tinitus, shaking,anxiety,depression & no sleep

hello, are you on any meds, esp. for depression?

Hi I have posted this on behalf of my Dad, who has not slept for 9mths and is in a desperate situation.At the moment he is taking

Carbimazole, Pregabalin, Clonazepam, & Mirtazapine. The mental health team will not give him any sleeping tablets. He just needs to sleep!!

Hi pickledfrank,

It's hard to know what to say. Insomnia is dreadful. I had it for years due to chronic pain and still have the odd night when I can't sleep and sit on our spare bed listening to the world service/reading etc; usually due to terrible pain. I have learned to accept that that night I won't sleep and fill the time in doing gentle things, rather than lay there being all anxious and upset.

One thing I did try and helped a lot was hypnotherapy. I was the biggest sceptic in the world believe me.

My first session (he came to my home) he asked me to tell him the time. It seemed I was dreamy for about 5 minutes. Then he asked me to look at the time, 45 minutes had passed, I was astounded.

He gave me two CD's to play in private to myself every day. This was about 6 years ago now. I can still go to sleep by using the technique he put in my head most nights, just the occasional one when I've been extra busy or am exhausted with pain and emotion.

Obviously you would have to look into a good one specialising in Insomnia. Our health Centre has a lady that is recommended by our gp's and is properly registered.(my chap retired recently).

As said I suffer from Chronic pain and also take several medications. Sometimes these meds cancel each other out. Your gp is right, to add sleeping pills to the ones your Dad is taking is probably not advisable.

It may even be one of them that is contributing to his insomnia. Check out the side effects and have a chat with the gp, pointing them out. It may be a change of meds may solve the problem.

I'm sure you've had all the warm baths and hot milk routine's told to you before. Deep slow breathing though really works, at any time of the day, to calm the brain and the body down. Try it and see.

That's about it. I hope you can help your Dad to find some relief. He's lucky to have you on his side.

Best wishes to you both, Fanny Jane.

hello - i think it may be helpful to check those med combinations at the pharmacist and get them to check for interactions for starters because the shaking and tinnitus sound familiar as an adverse reaction. and don't come off any of the meds without contacting the doctor.

insomnia and depression tend to be linked. I've always felt they feed each other because you replenish serotonin in your sleep and this is what's needed to regulate moods. Check some sleep websites like the american sleep foundation and see if there are extra things you can do, e.g. if you need to get some nasal strips to give your dad clear airways while he sleeps, or if you need to make the room darker or something.

With the tinnitus, in the meantime, at night you could try either turning the radio to almost inaudible, or de-tune it to the sound of white noise. This is recommended to give the brain something else to listen to and many people with tinnitus use it to aid sleep.

I really hope you both get a breakthrough soon.

one more thing following from FJ's experience with hypnotherapy (which sounds brilliant) - my solution is a bit barbaric but works for me - sleep on the floor. I have no idea why this works but it does. I used to think it was because my bed was too high or something but maybe it's just the body's way of resigning the brain long enough to get some sleep.

Thank you for your replies.

My Dad tried 1 session of hypnotherapy, but felt it wasn`t right for him.

I have just found out that he is due to have ECT on Tuesday. The mental Health team say that in a minority amount of people suffer memory loss or headaches. However, I have read some shocking information about brain-damage and most suffer memory loss - it has made me feel really sick and I don`t know what to do. Has anybody had ECT?

Hi pickledfrank, hypnotherapy is just a suggestion and certainly not for everyone.

So sorry about your Dad and the ECT.

My best friend had quite a lot of ECT in the early seventies for severe post natal depression. I remember visiting her in hospital very clearly, both she and her baby were hospitalised for about 3 months.

Along with the ECT she had psyciatric (not sure spelling here) help and medication for about a year.I'm pretty sure she had headaches after her sessions but I did not visit on days she was receiving it. She was always headche free on non ECT days.

She recovered completely and has never had any memory problems, other than not remembering being in the room having the ECT.

She is now 63 and retired from a very responsible job, that she did for nearly 30 years.

She always says quite openly that ECT changed her life for the better and has spoken in local mental health units to other people undergoing it.

Sometimes I think when everything else has been tried it's all that's left and can be very effective.

It may be possible if you ask the unit where he will be treated, if there is someone he could talk to about a positive result. Of course there are also not so positive reactions I'm sure.

If he goes ahead then gather as much information about it all and the hospital it will be done in.

I can only wish you and your Dad well in your quest for relief from the awful situation you find yourself in.

Best wishes to you both, Fanny Jane.

Hi. I agree there should be a meds review, Relaxation tapes can be very helpful. I have just been given a leaflet re Tinnitus from my GP and playing a radio or stereo is suggested.

British Tinnitus Association-- www.tinnitus.org.uk

I had two courses back in the 70s and I think today's treatments are much better

Take care

Hi Pickledfrank, I have only just seen the message that you left about your Dad on 6th September 2012 titled "Tinnitus". I personally also suffer from what I believe is severe Tinnitus like a Dentist's drill going through my head. A friend of mine saw an article in the Daily Mail newspaper a couple of years ago on the use of MELATONIN 3Mg Capsules being used for for Jetlag sufferers and it was noted that it had a great side affect helping Tinnitus sufferers to ACTUALLY GET SOME SLEEP! My friend gave me the ariticle and I showed my G.P., who immediately prescribed it for me. It was amazing and it really did and still does help me to get some sleep on a REGULAR basis! I had been spinally injured, breaking my neck and fracturing my spine. The Tinnitus came on me a couple of months after undergoing surgery to repair my neck with Titanium bolts 20 years after my accident. I hadn't had a proper night's sleep since 6th December 2004 until taking the MELATONIN 3Mg Capsules in early 2011. The Tinnitus had made me totally depressed and I had considered suicide. A combination of the MELATONIN 3MG capsules and the AUDIOLOGY DEPARTMENT in our local hospital group at Kent and Canterbury Hospital who introduced TINNITUS COUNSELLING - HAVE SAVED MY LIFE! When the TINNITUS is really bad - I use the local PRE-RECORDED SOUND SYNTHESIZER BOX that they kindly gave me. My wife and I use it to help us go off to sleep LISTENING TO THE SOUNDS OF THE BIRDS etc. RUNNING WATER (makes me want to go to the loo). Ask your Dad's G.P. for a months supply of MELATONING 3MG CAPSULES and AN APPOINTMENT TO SEE A TINNITUS COUNSELLOR FROM THE LOCAL HOSPITAL'S AUDIOLOGY DEPARTMENT. I can honestly say that until I got help - I was about to hang myself as I was going completely out of my mind.

Please go with your Dad ASAP to see his G.P. Believe me, there is nothing worse than SEVERE TINNITUS STOPPING OUR SLEEP AS IT WILL CAUSE SEVERE DEPRESSION AND WILL PROVE FATAL IF NOT MANAGED PROPERLY!

I would also like to add that I am using DIGITAL HEARING AIDS WHICH I EVEN WEAR IN BED AT NIGHT WHICH PREVENT ME EVER HEARING THE TINNITUS BREAKING THROUGH!

Thank you very much for your reply.

I gave my dad melatonin to try in Jan 2013. My daughter is Asperger`s and takes it every night. Unfortunatelty it did not work for him His tinnitus has become a secondary problem, as the stress and anxiety have

completely taken control of him. He has just come out of the mental wing of hospital - as he is now

continually banging on the walls. He is taking so much medication - I personally believe none of it ishelping and he needs to be weaned off it. He just does not want to go on - and as a family we seem

helpless.

Picklefrank -

FURTHER TO YOUR DAD'S TINNITUS !

Perhaps you can ask your Dad's G.P. if he can try your Dad on the following for at least ONE MONTH;

300Mg PREGABALIN daily - This is used for NERVE PAIN as well as for DEPRESSION.

40Mg DULOXITINE (CYMBALTA) DAILY - This too is used for NERVE PAIN and for DEPRESSION. The Duloxitine can be increased gradually to prevent any adverse side effects.

3mg MELATONIN - This is a BRAIN HORMONE STIMULATOR and REGULATOR. THE BRAIN NEEDS THIS AND YOU WILL NOT REGRET TRIALLING IT FOR AT LEAST A MONTH!

Don't give up on the MELATONIN as it takes a while to produce the balancing chemical hormones that the BRAIN NEEDS ...!

If your Dad's G.P. can place your Dad on the above - I am sure that you will see an improvement in your Dad's WELL BEING and that he will get some NATURAL SLEEP within just a few days.

Some of the Psychoticl Drugs that are given actually dry out the brain in order to prevent excesses of electrical stimulation within the brain. This is a bit like reducing the amount of electrolite in a car battery!

I am on the drugs that I have listed above - leaving me assured that they are having a cause and effect upon my TINNITUS as well as to correct the NERVE PAIN that I suffer due to the length of time that I have been in pain from my SPINAL INJURIES.

PLEASE NOTE:

The same drugs are given to people who suffer from FIBROMYALGIA which produces SERIOUS NERVE PAIN AND TINNITUS.

ALSO ASK YOUR DAD'S G.P. if he can request a FULL AUDIOLOGICAL EXAMINATION by the AUDIOLOGY DEPARTMENT at your local hospital. When you visit them with your Dad ask that he be seen by a TRAINED TINNITUS COUNSELLOR and that he is given a ......

NATURCARE RELAXATION (PURE-TONE) MODEL WE-686

this will give him a timer that he can set for a limited time selection of 7 sound settings to include;

HEART-BEAT, SEA WAVES, BROOK, BIRDS, WOODS, WHITE NOISE, RAIN.

The unit is the size of a small bedside clock with a volume control for him to set. My wife and I put it on when my Tinnitus is exceptionally bad. At first I used to switch it on every night. We are able to fall asleep within the maximum 30 minutes - and we then awake whn our morning alarm goes off on our mobile phones.

Please don't give up on your Dad - if you can get your Dad's G.P. to put himon the above list of medication - I am sure that you will see a smile upon your Dad's face once again - when he wakes for the first time from a really good night's sleep !

Best wishes to you, your Dad and ALL those this has helped . . . . . . . .

hiya frank,

i take it the ECT didnt have any lasting benefits then, my mother had loads of sessions in the 70s and quite frankly they didnt do her any lasting good whatsoever (she commited suicide eventually), im not a doctor but have had mental health issues all my adult life (im 65 years old) mainly episodes of severe depression, theres a big genetic element to it, depression runs in the family, ive found that most psychiatrists mean well but are blinkered and once 'in the mental health system' all the patients health problems are put down to mental health issues, everything is 'all in the mind'.

im just about out of a very nasty bout of depression that has lasted more than 3 years i believe the only reason i have recovered is because i moved and changed my doctor just over a year ago and stopped seeing my psychiatrist and kicked the psychotropic drugs into touch, my new doctor has gone the extra mile and had me tested for all kinds of physical ailments, guess what, after all the investigations she has found i have blood problems and arthritis/auto immune problems which have explained my 'imaginary' aches, pains, dizziness, brain fog, tinnitus and other symptoms

sorry about the biography lol but seriously, find yourself a new decent physical doctor (GP) theres no way your dad needs to suffer like this, the poor man is living in a real life nightmare 24/7, i know, ive been there.

keep posting frank, keep us updated

Dear pickledfranj and all you people out there who arrive here for the same reasons: you're scared, you can't sleep, or you can't eat, you're thinking bad stuff. Let me tell you few important things you should focus on:

1- you are not alone! So so so many of us feel the same way.

2- I know it's impossible to imagine but it's true: IT WILL BE BETTER, keep hope!

3- medication and therapy Will Help you, especially if you're like this since more than a month or two.

I know these things from my experience and that of my family. I'm not a professional, I'm just an architect and I am a strong person. But when depression happened, I was so lost and helpless and freaking out. If it weren't for my aunt who's a pharmacist who encouraged me to listen to my doctor and take anti-depression pills (I took cipralex), I don't know what would have happened to me. And I'm seen how much therapy and medicine helped me. Also I discovered it ran in my family. Both my aunts had it, my dad too, my mom too even though she doesn't admit it. I only found out when I got depressed. So PLEASE seek help, it's not bad to go talk to a psychologist who will tell you if you need a psychiatrist or if therapy will be enough. And don't loose hope! I was so stuck when I was depressed, I thought nothing good will happen. But since then, I've had wonderful experiences and I was able to share precious moments with lovely people on this planet. But I needed a bit of help first, a small push to get back on track. You can it, I'm very sure of it, just believe. Just believe and seek help.