Severe Ear Pain With No Underlying Issue or Infection
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I've had severe deep ear pain in my right ear for nearly one year. It started in August 2020, right after I switched SSRI medications (from Celexa to Lexapro). I thought it was swimmer's ear, but my primary care physician couldn't see any sort of infection. He referred me to an ENT who did all the usual tests. He confirmed I do not have tinnitus, my pressure is normal, he didn't think I had TMJ, etc. He ordered a brain MRI which came back normal. He then referred me to a spine doctor who also ordered an MRI. It did come back that I had a herniated disc at C-5 so he performed an epidural steroid injection thinking this may help ease the pain in my ear. I didn't get any relief from the procedure. He then sent me to physical therapy for my neck, but it wasn't helping at all and was extremely expensive so I stopped going. I still do the exercises on my own at home, but they really don't seem to help my ear.
I noticed when I went on a short vacation recently and I wasn't working or stressed about work, the pain completely stopped. It went away for about 3 weeks and now it's back and as bad as ever. Nothing seems to help. I ordered a new desk for my home office thinking maybe bad ergonomics is to blame, but this hasn't helped yet. I do notice I clench my jaw at night, but I've done this for as long as I can remember. My jaw tension during the day has been getting worse though. A friend recommended a mouth guard and botox in my jaw, but my ENT didn't think the culprit was TMJ, and I've never heard of TMJ causing such bad and long-lasting ear pain.
It's continually getting worse now and it's even started radiating down the right side of my throat. Has anyone had severe ear pain without any obvious underlying cause? It's really starting to affect my quality of life and I'm concerned I'm going to be in chronic pain forever. I get temporary relief when I really distract myself (exercising, socializing, etc.), but this is only temporary. Could Lexapro be to blame? Help!
0 likes, 2 replies
Marina_Dee emily81517
Edited
Would your physician change your Lexapro back to Celexa? if your symptoms disappear you can then be sure its the change of drug. If there was a reason you couldnt continue on Celexa perhaps another medication would be more suitable. Often the first thought about a diagnosis can be the correct one, and you may have hit upon it straight away.
emily81517 Marina_Dee
Posted
Absolutely. I'm going to reach out to see if he can switch me back. There really wasn't any reason for the switch in the first place. He just thought it might be beneficial to try out a new medication.
Thank you for the reply!