Does anyone take both Madopar and Sertraline ?

[dali76]

I take Zoloft for my Bipolar and have taken many other medications in the past. The sertraline actually works without most of the horrid side effects of other things. I've had RLS for a while but it's become extremely bad over the last 6 months and my insomnia is causing a range of problems for me. My Dr just prescribed Madopar in a small dose to start on. There are theories for and against the sertraline being an antagonist of the RLS. Does anybody take these 2 meds in combination successfully?

[Hidden]

Sertraline, like most SSRI antidepressants can make RLS worse. This is well documented.

If it's unavoidable that you take it then you need something to relieve or control RLS symptoms.

The first option that could be tried is iron therapy.

You could ask for blood tests for serum iron, transferrin, ferritin and haemoglobin.

If your ferritin is below 75ug/L the an oral iron supplement may help. It may take 3 months to have any effect.

Here's some info about this

sciencedirect.com/science/a...

Madopar, which contains L dopa is no longer prescribed for taking regularly, i.e. every day, for RLS. It can be used if you only have RLS intermittently, e.g. less than twice a week.

It sounds as if you need something daily. In which case, you should definitely not take Madopar or anything with L dopa in it.

I suggest you ask your doctor for a more up to date and recommended RLS medication.

The recommended first line medications for RLS are either pregabalin or gabapentin.

If your doctor should suggest a dopamine agonist, i.e.pramipexole, ropinirole or rotigotine then these should be avoided also as they have a high risk of major complications, augmentation or Impulse Control Disorder.

Regular use of L dopa will almost certainly cause augmentation in a short time.

[dali76 in reply to Hidden]

I have iron deficiency and regularly have iron tests and iron infusions as the oral treatments don't work due a kidney condition. My iron is at capacity at the moment. And yes, I have to be on an antidepressant as I said, I've tried many combinations of bipolar meds and I've been on sertraline for 5 years with no negative side effects and am managing my illness well. I have read about Madopar and also read some case studies that say sertraline is only in the 5% of those drugs likely to increase RLS symptoms.

I will chat with my doctor about it. Gabapentin made me violently ill that is why we are steering clear of it.

Thanks

[Hidden in reply to dali76]

I wouldn't suggest you stop the sertraline, it seems necessary.

Sorry to hear that gabapentin makes you ill.

The other medication option for RLS is an opiate. There are a couple of members of this forum who also live in Australia who have quit ea lot of success with low dose buprenorphine. I suggest you get in touch with Shumbah who can tell you more.

healthunlocked.com/user/Shu...

Madopar is possibly the worst thing you can take for RLS. If you take it regularly it will cause augmentation. This will make your RLS significantly worse.

[dali76 in reply to Hidden]

Thank you for letting me know about it. I'm going to see my Dr and suggest he looks at another alternative to the madopar. Yes I need the sertraline unfortunately.

And I will definitely look into the buprenorphine. It sounds like a much better option.

[Embroiderer]

I took Sertraline for 6 months a year ago and found it had RLS related side effects. I don't take any medication for my RLS so can't comment on interactions but I did experience insomnia, being very wakeful as a primary symptom until 2am most nights. I also had what I would classify more as periodic limb movement disorder(which is often associated with RLS)whilst awake (which can happen) - violent involuntary kicks occurring every 20-30 seconds. Quite exhausting. I spent most of the nights of those 6 months in the spare bedroom.It all stopped when I came off the sertraline though I still get my usual RLS.

[dali76 in reply to Embroiderer]

Yes I get the kicks too especially after I've had a really long week at work on my feet.

The sertraline doesn't cause sleep issues for me it actually helped with my sleep disorder I had that was bipolar related. As I said I've been on it 5 years and have had no troubles with it. The RLS symptoms have become severe over the last 12 months for me. I am definitely going to chat with my DRs about making some changes.

I hope you find some relief soon, too.

[Palmernova]

I’m on 100mg of sertraline a day and had restless legs ever since 😩

[dali76 in reply to Palmernova]

Have you spoken to your doctor about it? I'm on 200mg. I'm reluctantly going to ask if there's another drug that he thinks I can substitute for sertraline, which for me means another period of "what-ifs" and disruptions and anxiety over the possibilities of flareups but Its maybe something that needs to be done.

I've had some great input and advice from people on here and I think I will follow their lead.

These medications that help us are sometimes, unfortunately a contribution to other problems.