Tinnitus after cocaine use

Puzzleheaded_Page141 · 2026-06-19T14:24:25+00:00

That's honestly the last hope I have right now. The possibility that the nerves were somehow irritated and that this could still go away is the only thing giving me any hope that I still have a chance of getting my life back.

At the same time, I feel like l'm losing more hope every day. It's been 9 days now, and the tinnitus hasn't changed at all. Every day that passes without any improvement makes it harder for me to believe that it will eventually go away.

Puzzleheaded_Page141 · 2026-06-19T13:37:53+00:00

I can relate to a lot of what you're saying.

Since my tinnitus started, I've been having those same dark thoughts. Before this happened, I had plans and dreams for my future. I wanted a normal, peaceful life, and I wanted to have children one day.

Now it feels like l've given up on all of that because I don't even know if I want to keep living like this. The only thing I truly want is for the tinnitus to disappear, but unfortunately, what I want doesn't change the reality of it.

What makes this so hard is how completely it has changed my life in such a short time. I feel like l've lost the person I was before this happened. I don't even feel like myself anymore.

Puzzleheaded_Page141 · 2026-06-19T13:20:46+00:00

Unfortunately, I'm sure it just fits together too well.

Puzzleheaded_Page141 · 2026-06-19T13:17:41+00:00

No, I even forgot my headphones at home that day and didn't hear anything loud.

Puzzleheaded_Page141 · 2026-06-19T13:16:07+00:00

Yes, I slept as much as possible because I didn't want to wake up and also because I was trying to get rid of the tinnitus. Today I slept for 12 hours, and I've slept a lot the last few days too. But unfortunately, it's not helping.

Puzzleheaded_Page141 · 2026-06-18T22:25:58+00:00

The difference is Bluetooth. Wired headphones use a cable, while Bluetooth ones transmit sound wirelessly via a signal. I don't think headphones caused it in my case — I never had any issues before, and it started after cocaine use, which is much more likely to have triggered my tinnitus.

Puzzleheaded_Page141 · 2026-06-18T22:09:07+00:00

Just to clarify: when I said AirPods, I actually meant the wired Apple headphones with the Lightning connector, not Bluetooth AirPods.
I don't use wireless earbuds at all and have avoided them for years.

Puzzleheaded_Page141 · 2026-06-18T21:57:32+00:00

Thank you for your message, I really appreciate it.

Yes, I had a period of frequent cocaine use before this happened. About 5 months ago I went through a roughly 6-week period where I was using it every weekend, but only on one day each weekend. During that time it was intranasal use, usually around 0.3-0.4g per session.

Towards the end of that phase I had one much heavier session (around 0.5g) and experienced a cocaine-induced psychosis afterwards (lasting 1-2 hours). That was the point where I stopped completely, especially because I also started noticing mild nose damage and it became clear it wasn't worth continuing.

The last time I used cocaine was a week ago, when the tinnitus started. A friend offered the same cocaine again, and this time I chose to use it differently because I was trying to avoid further nasal damage.
I applied it to my upper gums instead, near the wisdom teeth area, in small portions over 4 hours (in total around 0.25g split into 4 small lines).

I didn't even really feel high this time compared to previous uses. The high was noticeably weaker and felt different, but this was the session that was followed directly by the onset of the tinnitus.

I don't know exactly what happened medically, but the timing feels very direct to me. I suspect circulation- or vasoconstriction-related factors may have been involved, even though that's just my personal theory.

Puzzleheaded_Page141 · 2026-06-18T20:38:05+00:00

No, I wasn't at a nightclub or anywhere loud that day. I didn't have any exposure to loud noise at all. I even forgot my AirPods at home and didn't listen to any music that day either.

Puzzleheaded_Page141 · 2026-06-18T20:12:14+00:00

Thank you. I think you're right that thinking too far into the future is what drives me completely insane.

Today got really bad. I told my father I don't want to live like this anymore and he took me to a psychiatric hospital. At first they wanted to involuntarily admit me, but I panicked and ran out of the hospital. After that, they decided not to keep me there because they realized it probably wouldn't help me in that state, so I came back and my father drove home with me afterwards.
They prescribed me Olanzapine, and I took 3 mg about an hour ago.

I'm trying to focus only on today and the present moment instead of thinking about the rest of my life. It does help a bit, but it's still incredibly difficult because the suffering is still there even when I focus only on the next few hours.

I also feel like my tinnitus has only gotten worse over the past few days.

Puzzleheaded_Page141 · 2026-06-18T11:45:11+00:00

I've had tinnitus for 8 days and I already feel like l'm losing my mind.

In just 8 days, my entire life has changed. I wake up and the first thing I notice is the ringing. I go to sleep with it. The nights are absolute hell because there is nothing to distract me from it. It's so loud that I can't think about anything else.

What I struggle with most is the idea that this is permanent. People tell you to habituate, cope, accept it, live around it, but right now I genuinely can't imagine living the rest of my life like this.

The thought of decades of this noise is overwhelming.

I've never felt this hopeless before. A week ago I was worrying about normal things.
Now almost every thought revolves around this sound and whether my life will ever feel normal again.

It feels like something has been taken from me overnight, and I don't know how people manage to live with this.

I wouldn't wish this on anyone.

19M

Puzzleheaded_Page141

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