I've been debating making this post for more than a month, mainly because I'm not a doctor. But I do have long experience with this condition and don't mind sharing some of what worked for me.
The problem is that some of the things that worked for me also have serious potential or known risks; so don't try any of them without researching them and talking to a doctor (which again, I am not).
My own story is that I've had tinnitus since childhood. It doesn't bother me. I'm used to it. But I also have Eustachian tube dysfunction (hereinafter "ETD"). That does bother me, at least during allergy season. The rest of the year the only symptom is low-frequency hearing loss in one ear (which, by the way, can be a symptom of an acoustic neuroma, so see a doctor pronto if that's one of your symptoms).
I never bothered seeking treatment for the tinnitus. But I did seek treatment for the ETD, and some of the unconventional treatments for the ETD dramatically reduced the tinnitus. One actually eliminates it, but it comes at the cost of pretty serious side effects. More about that later.
Before I started the unconventional treatments, I sought treatment from an ENT. After he put me through the usual exhaustive battery of tests and trial-and-error treatments, none of which worked very well (if at all), he threw up his hands and gave up. He gave me one of those diagnoses that begin with "ideopathic," which is doctor-speak for "I dunno."
If I had vertigo along with the other symptoms of ETD, then I would have Meniere's disease. Meniere's isn't really a "disease," per se. It's basically just ETD that's serious enough to give you vertigo. That happens when the pressure in the inner ear gets so great that the floodgates open. The sudden change throws the whole balance mechanism off. Or at least that's what a gaggle of ENTs have told me. [ EDIT -- Apparently I misunderstood them. ]
But I didn't have vertigo. I just have the boring sort of ETD. The symptoms are low-frequency hearing loss, a feeling of fullness, and the inability to clear it using swallowing and so forth. During the allergy season these symptoms magnify a hundredfold to the point of being unbearable.
Once the ENT gave up, my pharmacist (who had practiced Traditional Chinese Medicine before emigrating to the U.S. and becoming a pharmacist) stepped in. He prescribed a bunch of herbs, some of which I'm omitting here because they didn't seem to do anything. The ones that did help were:
Cat's Claw. A general "cure-all" that is known to have at least some anti-inflammatory and auto-immune benefits. It's also being looked at for possible anti-tumor properties. It is a known teratogen and probably interferes with cell division, so it should not be taken by pregnant or nursing mothers (nor by children, I would think).
Ginger. Known for its calming effect on the vestibular system and its anti-nausea properties. Generally considered harmless.
Dandelion Root. A mild diuretic. Not to be taken with other diuretics.
Licorice Root. A mild anti-diuretic, but useful for its decongestant qualities. Not to be taken by pregnant or nursing mothers or by people with high blood pressure.
Stinging Nettle Leaf. A decongestant. Must be taken on an empty stomach.
The above took the edge off both the ETD and the tinnitus during the allergy season when I lived in the city. I used it for about 10 years of so.
Since moving to the country, I've needed something a bit stronger because the seasonal allergens are more intense. The following "prescription" was suggested by a pharmacist who swore me to secrecy about his/her identity. He/she made the suggestions after, once again, more conventional treatments failed. (I did talk his/her suggestions over with my doctor before trying them, however.)
Vinpocetine. This is a semi-synthetic derivative of vincamine, an alkaloid originally identified in Vinca minor, the lesser periwinkle plant. It's not exactly "natural" because it does need some processing to be extracted. It's also usually not made from periwinkle anymore, but from other plants that have it in more abundance.
Vinpo is a very powerful drug. Its primary effect seems to be as a vasodilator, especially of the tiny blood vessels in the inner ear. This is the drug that can eliminate my tinnitus. If I were to take 45 mg a day, the tinnitus would disappear.
The problem is that at 45 mg a day I experienced really severe sleep disturbances including frequent waking (like a dozen times a night) and really odd dreams that were basically continuations of problems I'd been working out during the day. It was like being awake and asleep at the same time. It blurred the lines between wakefulness and sleep.
Another serious potential side effect of Vinpo is a drop in platelet count. I didn't experience that, but it is something the doc was watching for.
At a reduced dosage of 15 mg/day (with breakfast), Vinpo alone reduces my ETD by about 50 percent and my tinnitus by about 75 percent, with no side effects whatsoever.
Zyrtec. An OTC antihistamine.
Nasacort. A nasal corticosteroid. (Flonase is another similar drug. The doc said either one should work. Nasacort is cheaper.) I take it in an off-label way that was advised by the pharmacist and confirmed by the ENT. Basically I tilt my head forward, spray the stuff back toward the Eustachian tube opening, raise my head, and then do a series of very gentle Valsava ("nose-pinch- and-blow") maneuvers to sort of "milk" it into the tube.
The combination of the three drugs above eliminates my ETD and almost completely eliminates the tinnitus. I can pass a hearing test with flying colors in the affected ear as long I keep taking them, and the tinnitus becomes mild and intermittent. But I probably will talk to the doc about suspending some or all of them once the allergy season is over. I'm not big on medicating problems that are minor, and my ETD drops off dramatically after the first hard frost.
Again, I am not a doctor, and I did none of the above without talking to whatever doctor was treating me at the time in question. They're not advice or suggestions. They're just things that worked for me. YMMV.
Rich
.
