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Misc Elavil (Amitriptyline)

waterheart776

waterheart776

Bluelighter
Joined
May 7, 2008
Messages
419
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All Over!
Been taking it for two days, and my GOODNESS can I notice a difference. It's like being on a benzo all day... Not too fond of this, but it beats having nerve pain. Anyway, I cannot find any information on BL, and for some reason the search function isn't working properly, so I figured I would post a thread.

I have a 90-day supply of this. I know all of the information I've read online, as I've researched this on my own. I know it's a TCA (Tri-cyclic Antidepressant), and I'm fairly familiar with its mechanism (in that it is NOT an SSRI) but as far as the withdrawal off of it, I have not been able to find any information. I'm a little nervous about taking this, but I'm taking it anyway (desperate times call for desperate measures, I suppose). Before I take any more, however, I'd REALLY like some more information ("here, have this pill.....wait, we didn't know the pharmacy forgot to order the maintenance kit for their brochure printer")


Anyone out there have any experience with this? Can anyone give me any pointers or useful information/personal experience.

This stuff makes me feel a little loopy.



Thanks in advance!,

WH


(EDIT: The other side to this post is the question: Is this compatible with medical cannabis? [used for said same reason]...some of the information I have found out there says that it isn't a good idea, but everyone's body is different)
 
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Google has revealed this to start with.

Here is the google search.

I've taken amitriptyline for insomnia, but I don't have much experience regarding withdrawal from it. Hope this at least points you in the right direction for the time being until someone more knowledgeable on the subject can chime in.
 
Thanks. The more I read and the more research I find, the less inclined I am to continue taking it. 25mg may not sound like a lot, but it sure as shit FEELS like a lot. 8(


8 cups of coffee did nothing on day 2 of this stuff. I'm kinda floored. Normally coffee always works. Instead I felt like a zombie pretty much the entire day.

So I'm opting to split the pills in half, or get a prescription for 10mg instead.
 
Ok, day 3, and splitting it in half sort of made a difference (the film coating on the pills make them a little difficult to split without a knife or a splitter). I feel a little *less* like a zombie, and coffee actually does something. I think I'm going to get a 10mg scrip. 25mg is WAY too much (for a sensitive system) to start with (plus, I do not want any of the metabolic side effects normally associated with TCAs [weight gain]). I went to a lot of trouble to drop 65 lbs in 4 and a half months, and I got my teenage metabolism back. I do not wanna take anything at a dosage that's going to fuck that up!

I can sleep, and my pain is mostly gone. Plus, the mental calming effects of this are rather profound. Not a bad pharma company invention, if you ask me (especially for nerve pain.....this is too damn sedating to be all that useful for depression, though, I think.....)

I really need to be careful, however. I've been reading stories of people who have taken this drug for various and sundry reasons for 1-3 months, and then quitting, and not being able to sleep for about 10 days....at low doses. Part of me wants to stop taking it, but the other part of me really likes this damn thing, and doesn't want to quit at all. (too bad the insurance company wouldn't just give in and cover the surgery without a fight though.....*sigh*.....nah....they wanted their buddies in big pharma to get their "cut" first.....money-grubbing bastards)


$285.00 per month in premiums for 90/10, 300 ded, 2500 max oop, and all I get is a scrip for a drug that's been around since the 60s....thanks Blue Cross! Nothin' but love for ya!
 
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Yeah i've used these for insomnia & to add to the analgesic effect of painkillers (nerve pain) & i'd agree they hit you like a steam roller. I first ever took 10 or 20 mg for sleep & just noticed mild sedation but enough to help me sleep just fine. Then i went up to 20 mg, used that for about a month in addition to codeine & ibuprofen for pain, then stopped them for almost a year.

Strangely when i went back on them my doc was eager to give me the 50 mg tabs as i'd mentioned i was still having sporadic insomnia, pain (by the way i feel ami seems to have an anesthetic effect on the body, chew one & see how you tongue feels!) & was waking up feeling a little hopeless some days a.k.a depression.

So furthermore i went on to take the 50mg tabs & was suprised they didnt turn me into sombody out of the cukoos nest. They certainly help sleep & seem to make for a very comfy one too.

However, using them daily for even a week & i felt dumb as hell.

I have car waitn for me outside so better split but ill post more on this laterrr.
 
I couldnt last 2 days on them as i just couldnt function. Was put on Nortriptyline (the active ingredient in amitryptaline) and it does the opposite somehow! It's like being hopped uo on coffee all the time. But helps my chronic migraines wonderfully.
 
^nortriptyline is not the active ingredient in amitriptyline. They are 2 separate TCA's branded as pamelor and elavil respectively.

If they are helping your pain, you should give them a shot because few other medications have NNH's anywhere as low or NNT's anywhere as high as the TCA's. You should build up a tolerance to the undesirable effects much quicker than the therapeutic ones so if I were you, I'd give it a week or two. You could talk to your doctor about starting you a bit lower (and possibly slowly titrating up) as well.
 
Ok so i worded it wrong but this is from wikipedia:

Nortriptyline is the active metabolite of amitriptyline that is demethylated in the liver. It inhibits the reuptake of norepinephrine (noradrenaline) and, to a lesser extent, serotonin with negligible effects on dopamine reuptake.
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I was prescribed this for a few months. I would take it nightly as needed for sleep (which with me was usually every night). I never experienced any withdrawls from it at all besides not being able to sleep for a couple of nights. No rls or anything, just couldn't fall asleep (which I was used to anyways).

From my understanding (someone correct me if Im wrong)...from what I remember, with this drug, the smaller the dosages are more intended for sleep which is why it's making you tired. It's used a lot for insomnia (around me anyways). I remember my doctor saying this because when I asked about upping the dosage, he said that the higher the dosage-the less of the sleepy feeling.

This is one of my first replies, so sorry if I wasn't much help! <3
 
hmmm. i take two 75mg tablets before bed and it knocks me right out. it's fantastic. i haven't found that it helps with my pain at all, however. i can't imagine that 20mgs is too much for anyone....wow.
 
Silvergirlie said:
hmmm. i take two 75mg tablets before bed and it knocks me right out. it's fantastic. i haven't found that it helps with my pain at all, however. i can't imagine that 20mgs is too much for anyone....wow.
Click to expand...

Just thought i'd offer some advice here. Any dose of amitriptyline over 40mg won't get you any more tired than 40mg would. The higher doses treat depression, they don't effect it's ability to put you to sleep (a doctor told me this!).
 
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