Posted by zeugma on October 28, 2003, at 22:26:46
In reply to Re: Agitated depression; anxiety bad in morning, posted by dannen on October 28, 2003, at 20:48:33
Dannen,
That early wakening is a classic sign, it's called 'terminal insomnia.' It was identified early on in the history of psychopharmacology as a marker of a potential POSITIVE response to TCA's.
The first things nortriptyline did, ata very low dose (20-30 mg a day)were:
cut down on my constant nausea;
stop the kind of anxiety you may be describing, a disruptive feeling I would call an 'inner shivering.'
I hope nortriptyline helps you sleep through the night. I believe that many of its therapeutic actions are mediated through its regulation of the sleep cycle. My sleep problems have always centered around a chaotic sleep schedule, no matter how hard I tried I could not fall asleep at the same time every night. Then when I would sleep it would be the wrong kind of sleep. This os a different problem from yours, but I hope nortriptyline can help you stay asleep until you want to wake up.
The side effects I got early on were lowered blood pressure, headache (from dehydration), aqnd dizziness. The solution was to drink plenty of liquids, which also helps with the constipation and dry mouth, though I didn't get those until I reached a higher dosage. Also, a certain degree of increased emotionality can occur. I believe this drug is a powerful 'normalizer' of emotions, and this can cause some agitation; it's something to watch out for, but I think it is part of the therapeutic action.Thanks for the positive wishes, and wishing you the best in return,
zeugma
poster:zeugma
thread:271647
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20031025/msgs/274476.html