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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 14 of 14. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by strata on March 12, 2012, at 18:00:19
Anyone else struggling with Nardil side effects? Namely cant ejaculate, feel like fainting when I stand up, feel bloated as cant pee properly (Urinary retention). They are quite tough but not as tough as suicidal depression and the nardil seems to be helping me. My doc is bringing it down from 90mg to 60mg Ive only been on it for a couple of months and I hope this will sort out the side effects but keep the benefical mood lifting effects.
Ive been on a lot of meds and never had any side effects but Nardil seems to be super crazy for side effects. My doc actually said to me "This is like no other drug youve been on". I always said as long as my depression got a bit better i wouldnt complain about the side effects but Nardil is CRAZY, the side effects are tough at the moment. Has anyone else had really bad side effects in the beginning and did they go away eventually?
This is my first post so please be kind
Take care
Posted by emmanuel98 on March 12, 2012, at 20:53:51
In reply to Nardil horrible side effects, posted by strata on March 12, 2012, at 18:00:19
Sounds awful. I've never been on nardil, but I will say that I had awful postural hypotension on parnate and it went away after about a year. But over the course of the year, it got to be less and less of an issue.
Posted by SLS on March 13, 2012, at 0:34:45
In reply to Nardil horrible side effects, posted by strata on March 12, 2012, at 18:00:19
> Anyone else struggling with Nardil side effects? Namely cant ejaculate, feel like fainting when I stand up, feel bloated as cant pee properly (Urinary retention). They are quite tough but not as tough as suicidal depression and the nardil seems to be helping me. My doc is bringing it down from 90mg to 60mg Ive only been on it for a couple of months and I hope this will sort out the side effects but keep the benefical mood lifting effects.
>
> Ive been on a lot of meds and never had any side effects but Nardil seems to be super crazy for side effects. My doc actually said to me "This is like no other drug youve been on". I always said as long as my depression got a bit better i wouldnt complain about the side effects but Nardil is CRAZY, the side effects are tough at the moment. Has anyone else had really bad side effects in the beginning and did they go away eventually?
>
> This is my first post so please be kind
>
> Take care
For me, the dizziness on Nardil never disappeared, although it did with Parnate. Parnate is usually more forgiving as far as side effects are concerned. With Nardil, the ability to reach orgasm can return after a few weeks to three months. This does happen fairly often. For urinary retention, bethanecol might help. For the dizziness, Florinef (fludrocortisone) is often prescribed. The degree of dizziness would likely decrease somewhat over time, but it might not disappear entirely. It might be tolerable after awhile. The reduction in dosage will almost certainly reduce the side effects. 60 mg is really the minimum dosage necessary to produce a response in the more severe cases of depression. I am impressed that your doctor brought you up to 90 mg, and that he didn't go below 60 mg.
- Scott
Posted by strata on March 14, 2012, at 9:08:04
In reply to Re: Nardil horrible side effects » strata, posted by SLS on March 13, 2012, at 0:34:45
I was very suicidal when he first put me on it so he slowly built up to 90mg as soon as possible. The dizziness I can handle, i just have to stand still when I forget to get up quickly! Im also on Movicol for the constipation which is helping. i spoke to the pharmacist today and he said I must make appointment with GP about not being able to pee properly. Hopefully the sexual side effects will go away with time. I dont have a partner at the moment so that isnt an issue but is very depressing in itself. Thanks for the replies :O)
Posted by strata on March 14, 2012, at 9:09:53
In reply to Re: Nardil horrible side effects, posted by strata on March 14, 2012, at 9:08:04
I mean my psychiatrist built it up as quickly as he could but didnt bump me up too quickly! Also i meant when I forget to stand up slowly.
Posted by oioioi123 on March 19, 2012, at 20:07:40
In reply to Re: Nardil horrible side effects, posted by strata on March 14, 2012, at 9:09:53
my friend im guessing 90mg is either to high for you, or just went up way to quick. i have been on 60mg for a month and a half and the side effects are going away and im getting fantastic results, only after a few months would i go to 75 and beyond. to jump to 90 quick(which is a high dose) your gonna get hit with some hard and bad side effects that could turn you away from a miracle drug. drop back down to 60 and stay there till your comfortable. for the constipation get some fibre pills or metamucil and take it a few times a day, get some probiotics, even activia yogourt. and the backing down the dosage and doing it properly should help with hypotension. also your doc might not go for this but he put me on a low dose stimulant which helped with hypotension, daytime tirewdness and cognition. a perfect combo. any other advice just feel free to ask
Posted by strata on March 22, 2012, at 5:04:38
In reply to Re: Nardil horrible side effects, posted by oioioi123 on March 19, 2012, at 20:07:40
Hi there, thanks so much for your reply. I was suicidal when he put me on it. I spent a month at 45mg, then 2 weeks at 60mg (after 3 weeks at 60 I noticed my mood improving) then 2 weeks at 75 then two at 90. He brought me back down to 75 for 2 weeks then back to 60. My moods have been swinging again and the suicidal urges kicked in for a whole week but that could be the med just settling down. This is the only med in 10 years which Ive noticed an improvement with which is why the side effects are so annoying!!!
The side effects are better at 60 altho the fluid retention is still there a bit. I might see how I get on at 60 for a while then try and up it again. So you think really slowly is the way to increase the dose? I think my psychiatrist was worried and wanted me on 90 as soon as.
Thanks so much for your reply :O)
Posted by Oioioi123 on March 22, 2012, at 6:15:26
In reply to Re: Nardil horrible side effects, posted by strata on March 22, 2012, at 5:04:38
Absolutely man, so many people doctors/psych included are set on the fact "get to the highest dose quick as possible" and it makes no sense to me. Their reasoning is to inhibit mao as quickly as possible and see results quicker but at what expense? Well I think your seeing that expense. I went against my doctors advice and went 15mg 2 weeks 30mg 2 weeks
And so on till 60. That's where i started noticing some side effects BUT also really good results. So I stayed there a good month to month and a half and let my body get used to it before deciding to go to 75mg. And surprisingly i figured out 75 means way more side effects and not
Much more benefit. Spending all that time at 60 killed
My depression and anxiety, if I woulda done what the doc wanted and rapidly went to 90 then titrate down to find my right dose I would have been in side effect hell! And Nardil side effects are as you know not something to take lightly. Slow and steady wins the race with Nardil in my opinion. It requires patience no doubt, but If you have had your illness probably near or even your whole life, what's another month or two to have a MASSIVE payoff right? Keep me up to date on your progress my friend
Posted by jedi on March 23, 2012, at 18:56:31
In reply to Nardil horrible side effects, posted by strata on March 12, 2012, at 18:00:19
I have been on Nardil for most of the past 14 years. There is nothing like it for atypical depression with social anxiety. I have tapered off Nardil about 5 or 6 times in that 14 year period. Each time thinking that maybe I could live without the medication. Within a matter of months, each time, my major depression returned. I'm a lifer but will probably always keep trying.
This last period off of Nardil felt so good but after many good months several major life stressors combined to precipitate another bout of major depression. My depression is actually double depression, since I always have a residual dysthymia even when my major depression is controlled. This last major depression was very painful and I started back on Nardil and raised my dosage fairly quickly to 120mg.
I had most of the side effects you mentioned and slowly went back down to 60mg, which is the lowest dose that works for my major depression. My orthostatic hypotension was the worse it has ever been at 120mg. I actually passed out a couple of times. I was dehydrated and it just hit me bad for a short time. I have never passed out from hypotension in the past. I control the insomnia with 50mg of Benadryl and .5mg of clonazepam. The delayed ejaculation always improves, but sometimes takes several months. When I am at over 60mg of Nardil sometimes I will have complete anorgasmia. At 60mg, at least for me, orgasm will still be delayed but not absent.
You have to be careful with weight gain. Nardil will cause cravings for sweet carbohydrates. I can also change your metabolism where it is much easier to eat past the feeling of being full. I control this with a low carb diet and lots of exercise. Talk to your Dr. before starting a low carb diet. It can cause dehydration and make the orthostatic hypotension much worse.
I am one of the lucky ones that Nardil always works for my major depression. 45+ other combinations of antidepressants and augmenters did not work for me. Stick to your 60mg. Most of the side effects will go away or get much better.
In my opinion, there is no pain worse than major depression. I live with the residual side effects. They do get better with time.
Good Luck,
Jedi> Anyone else struggling with Nardil side effects? Namely cant ejaculate, feel like fainting when I stand up, feel bloated as cant pee properly (Urinary retention). They are quite tough but not as tough as suicidal depression and the nardil seems to be helping me. My doc is bringing it down from 90mg to 60mg Ive only been on it for a couple of months and I hope this will sort out the side effects but keep the benefical mood lifting effects.
>
> Ive been on a lot of meds and never had any side effects but Nardil seems to be super crazy for side effects. My doc actually said to me "This is like no other drug youve been on". I always said as long as my depression got a bit better i wouldnt complain about the side effects but Nardil is CRAZY, the side effects are tough at the moment. Has anyone else had really bad side effects in the beginning and did they go away eventually?
>
> This is my first post so please be kind
>
> Take care
Posted by strata on May 14, 2012, at 11:31:34
In reply to Re: Nardil horrible side effects » strata, posted by jedi on March 23, 2012, at 18:56:31
hi everyone sexual functioning is back! no dizziness. constipation a bit better but problems with urinating and bloated bladder still hanging around. going to ask doc if he thinks coming down to 45 is a good or bad idea. I'm scared to as this is now my 5th month on nardil and I feel I'm starting to function again. its been slow but then I've been very ill physically too this time. thanks for listening and advice
Posted by creepy on May 16, 2012, at 7:11:07
In reply to Re: Nardil horrible side effects » strata, posted by SLS on March 13, 2012, at 0:34:45
I have also heard of people taking salt to raise their BP to help with this. Whether Id even try that would depend on my baseline BP. Is it always low with the MAOI or just when you rise from a sitting position?
Posted by strata on May 17, 2012, at 3:12:16
In reply to Re: Nardil horrible side effects, posted by creepy on May 16, 2012, at 7:11:07
Hi ther thanks for your reply. Ive been on Nardil for a few months now and the dizziness has completely disappeared as have most of the horrible side effects. The only side effect i have now is urinary retention, its better than what it was tho so trying not to complain :O)
Posted by strata on August 23, 2012, at 18:25:43
In reply to Re: Nardil horrible side effects, posted by strata on May 17, 2012, at 3:12:16
Agggh! My sexual side effects were just starting to disappear and my doc put me up to 75mg within 4 weeks all the horrid side effects were back. Ive been up to 75mg for nearly two months, I may stick it out at this dose for another month but if things dont improve I will have to go down to 60mg again. Nightmare!
Posted by Lamdage22 on August 31, 2012, at 12:46:02
In reply to Re: Nardil horrible side effects, posted by strata on August 23, 2012, at 18:25:43
If you are benefitting from it, id say stick it out. The only two side effects for me that lasted were insomnia and delayed ejaculation.. thats not all bad though, women tend to be pretty impressed with the endurance.
If the sexual side effects last.. you could take requip for example.
Also i made good experiences with l-histidine against delayed ejaculation, too.
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