amitriptyline

[mandy72]

was prescribed this a few days ago for bad anxiety (lots going on at moment)

was too scared to take

dr said it would help me sleep

ive just taken one and now im scared (10mg)

anyone else had these?

[Hidden]

10 mgs is a very small dose - I take either 25 or 50 mgs. Take it about 12 hours before you want to get up so you won't get a hung over feeling.

[Americalover in reply to Hidden]

Hi in the last week have had my dose of Levo from 25mcg to 50. It took a while for that to happen. I am feeling a little better. Had a blood taken last Monday. It's all very gradual, gradual.

[Cooper27]

I took it for several months, my dose was 75mcg. I tended to take it about 11 and had no problems getting up at 7am. I always had a fantastic sleep while taking it (although it gave a friend insomnia, so we all react differently).

10mcg is a really small dose, so don't worry to much. I did get a very dry mouth for the first couple of weeks at that dose.

[Bunny4jeff in reply to Cooper27]

Yes I was given 10 mg and was told I could increase it up to 30mcg, that's 3 tabs. I was given it to help me sleep with bad Sciatica. It did help but I had to increase it to 20 mcg, (2 tabs) to get a good sleep. I got a very dry mouth though, which I didn't like, so as soon as my Sciatica improved I stopped the amitriptyline. It will help you sleep, and is a safe, non- addictive drug.

[Judithdalston]

Given it for fibromyalgia pain that kept me awake; I found the 10 mcg dose just knocked off the edges of the pain to get to sleep. I presume it will do the same for anxiety/stress. Though even this dose can last into the next morning, so take it say 9-9.30 pm to try it, perhaps at weekend if you don't have to be wide awake so early.

[Hidden]

Why not go to a meditation class. No more drugs.

[DotLeeds in reply to Hidden]

Amazed at how relaxed and calm I feel after a meditation class.

[ahousefull]

Yes, I've been on this for 3 years - same issue re anxiety and sleep. Don't take it near to your thyroid medication. 10mg is a tiny dose - I was on 30mg, now down to 20. Hope you find it helps.

[Patricia7048]

Don't take it!!!! Not if you want a life!!! I got given it once when i had a bereavrment. One and i slept for 24hrs. Terrble drug. Try Alprazolam 0.25. Very very mild for amxiety.

Amytryptoline is a far far stronger drug, a hammer to crack a peanut!! Ask your doc if he has taken them and could he function normally on them!!! It's a joke what they try to do to us. Anything so that we shut up and go away.

[Maribee in reply to Patricia7048]

Yes I agree with you....I was so spaced out I couldn't function properly and because of this my anxiety increased , I was a real mess, thought I was going crazy.....

[Patricia7048 in reply to Maribee]

Completely agree with you! Big hug. Hope youre feeling better! We can get through this...and preferably without their brain numbing drugs!!!

[Cooper27 in reply to Patricia7048]

I'm surprised by this. The standard dose for anxiety/depression used to be 300mcg, but these days they tend to only use amitriptyline for pain, at very low doses of 10-50mcgs, so 10mcgs is tiny. My dose was pretty high by today's standards (75mcg) and I was absolutely fine on that...

Really the only way to know how you react is to take it and see. I've seen a lot of positive feedback on amitriptyline though, so your experience is one of the very rare ones.

[Maribee]

I've had them. They didn't agree with me but maybe they will with you. You could ask for Lyrica instead, it not only helps you to relax but helps with any pain you might have, I take the smallest dose and it's fine.

You could also instead ask for a sleeping pill if you have a problem dozing off-don't we all- I find Nitrazapan which is the size of a fingernail us good as you can break it in two- half usually is enough to give me a good nights sleep, which makes SO MUCH DIFFERENCE ! Sometimes just a quater will do the trick and once you get into a sleep routine you won't need one at all...good luck ....

[Venicefan in reply to Maribee]

If you’re taking Lyrica, keep a good eye on your thyroid labs. I took it for several months for neuropathic pain and ended up so tired I was almost comatose. When I had my thyroid test, my tsh had gone up to 12. It reduces thyroid function and blocks absorption of levothyroxine.

There is a warning on their online information leaflet but not on the one in the medication.

It’s also a nightmare to come off it. The withdrawal symptoms are horrendous. Check out the withdrawal symptoms online!

I went through it and warned my daughter when the doctor wanted to put her on it but she ignored me and took it anyway. When she had to stop taking it she told me she really wished she’d listened to me because it was such an awful experience.

[JenSetz]

I’ve been on Amitriptyline for some time now. I’m currently on the highest daily dose of 200 mgs. I have seen on this thread that people tell you to avoid it but it is an effective drug so long as you consider when you take it. It’s probably best to start at a weekend or at a time when you don’t have to be up at the crack of dawn because at first you will feel the effects of it. This is trial and error until you get the timings that suit you. I take 200 mgs usually about 20:00 (they take a good 2 hours for me to start feeling the effects) and I’m up for work at 07:00 but often I wake earlier.

I take them for insomnia, I have been a chronic insomniac for just over 9 years.

Until late last year I was taking Zopiclone as well as the Amitriptyline. It was the cocktail from hell and so had to step away from the Zopiclone which was a very nasty process. The Amitriptyline isn’t really massively dependant. I take it because I know I need it for a good sleep but the Zopiclone made me crave it and need it.

So, the moral of the story is take it in the evening (and as someone else pointed out not at the same time as Thyroid meds) but do a bit of experimentation in terms of timings. If there are days that you feel you don’t need it you can drop it for that day.

Good luck, please don’t end up like me by being on the most ridiculous dose of the stuff. All the best x

[purple64]

I take it for sciatica and you will sleep like a baby 😀

[shaws Administrator]

There must be gentler prescriptions. This is a warning and I don't want to upset you but I think if the FDA has given a warning we should take it seriously.

healthline.com/health/amitr...

[MariLiz in reply to shaws]

Thank you for that link shaws , I must admit that warning was news to me. I will discuss things with my GP to see if there is an alternative medication suitable for my conditions.

[shaws Administrator in reply to MariLiz]

I would never have thought, previously, to check prescriptions doctor gave always assuming it wouldn't cause any problems but for some that isn't the case. It is right we are cautious.

[Cooper27 in reply to shaws]

This is only an issue if you increase your dose too quickly. They like you to build your dose up quite slowly. The problem is if you suddenly jump from nothing to 50mcgs in one sitting. It actually took me about 5 months to build my dose up to 75mcgs, increasing by 10mcgs every few weeks.

The GP will tend to start you on 10mcgs, but if you are concerned, you can cut tablets in half for the first 2 weeks.

[shaws Administrator in reply to Cooper27]

I think it would be better if they checked the person's free T3 first as doctors are apt to treat 'symptoms of hypo' with another medication rather than an appropriate dose of thyroid hormones.

restartmed.com/t3-thyroid-h...

[Cooper27 in reply to shaws]

Of course it would be good to check that the symptoms are not due to being undermedicated, we don't want to take more medication than strictly necessary.

Having had a lot of experience with amitriptyline though, I thought it was best to allay the Mandy72's fears about suicidal thoughts though. She's already taken a dose, and is scared about side effects, but they really are very unlikely at the doses taken.

[DotLeeds in reply to shaws]

Thanks. My husband used to take this drug and I had not come across this warning.

[MariLiz]

I take a 10mg tablet at night, it helps with fibromyalgia pain and helps me sleep, I have never had any ill effects from taking this medication. I believe 10mg is the lowest dose, and was told by my GP it takes about six weeks before you feel the full benefit.

I hope it will help with your anxiety.

[shaws Administrator in reply to MariLiz]

If you have fibromyalgia pain. One of our Advisers (deceased) ran the Fibromyalgia Research Foundation and he found that Fibro patients had resistance to thyroid hormones and that only T3 could bring relief and at higher doses than would be usual.

web.archive.org/web/2010103...

[Mary-intussuception in reply to shaws]

Thank you for this info regarding Fibro. Hadn't heard of this before.

[Longinthetooth]

Hi

My sister took amytriptalin for migraines for a couple of years. It helped but since being on it her memory is not as sharp & she is only 54.

It's called liquid cosh in certain places.

[shaws Administrator]

I still think that other medications could be used:-

medlineplus.gov/druginfo/me...

[Kitten-whiskers]

Hello Mandy,

I do take amitriptyline occasionally, for my fibro and helping me sleep. It is an unlicensed drug and needs to be taken with caution. Listen to your body, it will soon let you know if the dose is to high

Best wishes

[helvella Administrator in reply to Kitten-whiskers]

Just to be clear, Amitriptyline is a licensed medicine but not specifically for fibromyalgia nor to help sleep.

There are about 16 Amitriptyline products visible on the Electronic Medicines Compendium site:

medicines.org.uk/emc/search...

One product identifies the four adult (and one paediatric) indications for which it is licensed:

4.1 Therapeutic indications

Amitriptyline tablets are indicated for:

• the treatment of major depressive disorder in adults

• the treatment of neuropathic pain in adults

• the prophylactic treatment of chronic tension type headache (CTTH) in adults

• the prophylactic treatment of migraine in adults

• the treatment of nocturnal enuresis in children aged 6 years and above when organic pathology, including spina bifida and related disorders, have been excluded and no response has been achieved to all other non-drug and drug treatments, including antispasmodics and vasopressin-related products. This medicinal product should only be prescribed by a healthcare professional with expertise in the management of persistent enuresis.

medicines.org.uk/emc/produc...

Fully agree about being careful with Amitriptyline (and, indeed, all medicines).

[Kitten-whiskers in reply to helvella]

The pain clinic nurse told us it was unlicensed, sorry

[helvella Administrator in reply to Kitten-whiskers]

Sounds like a misinterpretation - unlicensed for your use. Often called off-label prescribing. Mind, we see such a stream of inaccurate information from those who should know better, it is not surprising.

No need to apologise.

[Kitten-whiskers in reply to helvella]

You could be right. They do prescribe it a lot for us fibro sufferers, but it's not without lots of side effects and I do think it's a drug to be weary off. Thankfully herbal remedies, change in diet and trigger point are far better but the doctors never mention them.