Has anyone found any medication for chronic fatigue that helped? I'm at the end of my tether. thanks xx

[Bluehippo]

[LindseyMid]

Fatigue is a symptom of Fibro and treating the central Fibro should help the fatigue as well as the other symptoms. The fatigue is partly caused by the lack of non-restorative sleep that is a hallmark of Fibro, and addressing sleep quality should be a priority when treating Fibro. Many people with Fibro and even doctors confuse sleep quantity with sleep quality. Even if you get to sleep easily and sleep for a long time, if the sleep is not of good quality, it won't do you much good. If you are not waking up in the morning refreshed, then you are not getting enough restorative deep sleep.

[Bluehippo]

Thank you for your reply. I must admit I have been waking up feeling exhausted for weeks. We moved into a new house 6 months ago and the curtains here are very thin so the sunlight does stream in. My plan would be to replace them eventually but money is very tight so not an option at the moment. I have already upped my amitryptaline and really don't want to up it any more so will try putting cardboard up at the windows. Its making me feel very depressed I must admit.

[Wenjay in reply to Bluehippo]

I found two things helpful with sleep issues linked to light. I bought a blackout blind and installed that behind my curtains in the window apperture. they are relatively inexpensive. Another option is a mask for your eyes. A simple one like the airlines use or maybe a beauty one. I take one when I am staying away as I find light interference an issue myself.

[LindseyMid]

How long have you been taking the Ami? It is possible it has outlived its real usefulness for you - it is a common problem that the effectiveness wears off after a few months but higher doses are often associated with greater side effects and not necessarily greater benefit in the long-term.

It may be worth discussing alternatives with your GP.

[Bluehippo]

Thank you everyone for your input its always good to have people to bat the ball about with! I have tried using a mask for my eyes but I find them uncomfortable. We do have some wooden blinds to go up behind the curtains and my husband has promised me faithfully that he will put them up this weekend. I have upped my amitriptayline from 10mg to 20mg but am still waking up utterly exhausted. I've been taking it for years. I did try other medications in the past but everything else had side effects that I could not cope with. I have tried taking DHEA for exhaustion after doing a saliva test to check my levels through a nutritionist which came back low and it did work for the first few days but then brought on symtoms of epilepsy that I haven't suffered with for over 13 years so had to come straight off it. It also messed with my period cycle and made me rather emotional. The depression is definately worse since I've been feeling so exhausted. Prior to that I had been fairly positive although I do suffer with my down times like everyone with this condition.

[Abbeystead]

I know when I took Amytriptyline I felt really tired the next day and made the fibro fog worse. Stopped taking it. Maybe that's why you're feeling so tired. Have you tried managing without it?

[bumblebee57]

I stopped taking Ami's for about a year.didnt make any difference to my Fog and I didnt sleep so well. I remember my dreams now that Im back on them too, didnt while I was off them. I think that probably means I sleep slightly deeper now, but still not refreshingly enough.

[Bluehippo]

Thank you Paradise, Abbeystead and Bumblebee57. I will look into the Melatonin. Its something I have heard people mention before but didn't have the problems I am having now so had no need to try it.

Years ago I used to be able to have a break from Amytriptyline in the summer for a couple of months but as I've got older its not been an option. Just couldn't manage to sleep without it now.

I agree with you bumblebee57 even when I could manage a break from Amytriptyline I slept a lot lighter.

I think I will give the melatonin a go if I still feel the same after the blinds have gone up!

thanks everyone for all your advice :0) xx

[pottydog]

I take ami in order me sleep, it doesn't stop me waking but I can at least get back to sleep. I just suddenly stopped sleeping!

I needed a double dose to get started but have managed to cut it back to just the one tablet at night now, I have to take it quite early though as it seems to take a long while to kick in. I also use nutmeg to aid sleep and have a blackout blind.

Whilst on the stronger dose of ami I found getting out of bed in the morning a nightmare. I was very sluggish and foggy and stayed like that until tea time when I would suddenly wake up fully!

Hope you get sorted soon, money worries don't help and I sympathise, my husband got made redundant just after the new year, we're living off his redundancy package but it was the basic minimum and won't last long.

BB Lunar

[Bluehippo]

Thank you for your reply Pottydog. All input is gratefully received I'm really interested to hear about the nutmeg! How do you take it? Is it in tablet form? How much do you take?

I know what you mean about having trouble getting out of bed. If I go above 20mg I take ages to come round so I try not to go above it.

Hope your husband manages to find work soon. Its a tough time and fingers crossed something turns around for you both. xx