system, serotonin is believed to play an important role in the regulation of body temperature, mood, sleep, vomiting, sexuality, and appetite. Low levels of serotonin have been associated with weight disorders, namely clinical depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), migraine, irritable bowel syndrome, tinnitus, fibromyalgia, bipolar disorder, and anxiety disorders.[citation needed] If neurons of the brainstem that make serotonin—serotonergic neurons—are abnormal, there is a risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) in an infant.[1]Reading about serotonin makes more sense out of my life. Of course, having celiac disease, I had a vitamin and mineral deficiency, which I do not think has corrected itself, even after almost 6 years of gluten free. I was taking B complex vitamins, B12, and a multi vitamin and my sister told me I was just wasting the B vitamins, that my body doesn't retain them anyways. Is she right? Should I be taking B6 along with my 2400mcg of B12?

Will I ever figure this all out? I know you have to eat the right combinations of food for a good balance, yet I can't. I have too many intolerance's. So, what do I do? Any ideas?

I feel like I just go in circles. I have neuropathy because of vitamin deficiencies because of celiac's and because of celiac's I can't eat properly so I have vitamin deficiencies which make the neuropathy progress. Circles!!!

I need a :grouphug:

Oh Deb! The tinnitus...?
 

Somehow, after reading years of posts, I'd almost given it AS a 'Given'!..
Yes, when BP is hier [stress, infusions, what eaten, meds...whatever] IT is worse. Somehow, docs seem, to me, to dismiss this s/x as a 'nothing' issue. Like you the 'noise' is constant, ignored and seemingly totally unrelated. I dunno.... it does seem to be one common issue among many of us.

I would NOT give up the vites! Not at all! Since you seem to have a gluten issue [especially], the possibility of/for asorbtion issues especially is always present. IF you take excessive vites, well, some may go 'out w/the trash', but, your odds of 'getting' what you may NEED is far more important that not getting anything at all..

I'm sure Mrs.D or Rose will speak soon, but, a prudent choice of supplements certainly can't HURT your overall health. You just have to be careful in your choices. Example, Vits C and B-12: excess simply goes out...If you provide your body [which may have issues asorbing ONE pill a day] well, giving the body 'opportunities' more often during the day to 'get' that needed stuff, is well, harmless in the long run, and super-helpful in the overall. So, the question remains...are you HURTING or HELPING yourself in which choice you choose? It's your choice. I too go in CIRcLES about which 'what's to take and when...and HOW much. It can turn the brain to MUSH! Hard enuf to try and understand PN! Not to mention the variables? I DO trust Mrs D and Rose to provide the sources for the better, safer options for supplements. I do believe THEY ARE THERE...OR HAVE BEEN THERE...

As for SSRI's...for me, like Neurontin...they are DISASTROUS for me? I count my blessings in some ways...at least, I can take opiods for pain in what I feel are real-beyond real situations. Some folks can't. Geesh! What are the options-if any...then?

Hugs and good thoughts for now - j

NSAIDs (Non Steroidal AntiInflamatory Drugs) such as aspirin, ibuprofen, and naproxen sodium (Aleve) increase my tinnitus.

You can look up the side effects of all the medications you take, including over-the-counter. That way if a weird symptom turns up, like tinnitus, you'll know what caused it and let your doctor know. There are often alternatives without the same side effects. I check drugs at www.rxlist.com .

Grapefruit potentiates some drugs. There's a short article about it in the new National Geographic Magazine. That kind of interaction is included in the rxlist "Side Effects" and "Patient Information" sections.

Thank you both. I did forget to mention that I take Celexa, which is suppose to help with serotonin--maybe I do not take enough. I have had tinnitus most of my life, right now is the worst it has ever been and for so long.

So, about the grapefruit, does that mean I shouldn't eat it?:( I love grapefruit, yet I do not eat a lot of it and it is one of the few fruits I can eat.

Tinnitus
 

has many causes; not all of it originates from the CNS.

One example: cervicogenic tinnitus is caused by dysfunction in neck muscles, which often accompanies stress, bad posture or TMJ.

I also love grapefruit. Most days, I peal and eat a whole one. Grapefruit has the effect of preventing some stomach and intestinal enzymes from breakng down some drugs, especially some of the statin drugs. Taking a statin drug with grapefruit has the effect of greatly increasing the blood level of the affected drug in an unpredictable and possibly dangerous way.

So, look up each drug you take at www.rxlist.com . Check the "Side effects and interactions" section and the "Warnings" sections to see if that drug interacts with grapefruit. I checked all the drugs I take, and none of them interact with grapefruit.

Thanks David, so I am thinking it's ok for me to have my grapefruit. Thanks!

And Steve, cervicogenic tinnitus is caused by dysfunction in neck muscles, which often accompanies stress, bad posture or TMJ.I was thinking about this too. I honestly didn't connect the 2, but I do have a lot of trouble with my neck and shoulders. My doctor told me he thinks the nerves are part of my problem. My shoulder react like a pinched nerve--it all starts on one side, usually my left shoulder, crosses over pass my neck, then into my right shoulder and down in my arm. A friend mentioned TMJ to me the other day because I also clench my teeth, especially in my sleep when I am over stressed, which is often. Some times, I even realize I am clenching my teeth when awake now. And, you know, just life alone is stressful, then you throw in all these aches and pains, celiac's, neuropathy--of course I am overrun with stress!!! I had never heard there was a connection with tinnitus and your neck. Thank you--more research for me to do. Every little bit of info helps.

Darlindeb,

I wrote something on your other post and just saw this one.

I TOTALLY agree with your doctor! The symptoms you are having and describing are exactly what I had with the C5/C6. Again, a cervical MRI is in order. And, I just had that level fused in September. Anyway, look at a dermatome chart of the C5/C6 as well as the C2, C3, and C4. It wouldn't hurt to read up on Cervicogenic headaches and Occipital Neuralgia. Oh, and by the way, my shoulders are aching as I sit here and type and I have SOME pain in my forearms. I have had this checked out; it is all part of the fusion process and I DID irritate a nerve root. So, that just goes to show you all of this can be coming from your neck. It also wouldn't hurt to post on the Spinal Disorders board at the Old Braintalk. There are a slew of us there that have had identical problems.

If your cervical spine is fine, then maybe working on stress, posture, etc. would help. Supplements too.

An Update
 

I was very discouraged the other day when I read someone in the forums say that once you have the constant ringing in your ears, the damage is done and it will never go away. I am hoping that is not true all the time.

As for the shoulder and neck pain, I had my nerve conduction test, which showed no pinched nerves. I was told by the tester that maybe I am suffering from muscle spasms. The person who actually reads the test has not gotten back with me yet--tomorrow I call. When researching muscle spasms, I found that spasms can be caused by a calcium deficiency problem, which is also associated with celiacs, of course. I ordered the calcuim carbonate that Hey Joe mentioned and will start on that soon. Al (aka Aklap) suggested that maybe it's imflamation I am dealing with, so I did start taking Aleve. I have taken it 2 times a day since Tues and it does seem to help. If I miss taking it, the pain comes back with a vengence.

The ringing has not gotten worse, yet has not gotten better either. Anne said that 81mg aspirin has been known to cause ringing too, so I have stopped taking it, just to see if it helps.

Researh, research, research!!!!

I understand your frustrations?
 

It seems to be a common thread among us w/any sort of neuropathy. Kind of like the high arch/foot issue.. I don't know about you, but I've had both these problems to varying degrees LOOONG before I 'found" PN! I think It's just that the meds we take [& their s/e's] and all the other stuff in our lives attune us to this stuff much more than we'd like. I've found that my state of 'ear-ness' varies w/new medical issues and my IVIG treatments [lots more goes into me, than comes out?] Even tho my BP doesn't rise, inside I feel like it has, ergo my ears roar more.
I will leave it to Mrs D and Rose to address the calcium types [I feel a dummy and ALWAYS have to look it up all the time!] and the potassiums, magnesiums and anti-inflammatories...
I hope dearly you sort out what YOU need for YOU! I'm still tinkering w/mine?
Super good thoughts! - j