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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 10 of 10. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Chris on March 20, 1999, at 17:07:51
I have been diagnosed with anxiety attacks after a recent surgery. I was prescribed Prozac--side effect was up for 48 hours. Then elavil. My doctor decided to try me on Buspar before the elavil so I started Buspar at 1/2 a 15 mg dosage five days ago. Now I am having severe tightening of my muscles in my shoulders and arms, eye and face twitches, neck sore, etc. Any advice? I think I'm going to stop the Buspar. Kava Kava? Valerian???
Posted by saintjames on March 20, 1999, at 20:18:47
In reply to Buspar not working, posted by Chris on March 20, 1999, at 17:07:51
Now I am having severe tightening of my muscles in my shoulders and arms, eye and face twitches, neck sore, etc. Any advice? I think I'm going to stop the Buspar. Kava Kava? Valerian???
James here....
While I am not a doc, you are describing a classic side effect associated with anti psychotics and sometimes Buspar. Stop taking the Buspar if possible and call doc asap. While these TD/EP like sideeffects are not life threatning they can be progressive and continue
after meds are stopped.
Posted by Chris on March 21, 1999, at 9:04:01
In reply to Re: Buspar not working, posted by saintjames on March 20, 1999, at 20:18:47
> Now I am having severe tightening of my muscles in my shoulders and arms, eye and face twitches, neck sore, etc. Any advice? I think I'm going to stop the Buspar. Kava Kava? Valerian???
>
> James here....
>
> While I am not a doc, you are describing a classic side effect associated with anti psychotics and sometimes Buspar. Stop taking the Buspar if possible and call doc asap. While these TD/EP like sideeffects are not life threatning they can be progressive and continue
> after meds are stopped.
Thanks James--Any idea what to try next. I seem to be extremely sensitive to all these meds.
Posted by Chris on March 21, 1999, at 9:10:08
In reply to Buspar not working, posted by Chris on March 20, 1999, at 17:07:51
> I have been diagnosed with anxiety attacks after a recent surgery. I was prescribed Prozac--side effect was up for 48 hours. Then elavil. My doctor decided to try me on Buspar before the elavil so I started Buspar at 1/2 a 15 mg dosage five days ago. Now I am having severe tightening of my muscles in my shoulders and arms, eye and face twitches, neck sore, etc. Any advice? I think I'm going to stop the Buspar. Kava Kava? Valerian???
IS THERE SOMETHING THAT I CAN TAKE JUST WHEN I'M HAVING AN ANXIETY ATTACK TO RELIEVE AT THE TIME? THIS IS TOTALLY NEW TO ME AND I AM WAY TO SENSITIVE TO ALL THE MEDS I'VE TRIED. I'M EVEN CURIOUS AS TO WHETHER ALL THE MEDS THAT I HAD AFTER SURGERY MAY HAVE STARTED THIS WHOLE THING. ANY SUGGESTIONS. I'M BECOMING DESPERATE!!!
Posted by Pat on March 21, 1999, at 9:23:59
In reply to IS THERE SOMETHING ELSE I CAN TAKE?, posted by Chris on March 21, 1999, at 9:10:08
While you are waiting to find an AD that works for your anxiety, you could try ativan. I have found that 1 mg of ativan works very well for anxiety attacks I have had, and works in about 45 minutes. Good luck! Let me know how you're doing. By the way, I just started elavil too.
Posted by Elizabeth on March 24, 1999, at 14:32:51
In reply to Buspar not working, posted by Chris on March 20, 1999, at 17:07:51
Hi Chris. I think that Ativan, or something
Did you try the Elavil? If so, what happened? If not, I would avoid it, as there are other drugs in its class (imipramine, nortriptyline, desipramine) that have milder side effects. Another drug in the same class as Prozac (an SSRI) could also work without causing problems (they're not all exactly the same). Most antidepressants can help with this kind of anxiety (Wellbutrin is an exception).
What's happening with the BuSpar could be, as James suggests, an "extrapyramidal" symptom (a movement disorder caused by blockade of the effects of dopamine in a particular part of the brain). I would definitely stop that.
If your anxiety attacks are what they call "panic attacks" then BuSpar wasn't an appropriate drug for you to be taking. (It works well for "free-floating" anxiety but not for this kind of anxiety.)
Are you seeing a doctor (preferably a psychiatrist) about this? (It's sort of hard to tell from reading your posts.) If not, I suggest that you do so.
Posted by Pat on March 24, 1999, at 17:20:57
In reply to Re: Buspar not working, posted by Elizabeth on March 24, 1999, at 14:32:51
Elizabeth, you said other tricyclites have less side effects than elavil. Can you please tell me specifically what side effects are lesser with those drugs, etc. I need more info on this subject. Thanks...
Posted by Elizabeth on March 24, 1999, at 21:57:56
In reply to Re: Buspar not working - Elizabeth, posted by Pat on March 24, 1999, at 17:20:57
> Elizabeth, you said other tricyclites have less side effects than elavil. Can you please tell me specifically what side effects are lesser with those drugs, etc. I need more info on this subject. Thanks...
I was thinking of desipramine in particular, also nortriptyline (less so). Some side effects that I can think of that they are less likely to cause than amitriptyline are: sedation, dry mouth, constipation, urinary retention, and cognitive impairment (in other words, nearly all the side effects that the tricyclics have!).
Good luck....
Posted by Pat on March 26, 1999, at 16:05:22
In reply to Re: Buspar not working - Elizabeth, posted by Elizabeth on March 24, 1999, at 21:57:56
> > Elizabeth, Thanks for responding so quickly. I'm experiencing some of those side effects with elavil, but they are not too bad, compared to the side effects I've endursed on SSRI's. Maybe if the side effects become more bothersome, I'll ask the doc about the other two meds you mentioned. Thanks again.
Posted by Elizabeth on March 28, 1999, at 3:00:30
In reply to Re: Buspar not working - Elizabeth, posted by Pat on March 26, 1999, at 16:05:22
> > > Elizabeth, Thanks for responding so quickly. I'm experiencing some of those side effects with elavil, but they are not too bad, compared to the side effects I've endursed on SSRI's. Maybe if the side effects become more bothersome, I'll ask the doc about the other two meds you mentioned. Thanks again.
Sure - of course, since it's working for you, you don't want to jinx it by switching unless you really need to. :-)
This is the end of the thread.
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