Ringing in Ears--anyone, anyone?

[Hopeful]

Krista,

I developed ringing in the ears (tinnitus) about a month after I had started Femara and following my third every-three-week Herceptin infusion. It is hard to say, for me, which is the culprit, but I have always believed it to be the Femara because the ears have ER receptors and there were anecdotal cases of people taking birth control pills who temporarily lost their hearing or had other hearing problems that stopped when the pills stopped. I actually got the drug manufacturer of Femara to write up my symptom as part of their after market study for the drug. I went on Arimidex for a while, and the intensity lessened, but I could not tolerate the arthalgia, so I went back on Femara. I completed my year of Herceptin last July.

At the moment, it seems to get better and worse from day to day or time of day to time of day, with no rhyme or reason I can discern. It is not so bad as when it first appeared; I don't know if my overall hearing is getting worse or the symptom is improving. I have been using Estrace in small amounts for VA since last July, so maybe that is having some effect.

Anyway, there has been nothing I have found that makes it improve - it just goes as it goes. Someone from the board sent me a link last week to a study of Cialis for tinnitus in men. I am not sure anyone knows what truly causes it - it is something that apparently happens in the brain and not in the ears. It can be caused by hypertension, so, if you have not had your blood pressure checked, you can do that. Otherwise, I am as interested in treatments as you are. I find it is loudest when there is absolute silence in the room. Have you tried sleeping with one of those "white noise" machines? I tend to set the timer on the tv, and doze off to that.

Best of luck to us both,

Hopeful

[Terri B]

I haven't been diagnosed with anything like that, but I know that I cannot sleep without the "drone" of my box fan. It has been like that for years and years. I cannot sleep in a quiet room as it sounds like a choir of voices singing to me. UGH!!!

You should get a fan and let it hum you to sleep.

[StephN]

Make an appointment with a good AUDIOLOGIST. Even my daughter had a problem with this and they did an adjustment (something to do with crystals in the inner ear) and she no longer has this.

Good luck. I have the "tones" myself at times. Especially when my head is plugged up due to allergies. I will wake up in the middle of the night thinking that someone is mowing their lawn a couple of yards away!