Tinnitus and zaps in my head

I have very loud Tinnitus in my left ear which sounds like a waterfall,it has got worse over the last year but I,m worried more about the short circuit sounds I have been getting for about 6 months in the left of my head. I read it is withdrawal from antidepressants , I don,t take them! Does anybody experience this? I will see a doctor eventually, none of my GPS have appointments it’s by telephone which I,m not happy about. I,ve looked them up on dr google and they say it’s withdrawal from antidepressants,I take bisoprolol twice a day for ectopics and SVT.

[Happyrosie]

Personally I’ve not heard of tinnitus being caused by withdrawal from any medication. Problem is, tinnitus comes just as it wants to and doesn’t necessarily have a cause. And we all experience it in different ways.If you see your GP, they are supposed to follow pathways suggested by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) - there’s no “cure” for tinnitus as such but ways to deal with it, and it might just fade away so you don’t notice it.

[Hidden in reply to Happyrosie]

I,ve had tinnitus for 40 years and have been told it’s not curable so I lived with it,it has got louder with time. I,m more concerned about the zaps like an electric short circuit in the left side of my head, it’s not there all the time but it is when I wake up in the morning and sometimes in the day. My tinnitus was low level for years until the last couple of years it is above the television noise now. Thanks for your reply.

[Barbiebabbs in reply to Happyrosie]

Abide sleep not bad lol

[doglover1973]

Hi Hidden I get zaps - as you call them - usually in bed at night in my deaf ear. I've not told anyone because I couldn't think how to describe them but zaps is a good word . I don't take any meds so no idea what causes them. It doesn't happen every night and it doesn't trouble me .

[Hidden in reply to doglover1973]

I needed reassurance because I was worried it could be a sign of a stroke which is prevalent in my family. I,ve been trawling google to try to figure out what is going on. Actually my hearing is good, at least I think it is but we are never aware of it ourselves. Thakyou dog lover

[doglover1973 in reply to Hidden]

Ah I see. I'm guessing it's just electrical activity in the brain . A sort of variation of the tinnitus. It might be worth having a hearing test if your T has got louder. Just a thought 🙂

[rabbits65 in reply to doglover1973]

My tinnitus is like electrical activity in my brain . I used to worry but realise what will be , will be. !!!! ( mentioning it as you described electrical activity). I hope you are well, do you hope to get another dog? 😊

[doglover1973 in reply to rabbits65]

Hi Penny. T is a mystery isn't it .. Why some people hear it and others don't . No I 've no plans to get another one at the moment. I'm not well enough to take care of a bouncy puppy . Maybe one day 🙂

[rabbits65 in reply to doglover1973]

I understand about puppies , I know they can be hard work . I’ve always felt though that they are an enjoyable work, therefore I don’t see it as “ work”. . There are some beautiful older dogs looking for homes which I know you know all about. I’m sorry to go on about it. Have a nice day and I hope you feel better very soon take care , love from me . Penny

[rabbits65]

Delnoleen that is a very long time to have had tinnitus. 40 years . My goodness. You can tell us all a thing or two about the subject !!!!

[Hidden in reply to rabbits65]

I had Bell’s palsy up the left side of my face in my 30s after that I had low tinnitus for years, when I was in my 50s I woke up one morning and felt something was dragging me to the left and I was so dizzy I couldn,t stand up,that might have been labyrinthitus.The tinnitus was always there but only when I listened for it, now it’s so loud at night I can hear a low tinkling in my right ear too. It does make me a bit low but I get going with my chores and can ignore it. I change my mind from one day to the next about seeing my GP, I know that nothing much can be done to make it go away .I,m coming up to 75and am independant and active so far,I can,t complain really!

[rabbits65 in reply to Hidden]

Thank you for replying with your story . It’s absolutely amazing the amount of things we can virtually get used to and put up with. We must have nerves of steel. You certainly have !!!!

[Beesmac]

Hello - I too get the “zaps” you are talking about, usually when I am in bed propped up reading before dropping off. Happen very loud and fast and make me jump sometimes. Please get your ears tested as I swore blind that my ears were ok for years when in fact I had moderate hearing loss. This was about 20 years ago. I had tinnitus also but it didn’t bother me until just over a year ago when I developed musical tinnitus due to Labyrinthitis. I also get noises like ‘morse code’ and the noise you hear when abroad in a hot country during the evening when the cicadas are out. I know it’s dreadful not being able to see a doctor but if your GP practice supports ‘LIVI’ which is an online GP service affiliated to the NHS it is worth getting in touch as they are very helpful will respond quickly and doesn’t cost you anything. This may put your mind at rest.

[Hidden in reply to Beesmac]

Thankyou Beesmac, you probably explain it the same as what I experience.

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

I,ve had the exploding head syndrome a few times which has woken me up, I,ve also heard the phone and doorbell ring and somebody calling my name. It’s a wonder my brain is functioning!

[TinnitusUKPat Partner]

To add to the discussion, this phenomenon is sometimes described as 'Exploding Head Syndrome'. The blog Healthline has a good explanation of symptoms and explains that, although disconcerting, it isn't a sign of a serious illness - healthline.com/health/explo...

[Veecat in reply to TinnitusUKPat]

Hi BTAP, Delnoleen and everyone trying to help with this post. I really appreciate you, BTAP, mentioning "Exploding Head Syndrome". I saw the first line of the post from you Delnoleen about an hour ago and just immediately thought of EHS, which I have. I tend to skim read posts on Health Unlocked (Tinnitus) every day, as updates come through on my email. This is the first time, personally, that I have seen any post about EHS, though I may have missed it! I have been thinking of mentioning it to people, yet have never got round to it. Head "zaps" is a good way of describing it. I had Tinnitus and EHS come on around the same time in late 2018/early 2019, in that order and after a long period of stress and anxiety. I was, tbh, terrified when I got the first "zap" - I feared it was the onset of a stroke, or epilepsy, or another brain problem. I googled the symptoms and came upon a Psychologist who has specialised in the study and ways to help EHS. He is an American academic and therapist called Brian Sharpless. He is quoted in the source references for the Healthline info BTAP shared just now. His work and other sources gave me a name for it and reduced my fear. He has said that more research in this field would be of great benefit. He also thinks the name Exploding Head Syndrome fails to do the sleep disorder true justice. He has used the term "Episodic Cranial Sensory Shock", which is a bit of a mouthful, yet he shortens it to ECSS. It is so little known really. I was lucky enough to have a brain scan just to check there was nothing more going on and a neurologist confirmed that. I also had my hearing checked and yep there was a little mild hearing loss, yet that was it. I think, for me, because it worried me I decided to go for the scan and was able to do this pre-pandemic. To be honest, reading Brian Sharpless I felt so comforted to know that ECSS is harmless. Yes I still have it, yet it is less severe. Some nights there is only a little kinda "mini zap", just as I fall asleep, yet nothing like the kind of "gunshot" type sounds and physical "jerks" I used to get. Ok so I still get those occasionally, yet by no means frequently. It can affect my sleep - as in take me longer to get off to sleep if it's a "bad zap". I just tell myself it's harmless and try to settle down. Because I'm an anxious, "stress head" type of person and because my sleep has been very disrupted after the prolonged stress and also the tinnitus/ECSS, I am on a mini dose of Citalopram - an SSRI - 5mg and hopefully I can come off it, as I have a feeling it does make the tinnitus a bit louder - ha ha! Yet I'm managing it! Hopefully I'll get no mega onset of "zaps" as I come off the SSRI - ha ha - gotta laugh! Sorry this is so long and a bit of an outpouring, yet I hope it proves of some help if read - VeeCat xx

[Hidden in reply to Veecat]

Hello Veecat thankyou for your long post, I feel reassured now that I,m not the only one with this. These little things that happen tend to play on the mind,it’s called worrying! This site is a Godsend for us all.

[Hidden in reply to TinnitusUKPat]

BTAPat. I answered your post above by mistake

[elsieadams]

I terrible high pitch in my right ear now for about nine years. Some days louder than others and mostly is 24 7 . Different sounds also occur such as hissing and waterfall are also present. Last year I started having the snapping sound. I told my doctor that it sounded like two live electrical wires being touched together. This is really bothersome especially if you plan to go out somewhere. I feel like the epilepsy is causing this but was reassured the it was related to the T. I try to keep track of when this happens as I stay at home and am scared to go out during these episodes. The grand mal epilepsy has been controlled for over thirty five year and have since developed osteoarthritis in my cervical vertebrae. I have read about this loss of bone tissue resulting in bone spurs in my neck can cause synapsis which could be the reason for the zaps in my brain . How true it is I do not know neither does my doctor .But it might happen to be the reason. These occur when I am stressed out or feel a lot of tension in my neck. Could this be the reason???? I don't know but worth looking into.

[Hidden in reply to elsieadams]

I have epilepsy in my family, I did wonder if these zaps were connected to that, living alone is difficult sometimes because there is nobody to keep an eye on me. I have osteoarthritis in my neck hands and knees. When you get to 75 and worked hard all your life that is to be expected,it’s wear and tear. I often have to take a couple of painkillers at night to be able to sleep. My aunt is still alive at 91 and has been on phenobarbital all her life for grand Mal fits, she lives in the country in Wales and my cousin takes care of her very well indeed.

[elsieadams in reply to Hidden]

I do not think the zaps are related to my epilepsy as it is a very different sensation when epilepsy is involved. I am surprised that your aunt is still on phenobarbital as was on it when I was diagnosed at 14. I am now on a combination of tegretol and clobazam. I am thinking the osteoarthritis may be a reason for the zaps. I currently have 5 out of 7 cervical vertabrae eroded from the ostio. I did read an article regarding some other effects of this. The bone at the base of your neck and skull is responsible for balance and support of the spine. When we have disintegrating bones and bone spurs near this area the balance can be off resulting in many side effects. The info talked about the hyperacusis being very sensitive to any deterioration. I would like to see a chiropractor when this covid issue is more controlled and have them see if this is the reason for the zaps. I agree it is awful for us to go threw so much torture after working most of our lives in the hope we may have a good retirement.

[Barbiebabbs]

Started out with a zzz zzz zzz and I made a mistake of taking another hearing test within 2 months of the first one and it made both ears ring so loud that it started ringing in my head the more I dwelled on it the worse it got I finally learned how to just get out and start going and doing things putting a bad sleep app on the TV at night and finally it got to where now I can just get my mind on something else and it seems to just kind of fade away or get a real low tone but if you're having tinnitus do not take a hearing test unless you have lost your hearing

[Hidden in reply to Barbiebabbs]

Thanks for your input! My hearing is very good,I can hear a pin drop, it’s my sight that is declining. The only time I have a problem with my hearing is when a lot of people are talking or the tv in the background if I answer the telephone.

[Happyrosie]

I can hear a pin drop - but I still need hearing aids!