How do people find Amytriptyline?

I've been on 50mgs Amytriptyline at night for some time now, however I find it doesn't have a great deal of effect on me. I've tried varying the times I take it at but I still get nights where I don't go to sleep for several hours; neither do I wake up with a "fuzzy" head like lots of people I know!

Do other people find it has little effect? My sleep is very disrupted - I can;t remember the last time I slept throughout the night

I wake up several times, either with pain; hot flushes & needing the loo.

What helps people to sleep well?

[Philip]

I'm on that too but I take mine for fibromyalgia to help raise my pain threshold, also helps my muscles to relax too especially during the night so that I can sleep better, perhaps increase the dose and see what you think then.

It doesn't work for everyone unfortunately, maybe speak with your GP or Rheumy and see what they suggest .

I hope this helps.

Philip

[Hidden in reply to Philip]

Just wanted to reiterate that no one should up their dose of any medication without speaking to a healthcare professional such as your GP / rheumatologist.

[earthwitch]

Wow. You are lucky if it doesn't have any of the side effects. Pity it doesn't have any good effects either. I don't think I know anyone who has tried it who hasn't felt really woolly headed the next morning - at least for the first couple of weeks until getting used to it. Do you have problems with any other meds not seeming to affect you as they should? Are you anaemic for no reason? If so, then I would wonder if you have a malabsorption problem like coeliac disease. Lack of effect of meds was one of the first "symptoms" of coeliac disease that I really noticed. I kept telling my GP for years that I thought I wasn't absorbing properly, then finally she did the coeliac blood test and it was sky high.

You are at the top of the recommended dose range for pain modification effects though - any higher hasn't been proven to do anything more for pain (though you would need higher if you wanted the antidepressant effect).

[Hidden]

Thanks for your replies. I'm seeing GP this week so will talk it through with them.

I also have it for pain but also have to take cocdamol & tramadol.

I try to have a gluten free diet as I do have problems with my guts.Although a test for coeliac was negative.

I don't think that I absorb drugs well as Hydroxy; sulpha & \MTX don't have a great deal of effect. I'm also on Meloxicam so have a bucketful of meds!

[earthwitch in reply to Hidden]

were you eating a full gluten containing diet when you were tested for coeliac? if not, then you might have got a false negative. Also ask if the doc checked if you were IgA deficient at the same time - the coeliac test is an IgA one, and if you are deficient it will show a false negative and they need to repeat it as an IgG test, or go straight to an endoscopy and biopsy. Doing a partial gluten free diet probably won't do much if you are gluten sensitive - as little as one bit of gluten a month can keep your gut in a bad way. Its best to do either all or nothing on it.

Definitely ask your doctor about whether it could possibly be a malabsorption problem and how they would check for that. I think some of the other inflammatory bowel diseases can also cause malabsorption, and they are also autoimmune and often go along with arthritis (especially spondyloarthritis)

[allanah]

I get awful and I mean awful nightmares with it! So it didn't suit me...oh well..back to the drawing board. Xxxx

[Pands]

I have tried it for pain and sleep issues but couldn't cope with the feeling like I had a hangover in the mornings and then I had a couple of weeks of small children being ill so I was having to get up in the night to see to them (was really really hard as I was so zonked) etc etc and I had to stop it! It did give me a few nights good sleep but the side effects were too much for me to continue.

[rattusrattus]

i took it for depression and it had me demented! i was pacing up and down for most of the night trying to find the source of the annoying humming noise! i'd have my head at the neighbours wall, stick it out the window, and finally i turned the gas and electic off and it was still there! the next day i'd walk in circles too - amytriptyline really knocks me off my axis! lol. also the salt cravings were horrendous! i couldn't get enough salt to save my life and it made me very hungry too. its a weird drug.

it didn't really help much with my depression either - i was just wired and tired from it

[Hidden]

I've been taking it on and off for 2 years now. I just got another prescription from my GP and he queried me taking it as I'm not having pain currently. So I explained it is the only way I have of getting a good night's sleep. It helps with my weak bladder and usually I sleep through on one tablet and wake at about 6am - then get another hour's sleep if I've taken one. I am tired the next day but being honest I'm always tired by afternoon anyway and if I haven't slept much I'm absolutely shattered so better tired from a good night's sleep from amitriptyline I feel. I only take one and I don't always take it - if I'm going out I don't bother because I need to take one early on by 9pm in order not to feel too woozy next day. He seemed to think that was fine as long as I didn't take more than one. He said his main concern is that it can make us feel sluggish and can affect driving the next day etc. It is non-addictive but I do agree it's a pretty weird drug. I once forgot to put the water ready to swallow it with and the little blue pill sat on my tongue and made my whole mouth go totally numb for a while afterwards! Xx

[fionam]

I tried it in the early days (about 18 months ago) for pain relief at night but I found it didn't help me.

[shirlthegirl]

Hiya, Well i don't know how i would of got on with out this drug, it has worked really well for me, i was also on 50 mg but have now cut down to 35 mg, I do hope they find something for you as not getting a good nites sleep will make you more depressed and upset,have a chat with your GP see if they have anything else you can try, Sending hugs xxx