Posted by ColoradoSnowflake on August 19, 2009, at 13:32:52
In reply to Re: Nortriptyline for sleep / how much weight gain? » ColoradoSnowflake, posted by Sunbath on August 19, 2009, at 11:01:20
Hi Sunbath:
Thanks for the nice, supportive comments!
I'm feeling better than I have in 15 years!
I've had anxiety since I was little. Yes, the kind that you're always tense all over. I always liked physical activities so I guess that has helped me a lot over all these years. When I was in Jr. High I discovered alcohol, then at U. of Colo I got a TERRIBLE case of mononucleosis and the docs started me on dexedrine. For MANY MANY years I was able to manipulate alcohol/dexedrine so I always felt pretty good and no one ever realized I had any more of a problem than being a major partier who could still get good grades. Finally, the dexedrine just made me anxious and I had to let go of it. Then, the alcohol just made me drunk and I had to let that go too. Then I had a huge depression breakdown and I've been depressed ever since. Before that, I was anxious all the time but never depressed. My pdocs say I was always depressed but it presented as anxiety.
I ALWAYS have had trouble sleeping but can't take many things or I'm zonked out the whole next day, so why bother? that's worse than being tired from no sleep.My pdoc always uses Parnate and a tca in tandem. He gave me the choice of a few different tca's I could take with the Parnate and I chose amytriptyline because I was so afraid of insomnia. I took that while getting off my other meds slowly increasing it so I had plenty AD to hold me during the two week washout period. I loved the sleep amytrip gives me. I was tired during the day, but part of that was coming off other drugs. When I started the Parnate it wasn't working for me because I was so tired. This kept going on and on and I went up to 60mg/day Parnate. Psychobabblers (thanks, Scott) kept telling me it was probably the Amytrip and I should switch to nortrip. I resisted because of fear of insomnia. FINALLY I did switch and the Miracle happened! I felt GREAT! and I have ever since. I had two nights of mild insomnia when I switched from Amytrip to Nortrip. That's it. I have never had any other insomnia!!!! I take the nortrip about 6pm (I go to bed at 11pm) or I'm tired in the morning.
I have never found a sleeping pill that works for me. But I always like to have something around to take in case I do get insomnia (I guess I'm insomnia-phobic). I haven't tried Lunesta or Sonata so I'm going to get ahold of some of them "just in case".
I am not very anxious at all on Parnate. It's amazing. I'll probably always be a little anxious, that's just me. I'm not jazzed up, I'm not depressed, I don't think of suicide, I'm not fearful of things, I don't over react to anticipation of icky stuff I'm going to have to do, I think of those things with equanimity not fear that I wont be able to perform. It's all pretty amazing! I've been having some rough things to handle the last year. Yesterday was a big mediation re: custody of my beloved little toddler grandson who spends a lot of time with me, and it didn't even put me in fear!!! (It's now going to go in front of a judge)
Oh, I do take Provigil because otherwise I do have some fatigue during the day. I have to find some less expensive.
So I don't have that icky feeling of a lot of chemicals in my body. In fact, I don't feel like I'm taking anything. I have NO side effects except some bad dry mouth. I'm so happy that I've found Parnate/Nortriptyline. I think the Nortrip is an essential part of the treatment. I really do feel they work synergistically.
This is probably lots more than you were asking or wanted to know! Sorry!
Gayle
poster:ColoradoSnowflake
thread:912856
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20090818/msgs/912985.html