Posted by old pro on May 11, 2002, at 15:39:04
In reply to Re: Antidepressants and sedation, etc., posted by DonnaM on May 8, 2002, at 12:15:23
> I have had severe insomnia of and on for several years and found Doxepin(30 mg) the best for a restful sleep without daytime sedation but like you found it did nothing for depression, actually made it worse in my case, and I gained 25 lbs in two months. Paxil also worked great for sleep but I was extremely tired during the day, even at 5 mg, and totally unmotivated. Zoloft(not by itself) with Epival(Depakote) worked great for me for a couple of years, for sleep and depression, but then I became unmotivated again. I tried Amitriptyline once at 50 mg and it did such a number (numbness, dizzy, oversedated) that I never tried it again. If Doxepin doesn't help your depression then I would say that all the tricyclics would be a poor choice for you according to my experience. I tried a few of them with poor results. If your like me then Paxil would be a good try or combine Doxepin with another class of anti-dpressant so the Doxepin can help your sleep but the other AD can deal with your depression. I would consider this for myself if it weren't for the weight gain. I personally do good with a sleep med Imovane (Canadian but similar to Ambien in the US) but have the side effects of heart palpitations (which I have been putting up with for a good niight's sleep)
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> > I would like to receive input from members of this group re which antidepressant medication might be the most sedating. I would like to take an antidepressant with the greatest sedative effects.
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> > Insomnia (including early morning awakening, difficulty in falling asleep, and difficulty in staying asleep) is one of the most troubling symptoms of my depression. I have done some research into the sedative effects of depression. According to the book "Drug facts and comparisons, 1999 edition" amitriptyline has the greatest sedative effects of tricyclic drugs. According to a book titled "The management of depression" edited by Stuart Checkley, trimipramine has the greatest sedative effects of the tricyclic antidepressants. The format of the table re sedative effects (actually the table is titled "Comparison of adverse effects of tricyclic drugs") in the Checkley book is quite similar to the format of the info. in the book titled "Drug facts and comparisons". Perhaps the info. in the Checkley book was taken from an edition of "Drug facts and comparisons" that was different from the edition that I have.
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> > I am currently taking doxepin (and I have taken it for several years). The sedative effects of doxepin are the best of any antidepressant drug that I have taken. But, I would like to know if there is something better.
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> > I do know that different persons taking a given drug can have vastly different side effects. I have read some posts from members of this group that Effexor caused marked sedation. I recently received samples of that drug from my pdoc. The drug caused me to have elevated BP and my insomnia was worse, and I soon discontinued taking it.
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> > I would like to have members of this group know that doxepin has helped me a lot. However, when I am having an episode of depression, it doesn't completely eliminate the depression. But, it does allow me to function fairly well. I would like to find some drug or other antidepressant therapy that would completely eliminate my symptoms of depression. At the present time I am into my fifth month of depression. I have suffered periodic episodes of depression (unipolar major depression) for about 42 years. And, I would like to find something that would relatively quickly cure my depression. For several years I have taken doxepin as a preventative when my symptoms of depression have gone away. But, it hasn't prevented recurrences of depression.Hi DonnaM,
Thanks for your reply to my post.
I was especially interested in your mention of Imovane (Ambien). I will do some research into that drug.
The drugs that I have taken and discontinued taking due either to bad side effects or failure to help my depression are as follows: amitriptyline, Prozac, Paxil, Luvox, Anafranil, Effexor, and Remeron. I did take Eskalith for awhile, and it did help relieve my symptoms of depression some. I discontinued taking it when my depression went away.
old pro
poster:old pro
thread:105496
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20020510/msgs/106007.html