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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 8 of 8. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by KarenB on March 14, 2000, at 11:45:11
Anyone taken Nortriptyline? If so, any side effects? Any experience with it working for fatigue depression? I am Bipolar II and don't respond well to SSRIs. The working meds I had in the Philippines are not available here, so my new doc has me trying this.
Posted by ChrisK on March 14, 2000, at 12:29:35
In reply to Nortriptyline? Any experience?, posted by KarenB on March 14, 2000, at 11:45:11
Karen,
There are a few of us here in Babbleland who take Nortriptyline as our main AD. I personally didn't react to the SSRI's either. The main side effects I have seen are sedation and dry mouth. By itself it didn't cause me any other problems. I also have to augment it with Zyprexa and Wellbutrin. Thses two help with obsessive thoughts and giving me a little more energy.
It is definitely worth giving it a try. From what I've read it is one of the TCA's with the least amount of side effects.
Right now I take 100 mg at night and have no problems with sleep or grogginess in the morning.
Good luck with it,
Chris
Posted by KarenB on March 14, 2000, at 12:47:06
In reply to Re: Nortriptyline? Any experience?, posted by ChrisK on March 14, 2000, at 12:29:35
> Karen,
>
> There are a few of us here in Babbleland who take Nortriptyline as our main AD. I personally didn't react to the SSRI's either. The main side effects I have seen are sedation and dry mouth. By itself it didn't cause me any other problems. I also have to augment it with Zyprexa and Wellbutrin. Thses two help with obsessive thoughts and giving me a little more energy.
>
> It is definitely worth giving it a try. From what I've read it is one of the TCA's with the least amount of side effects.
>
> Right now I take 100 mg at night and have no problems with sleep or grogginess in the morning.
>
> Good luck with it,
> ChrisDear Chris,
Thank you for your input!
I have a question: When you say that "sedation" is a side effect, do you mean, "Oh, I feel strangely euphoric, I am so sedate," or "Oh, I am sedated, I'm going to sleep now..."
Please clarify. Being sleepy, groggy and fatigued is the last thing I need! Hope that's not what you mean...
Thanks!
KGB
Posted by ChrisK on March 14, 2000, at 14:47:10
In reply to Re: Nortriptyline? Any experience?, posted by KarenB on March 14, 2000, at 12:47:06
A lot of people find that TCA's in general will put you to sleep. Some doctors even prescribe amitriptyline (cousin to Nortrip) as a way to treat insomnia. I take mine at night and don't really have a sleep problem. Some people find that even though they sleep for 8- 10 hours they are still groggy for the first part of the morning.
The sedation is not a "serene" form of sedation but rather one that can make you tired.
Chris
Posted by Scott L. Schofield on March 14, 2000, at 15:34:36
In reply to Re: Nortriptyline? Any experience?, posted by ChrisK on March 14, 2000, at 14:47:10
> A lot of people find that TCA's in general will put you to sleep. Some doctors even prescribe amitriptyline (cousin to Nortrip) as a way to treat insomnia. I take mine at night and don't really have a sleep problem. Some people find that even though they sleep for 8- 10 hours they are still groggy for the first part of the morning.
Hi ChrisK.
Did you find that you felt sedated when you first began treatment with nortriptyline? If so, how long did it take to disappear? I tried it once. I stopped taking it during the second week because I thought the feeling of sedation would continue. I hate feeling sedated, even if only a tiny bit.
100mg is not a small dose. I guess you are doing well on it since you haven’t voiced any complaints. I just thought I would mention that nortriptyline is one of those drugs that can lose its efficacy if you take too much. If for some reason you find that you are not doing as well, you may find that lowering the dose, rather than raising the dose, helps you to recover a full response. I think the average dose is 75mg.
Stay well.
- Scott
Posted by JohnL on March 15, 2000, at 2:56:47
In reply to Nortriptyline? Any experience?, posted by KarenB on March 14, 2000, at 11:45:11
> Anyone taken Nortriptyline? If so, any side effects? Any experience with it working for fatigue depression? I am Bipolar II and don't respond well to SSRIs. The working meds I had in the Philippines are not available here, so my new doc has me trying this.
I used to take Nortriptyline with Zoloft. Sadly the Zoloft was so bad for my sex life I had to abondon it, and the Nortriptyline went with it. But in hindsight, I liked Nortriptyline. Its primary side effect for me that didn't go away was dry mouth. It was good for sleep if I took it in late afternoon. It was strangely activating. By that I mean, if I got active, it felt like it was boosting me. But if I stayed on the couch, I just vegged out. I had to get up and get going to kind of kickstart it.
Posted by ChrisK on March 15, 2000, at 6:21:09
In reply to Re: Nortriptyline? Any experience?, posted by Scott L. Schofield on March 14, 2000, at 15:34:36
> Did you find that you felt sedated when you first began treatment with nortriptyline? If so, how long did it take to disappear? I tried it once. I stopped taking it during the second week because I thought the feeling of sedation would continue. I hate feeling sedated, even if only a tiny bit.
Scott,
I've never really had a problem with the sedation but then again I have a history of being fairly med resistant. I rarely notice the bad side effects (except for the sex problems on SSRI's). My current cocktail includes Wellbutrin, Zyprexa and Naltrexone in addition to the Nortriptyline so I can't really pin anything on one med in particular. I know the Zyprexa is very sedating and the main reason for my weight gain but when I've tried to go off of it I have felt miserable. Since I seem to be at a relatively steady state I'm not inclined to drop anything.
Chris
Posted by Ginny on March 15, 2000, at 10:45:30
In reply to Re: Nortriptyline? Any experience?, posted by ChrisK on March 15, 2000, at 6:21:09
> > Did you find that you felt sedated when you first began treatment with nortriptyline? If so, how long did it take to disappear? I tried it once. I stopped taking it during the second week because I thought the feeling of sedation would continue. I hate feeling sedated, even if only a tiny bit.
>
> Scott,
>
> I've never really had a problem with the sedation but then again I have a history of being fairly med resistant. I rarely notice the bad side effects (except for the sex problems on SSRI's). My current cocktail includes Wellbutrin, Zyprexa and Naltrexone in addition to the Nortriptyline so I can't really pin anything on one med in particular. I know the Zyprexa is very sedating and the main reason for my weight gain but when I've tried to go off of it I have felt miserable. Since I seem to be at a relatively steady state I'm not inclined to drop anything.
>
> ChrisI took it for about 2 weeks. I know that's not very long. It was my alternative to amitriptilyne. I had to stop taking that due to heart palpitations. I was taking Nortriptyline for migraines and during the time I took it I took more Imitrex than you can imagine. It didn't do a thing for me. That's why I only took it for a couple of weeks. Ginny
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