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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 12 of 12. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Levi on June 14, 2005, at 23:37:02
I am currently taking Parnate. My doctor prescribed me Seroquel for sleep and it works but leaves me feeling horrible in the morning(probably due to the tendency that antipsychotics significantly lower your dopamine which I am pretty sure is the chemical I am deficient in).
I am limited from trycyclic antidepressants due to interactions with the MAOI and can't take benzodiazepines due to past addiction problems(opiates to be specific).I have tried Ambien which worked for a short time but eventually I would wake up halfway through the night unable to go back to sleep.
Sonata didn't work and my psychiatrist said Lunesta probably won't either if the Sonata didn't.
Does anyone know of any other sleep medications that can be taken with MAOI's that are effective?
Thanks,
LeviI also
Posted by mogger on June 15, 2005, at 0:40:38
In reply to MAOI's and sleep medications, posted by Levi on June 14, 2005, at 20:52:15
How much Seroquel do you take? I hear that the groginess wears off after a while. Look at Crazymeds.org and look up Seroquel and it will tell you that Seroquel is the least potent of anti-psychotics. My sister is on it and that is her experience as well. Hope that helps a little,
mogger
Posted by Levi on June 15, 2005, at 17:20:39
In reply to Re: MAOI's and sleep medications, posted by mogger on June 15, 2005, at 0:40:38
I take 200mg at night and it has caused nothing but problems since i've started it about a year ago(originally for anxiety).
Thanks for your input,
Levi
Posted by Phillipa on June 15, 2005, at 17:57:41
In reply to Re: MAOI's and sleep medications, posted by Levi on June 15, 2005, at 17:20:39
I don't think it's fair for your pdoc to "assume" lunesta won't work. Won't he at least give you a sample you could try? Fondly, Phillipa
Posted by Levi on June 15, 2005, at 18:07:58
In reply to Re: MAOI's and sleep medications » Levi, posted by Phillipa on June 15, 2005, at 17:57:41
Well i've also heard that Lunesta leaves you with a nasty taste in your mouth in the morning and that it is a fairly weak medication. So I dont have to high of hopes for Lunesta anyway.
Thank you for your support,
Levi
Posted by willyee on June 15, 2005, at 18:27:25
In reply to Re: MAOI's and sleep medications, posted by Levi on June 15, 2005, at 18:07:58
> Well i've also heard that Lunesta leaves you with a nasty taste in your mouth in the morning and that it is a fairly weak medication. So I dont have to high of hopes for Lunesta anyway.
>
> Thank you for your support,
> Levi
>
>
10 mg of amtriptlyine works for me.I read here in one archive that it also helps with dreams if nightmares are ones problems.I hate lunesta,hardly works for me and makes me weak the entire next day,and the taste and cost.Ambein is eh but tolerance seems to build rapidly.
Amtriplyine is very in expensive and you wake up feeling ok.
Posted by Phillipa on June 15, 2005, at 18:44:46
In reply to Re: MAOI's and sleep medications, posted by Levi on June 15, 2005, at 18:07:58
Levi, Hope I didn't offend you. But I read that if you put the tablet in let's say an empty vitamin capsule it eliminates the bad taste, and I thought if he could give you a "free sample" you could judge for yourself. Fondly, Phillipa
Posted by Levi on June 15, 2005, at 20:19:42
In reply to Re: MAOI's and sleep medications, posted by Phillipa on June 15, 2005, at 18:44:46
Thanks for the suggestions guys
Phillipa you did not offend me and i'm sorry if I gave you that impression.
As for the amitryptyline: Wow I totally forgot about amitryptyline, my father takes it for sleep and I think it helps him. I know it's a trycyclic antidepressant, are they safe in combination with an MAOI??
Thanks Everyone,
Levi
Posted by Declan on June 15, 2005, at 22:03:22
In reply to MAOI's and sleep medications, posted by Levi on June 14, 2005, at 20:52:15
Hi Levi
I'm curious (because I want to take Parnate myself), what dose are you on? I don't sleep that well now and anticipate Parnate making it worse. I wondered if it was possible to find a therapeutic window where there was not much insomnia but some AD effect. I've been addicted to benzos and opiates, so I know about limited options. Sometimes I use herbs, minerals, all that stuff. Mild and expensive, but then.....Any ideas?
Declan
Posted by Levi on June 15, 2005, at 22:03:23
In reply to Re: MAOI's and sleep medications, posted by Declan on June 14, 2005, at 23:40:06
Hi Declan,
I am currently taking 30mg of Parnate a day(10mg 3 times a day). Parnate and Nardil, which are both MAOI's, are the only antidepressants that I have ever gotten any releif from and I've been on almost all of the SSRI's and a few tricyclics. I would recommend Nardil if you have any anxiety disorders because it really helped me with my social anxiety.
Anyway, in response to your concern about Parnate affecting your sleep: When I first started Parnate I did notice some difficulty with sleeping at night so my doctor switched me to two tablets in the morning and one in the afternoon which seemed to take care of the problem. I later switched back to one tablet three times a day once i adjusted to it so my dosage would be more spread out.
Just some personal feedback in case you do decide to go on Parnate: When I first started Parnate it made me really tired for about two hours after each dose for about the first week so I had to decrease my initial dosage to a gradually increasing amount. I'm not sure if thats a common side effect when first starting so don't let me discourage you because I would highly recommend Parnate to anyone who hasn't responded to the traditional antidepressants.
Thanks for your response,
Levi
Posted by willyee on June 16, 2005, at 0:45:28
In reply to Re: MAOI's and sleep medications, posted by Levi on June 15, 2005, at 20:19:42
Definatly not all,i can tell you first hand imipriine DOES NOT as well as others.
Amtripyline however is one that does,and actualy the two meds have some documented use on them.
Personly i cant takt amitrip in the daytime period as its too sedating,however its worked at the same 10 mg dose for sleep at two weeks now.Heres a snip of an article on it as well as the link:
In summary, it is safer to use tranylcypromine combined with amitriptyline than tranylcypromine alone. Even on this combination however, dietary restriction and an MAOI card are essential. Certain MAOI + tricyclic combinations eg. with clomipramine (Anafranil) or imipramine (Tofranil) are potentially lethal and should never be used. The use of combined antidepressants is complicated and should be restricted to those who are familiar with it.
(The article of course goes into much more detail than this paragraph,also unfrotunatly i notice no additional AD benifit from using it,which i had hoped with be an additional plus.
Posted by Chairman_MAO on June 17, 2005, at 12:41:43
In reply to Re: MAOI's and sleep medications, posted by Levi on June 15, 2005, at 17:12:09
Re: drowsiness, etc.. This goes away if you get the dose higher than 90mg/day. The amphetamine-like metabolites' effects overwhelm the MAOI side effects.
Re: sleep medication. I swithced from Parnate because nothing seemed to deal with the insomnia well enough, and my pdoc would not prescribe a short-acting benzo. I'll bet ambien + triazolam would work long-term, quite possibly. What about chloral hydrate?
I used to get by using a drug called rotundine, or l-tetrahydropalmatine, a mild DA antagonist and Ca2+ blocker along with a TINY dose of seroquel or diphenhydramine, with or without marijuana.
This is the end of the thread.
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