View Full Version : True or false - "positive side effects"
Having been off meds for years, I've had a GAD flare up. I've been prescribed 10mg Amitriptyline by my GP this morning to cope with my GAD symptoms. Another GP in the practice gave me Mirtazapine last week, but when I read the side effects of that (Especially the weight gain - I'm getting married in August, and cannot afford to put weight on!) I decided it wasn't for me. The GP I saw today initially wanted to use beta blockers, but then saw I had asthma, and had no results on the usual SSRIs, so Amitriptyline it was. I was desperate to have pregablin or buspirone, but she was having none of it, and wouldn't even discuss it "Because those are pain medications" :lac:
She said a few things about this drug, and I was interested in whether any of you had found them true, or whether she just wanted shot of me?
1) Amitriptyline needs to be taken before bed, because it will help you sleep but not make you groggy in the morning.
2) Amitriptyline lasts throughout the day, and you'll feel better quickly.
3) If you feel okay on 10mg, try taking another when you wake up and you'll feel even better.
4) There are no problems with food cravings or weight gain on Amitriptyline.
Your "Real life" opinions please :huh:
Well, it's day 1 of amitryptaline. I slept well last night, woke up feeling pretty good, but just could not shift the grogginess. I've wandered about for a few hours feeling like I've not got my glasses on. It's all a bit blurry, I'm light headed and have the expected dry mouth. Still feeling the worry at this point.
I take 50 mg.
Do not take it during the day, it will make you feel even more groggy and spaced out.
The visual problems usually sort themselves out after about 3 weeks or so.
I got hot flushes for a short while, though not sure whether this is common or not.
I was having nightmares and intrusive thoughts, the Amitriptyline reduced these symptoms somewhat.
No negatives from me about this drug.
Thanks, Bobbydog. Interesting to read your experience. Day 2 was okay. I took the pill at about 7:30. Dry mouth lessened, I was less groggy when I woke up. I was a bad tempered moo to my fiance, but to be fair to me, he was bugging me while I was trying to read, and would have tried the patience of a saint, lol. GP said if I thought I was tolerating it, I should take another 10mg tablet first thing in the morning. I was dubious, and you've just confirmed my suspicion that it might be a bad idea.
Day 3 seems okay so far. I'm cold, but it's snowing outside, so I don't think I can blame the pills! :roflmao:
Thanks, Bobbydog. Interesting to read your experience. Day 2 was okay. I took the pill at about 7:30. Dry mouth lessened, I was less groggy when I woke up. I was a bad tempered moo to my fiance, but to be fair to me, he was bugging me while I was trying to read, and would have tried the patience of a saint, lol. GP said if I thought I was tolerating it, I should take another 10mg tablet first thing in the morning. I was dubious, and you've just confirmed my suspicion that it might be a bad idea.
Day 3 seems okay so far. I'm cold, but it's snowing outside, so I don't think I can blame the pills! :roflmao:
Forgot about the dry mouth and difficulty swallowing, I took a drink to bed for a few weeks to sip if I felt dry or thirsty.x
spottitchsam
10-03-13, 22:13
Having been off meds for years, I've had a GAD flare up. I've been prescribed 10mg Amitriptyline by my GP this morning to cope with my GAD symptoms. Another GP in the practice gave me Mirtazapine last week, but when I read the side effects of that (Especially the weight gain - I'm getting married in August, and cannot afford to put weight on!) I decided it wasn't for me. The GP I saw today initially wanted to use beta blockers, but then saw I had asthma, and had no results on the usual SSRIs, so Amitriptyline it was. I was desperate to have pregablin or buspirone, but she was having none of it, and wouldn't even discuss it "Because those are pain medications" :lac:
She said a few things about this drug, and I was interested in whether any of you had found them true, or whether she just wanted shot of me?
1) Amitriptyline needs to be taken before bed, because it will help you sleep but not make you groggy in the morning.
2) Amitriptyline lasts throughout the day, and you'll feel better quickly.
3) If you feel okay on 10mg, try taking another when you wake up and you'll feel even better.
4) There are no problems with food cravings or weight gain on Amitriptyline.
Your "Real life" opinions please :huh:
hi oatcake
i am taking 20mg a day at the moment.i take 1 at 10.30am and the other 1 at 3.30pm.i take mine in the daytime so if i do get a dry mouth i feel i can cope better in the day rather throughout the night.i am seeing the gp this tuesday to see if he will put me up another 10mg a day has im reducing my lorazepam by 1mg a day and im struggling a bit about 1am when i wake up.i was put on these pills a few years ago for rheumatoid arthritis in my feet.30mg was perfect but due to me having a huge panic attack on new years day this year i was taken off 10mg and put on other medication.now i hope they have found the perfect combination i can go back to 30mg a day.they are also a antidepressant so it should take over me losing the loraxepam.i have always woken up about 3/5 times throughout the night for about 30+years so it makes no difference to me whatever time i take them.the only thing that i do know is that you have to take them the same time every day/night.my sister has had arthritis for over 20 years.she gave me that information.x
... I was desperate to have pregablin or buspirone, but she was having none of it, and wouldn't even discuss it "Because those are pain medications" :lac:
She said a few things about this drug, and I was interested in whether any of you had found them true, or whether she just wanted shot of me?
1) Amitriptyline needs to be taken before bed, because it will help you sleep but not make you groggy in the morning.
2) Amitriptyline lasts throughout the day, and you'll feel better quickly.
3) If you feel okay on 10mg, try taking another when you wake up and you'll feel even better.
4) There are no problems with food cravings or weight gain on Amitriptyline.
Your "Real life" opinions please :huh:
Firstly pregabalin is an anti-anxiety drug, it was licensed for that in 2006 in this country. AFAIK it's rarely prescribed for pain due to the cost, first line treatment for nerve pain for example appears to be gabapentin (which is what my wife takes for sciatica, along with 10mg amitryptaline).
If I remember rightly I was on buspirone for smoking cessation, I lasted a week on it. Stopped smoking later without drugs anyway. My GP certainly refuses to prescribe it for any other reason.
As for you 4 points I can only go by my experience of amitriptyline over the last month I've been on it:
1) That's true, but only until you know exactly how drowsy it makes you feel. 50mg for me certainly makes me not want to get out of bed in a morning :)
2) Not for me it doesn't, but that might be due to the fact 50mg is too much for me on a night, maybe that dosage lasts a day, I was too half asleep to notice.
3) I've recently switched to 10mg in a morning and 25mg in the evening. My anxiety is high today, but the 2 days before I was feeling OK. So that advice seems sound, as per my experience.
4) That's true for me. I'm on a carb controlled diet because of recently diagtnosed diabetes and I'm losing weight fine. The only munchies I get are out of habit having been overweight most of my life. Only mirtazapine has ever given me serious cravings and that was only for a few weeks.
By the way, I put on 9lbs in 12 weeks on pregabalin, almost all of it water retention as it dropped off quickly after cessation - much as it can be a good drug, it does have it's drawbacks.
I personally feel amitriptyline has a low SE profile, but obviously we all react differently.
Mark
Firstly pregabalin is an anti-anxiety drug, it was licensed for that in 2006 in this country. AFAIK it's rarely prescribed for pain due to the cost, first line treatment for nerve pain for example appears to be gabapentin (which is what my wife takes for sciatica, along with 10mg amitryptaline).
By the way, I put on 9lbs in 12 weeks on pregabalin, almost all of it water retention as it dropped off quickly after cessation - much as it can be a good drug, it does have it's drawbacks.
I personally feel amitriptyline has a low SE profile, but obviously we all react differently.
Mark
Did you find pregabalin useful for anxiety? My Dr said I could try either duloextine, gabapentin or pregabalin for chronic pain - I said I wasn't sure and wanted to research first. From what I have read pregabalin may be better for me simply because it could tackle my pain AND anxiety. Although I have read some people claim gabapentin offers some anxiety relief as well. Duloxetine is a no go for me as it is an SNRI plus I'm already on an antidepressant.
At the moment I'm going back on amitriptyline for depression/anxiety. So I will see if that offers relief first as I know it can be good for pain too.
I think a combination of Ami + Pregabalin would make it very easy to sleep all day and gain weight!
I agree with you about the amitriptyline - the side effect profile isn't so bad if you can get over the initial drowsiness - I generally find it quite a 'mild' medication that seems to clam things down. Much, much better than most of the SSRIs that seem to leave me hyped up and ready to kill someone.
Sorry yenool only just noticed your post
Pregabalin was great for my anxiety but it was short acting, I had to take it twice a day (600mg split dose) and if I forgot one I'd soon know about it, the anxiety would flood back.
In the end (after 4 months) it stopped working for me.
I was on duloxetine after that, for 4 months also. Not a drug I would recommend. It had probably the worst start up I've encountered (so exhausted, was in bed for days) it worked OK for a few months then suddenly stopped.
I'm now on amitriptyline as I mentioned - of course it's an old tricyclic generally used more migraines and pin relief nowadays but I'm pleased with the effect so far and my GP has given me license to experiment with dosages and timings up to 100mg per day.
Gabapentin - I've heard anecdotally that it can help with anxiety but it's not licensed for it as pregabalin is.
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