Amitriptyline for Chronic Pain and Anxiety....Advice please!

[LilyPond]

Hello!

I would really appreciate your advice on the use of Amitriptyline. Im a 25 year old female pretty healthy besides my long term anxiety and for the past few years chronic neck pain which has accompanied it. The pain has taken over my life, Ive tried so many things for the pain and anxiety but have been advised by my physio, rheumy and therapist to try this primarily for the pain since its apparently all down to muscle spasm.

Im generally scared of any pharmaceutical due to the side effects.

My main concern is if this works will i need to be on it forever? Or will it break the pain cycle curing the chronic muscle spasm? And when I come off will the pain be ten-fold cos ive dimmed it down for so long?

Anyone with experience or advice on this thank you so much for your help.

Very best wishes to you all :)

[yenool]

Amitriptyline can help with pain and improve sleep. Generally you need to take it for a few weeks to see if it is going to help or not. It isn't like a pain killer than you take 'as required'.

When you stop taking it the pain levels may go back to where they were previously. I didn't experience any increased pain though, just what was there before.

Side effects are likely to be feeling doped up, sleepy and constipated. Best advice I can give is start off slowly and take it about 12 hours before you need to get up in the morning. So 7pm for a 7am start.

They will probably give you a very low dose, like 10 or 20mg. Which will do nothing for anxiety but might just help with sleep and break the pain cycle up a bit. If you can tolerate it then you can go right up to 75 - 100mg for pain. Much more than that and it becomes an antidepressant in its own right.

[LilyPond]

Thank you for your advice :)

So in terms of your pain it just came back when you stopped? If you dont mind me asking what kind of pain did you have? That is what im afraid of i want to get rid of the pain for good! Not just numb it away for a while.

[teej]

Thank you for your advice :)

So in terms of your pain it just came back when you stopped? If you dont mind me asking what kind of pain did you have? That is what im afraid of i want to get rid of the pain for good! Not just numb it away for a while.

I'm afraid for many of us here, all the medications do is numb away the pain - physical or psychological. This is why CBT (for psychological) is a first line treatment for anxiety and depression.

[Lee2475]

I have been on these for neck pain that I have had for about 2 years, didn't do much, only last week he gave me citropram as the pain was wearing me out, I had a bad turn with the citropram and stuffed them in the bin, I'm trying to come off pain killers as I have been on them too long and worried that I'm messing my insides up, although I have blood tests every 3months and so far my liver is OK, christ knows how, I'm. Gonna change my job and try yoga and stuff and try and feel healthy again, problem is pain killers after long period makes you feel generally unwell. Hope you feel better soon. Paroxatine I had once as well and that messed me up. I didn't have many side affects with amatriptiline and I was told by doctor there not addictive. How true this is I don't know. So that's something good.