ELAVIL Reviews (AMITRIPTYLINE HYDROCHLORIDE)

Average Rating: 3.1 (585 Ratings)

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 ANTIDEPRESSANTS MIGRAINE HEADACHES

 Type: Brand name discontinued; available as generic

  

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Key to Ratings: 1=LOW (I would not recommend taking this medicine.)
5=HIGH (this medicine cured me or helped me a great deal.)

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RATING  REASONSIDE EFFECTS FOR ELAVILCOMMENTSSEXAGEDURATION/
DOSAGE
DATE ADDED
 
 5  Fibromyalgia Pain and Depression Some dry mouth, but it appears that this is getting better after a few weeks on the medication. I did not respond at all to SSRI's. For years, I was bounced between different ones, and noticed no effect other than a lack of sex drive. After 5 days on Amitriptyline/Elavil, I feel much, much better. Although the drug did make me drowsy at first, after the drug took the depression away, I have more energy than I have right now in years. I feel alive again, when I was felt hopeless just a few weeks prior. If you don't respond to SSRI's, I highly recommend giving this medication a shot. You may have to drink more water or chew some gum, but it's worth it. Even at 125MG a day, living in Chicago, the cost? Only $14 a month to live again. M 27 40 days
2/12/2006
 3  pain, migraines Dry mouth, daytime grogginess. I have been on 20mg for one week. I have noticed a deeper sleep and relief from headaches and pain. So far I would recommend a low dose of elavil for people who have fibromyalgia. I have been diagnosed for this because I have constant pain all over. Now that I have read these other ratings that say to take it earlier, I will do that starting tonight. If I get more sleep at night, I can do more during the day and I have noticed that I am accomplishing more now on this drug. F 47 7 days
1/17/2006
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 4  Fibromyalgia, insomnia dry mouth, reduced ejaculate, urinary retention, morning grogginess It's the only thing that's helped me sleep deeply. It doesnt always work, but it's better than no sleep at all. M 34 2 years
1/15/2006
 3  vulvar vestibulitis first taking 10 mg i got dry mouth for the first 3 days then it went away. After a while my Dr. told me to increase to 50 mg gradually. I was okay going to 25 then to 35mg but when I reached 50mg, I started to have problems. I felt confusion, shakiness, slight tremors and felt out of it because of my body was feeling weird and jittery I think you should be very carefull when going up on mg. Try to stick with the mg that feel safe. It is great for getting good sleep. But stay in your comfortable zone in doses and it does help a little F 26 4 months
1/9/2006
 3  fibromyalgia dry mouth (more at first, then occasionally), severe constipation leading to weight gain, severely blurred vision, difficulty urinating, very groggy and hard to get going the next day, increased pulse and lowered blood pressure My first two weeks of taking 25 mg of Elavil were pure bliss! I have fibromyalgia and always woke up stiff. Elavil helped me sleep (along with valerian), and I woke up without pain. Over the past two months, though, its effectiveness wore off (my shoulder blades are stiff and sore as I write this), and the constipation has been horrible, and the blurred vision has become a major problem. I would give anything for it to work without those two problems! I just got a sample of Cymbalta to try, and am hoping it works. Morning stiffness and pain from doing anything are both the pits! F 36 2.5 months
12/28/2005
 5  depression and fibromyalgia Dry mouth and some lightheadedness on standing. Side effects went away after several weeks. I am writing because I have read many comments on here about people adjusting the dose on their own, or worse still, stopping cold turkey. This is VERY DANGEROUS with any antidepressant. You must increase the dose gradually and reduce it gradually. Please remember that all antidepressants affect the neurotransmitters in your brain. You need to be monitored. That said, the tricyclics like elavil are the gold standard for me. I do not respond to the SSRI's such as paxil. If you have depression that has not responded to an SSRI, you might need a drug such as elavil that also boosts the level of norepinepherine, which the SSRI's do not help with at all. Do not give up. There are many options out there. Another comment: people are mentioning dosages as low as 5mg-for this drug, 25 mg is standard for fibromyalgia and 75 mg is standard as a starting dose for depression. Allowable doses run as high as 300 mg under close supervision. I was on 150 mg for years but need only 75 mg now. I s F 55 15 years
12/18/2005
 4  post operative pain Trouble waking up in the morning, vivid dreams, nighmares, loss of short term memory, slows you up during the day, no sex drive, moody in the morning Good to make you sleep when you have post-operative pain, but there are to many side effects for me. I think this drug must be taking temporarely. F 43 50 days
12/12/2005
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 1  misdiagnose of stress very bad anxiety plus "buzzing" in whole body it turns out I had a bad gall bladder but doctors at a prestigious hospital decided it was stress (though they didn't tell me) and wanted me on elavil. I had bad reactions immediately but I was told this was normal and my body would adjust. It never did-I went off it after 5 weeks but 3 years later am still feeling its effects. It has (possibly) ruined my life. M 50 5 weeks
10/27/2005
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 5  Insomnia, depression cotton mouth, jitters (if caffeine is present in my system), Loss of sexual desire. I started taking Elavil (amitriptyline) six years ago. It was prescribed by my analyst as a treatment for chronic insomnia which I have had since childhood. I take my dose around 7:30 - 8p... by 10p-- boom boom out go the lights! -- To my recollection, I had NEVER experienced sleepiness. I am up to 150 mg per day. That sounds huge compared to other posts I have read! I had to gradually increase from 75mg. Cotton mouth is one side effect: doesn't bother me. If I have caffeine in my system (coffee, soda, tea, chocolate) I get the jitters. The most omnipresent side effect is a severely reduced sex drive. To be honest, that has been a good thing. I was "way" oversexed for way too long. This has given both me and my wife a break. M 42 6 years
10/25/2005
 5  insomnia Starts with dry mouth drowsy upon waking for about 2 weeks, then none Works well started at 5 mg but have raised it to 10. I still wonder about the long term effects of the use of this drug. But it does the job for my insomnia. F 50 3 years
10/17/2005
 1  rheumatoid arthritis extreme and unreasonable depression this was taken in an effort to alleviate pain according to my ra doc - i figure it was a trial and error in early treatment - making sure i wasnt suffering from psychological "pain". later research led me to realize that taking an antidepressant when you are no depressed will exacerbate the medicine. F 35 8 days
10/16/2005
 2  depression & insomnia Dry mouth, I chew gum and drink tea or water 24/7. ten pound wieght gain after five years. Groggyness if I get less than 7 hours sleep. Constipation. I eat fruit, veggies, whole grains, and still need Senekot. I continue to take it because I feel like I can not sleep without it. I have tried at least 6 newer antidepressants and they all caused SEVERE insomnia in me. I take 50 mg. It worked for me while teaching pre-k and being a soccer mom. Now that I am in college, I feel retarded on it. I am cutting them in 1/2 and taking Valerian root. It seems to help me not feel so yucky in the a.m. I am glad that you guys all shared, because now I do not feel like I'm crazy. I had floaters too floating eye spots. I feel like I have to explain that I suffered a traumatic death before I started taking the drug, Now the grief is much better and it is time to say goodbye to elevil. it makes me feel lazy too like I don't want to do anything but look at the unfolded laundry. I had no motivation on it. F 32 5 years
10/12/2005
 4  interstitial cytsitis F 28
9/30/2005
 1  insomnia shocking feeling in my head when something surprised me. like if my dog barked i would get an electric shock in my mind. didn't help with sleep, caused vivid dreams and nightmares, only took for 9 days but the withdrawal was horrible. took 50mg and it ruined my life. made insomnia worse. M 19 9 days
9/30/2005
 4  Fibromyalgia Dry Mouth, First few weeks very groggy in the morning, Toss and turn all night if I dont take it. Helped take away most of my constant various pain. There are times when I still have some pain but it is no longer life draining. I am able to function normally once again. Prior to elavil I spent much of my day on the couch making parenting toddlers very difficult. I take 10mgs at night F 37 9 months
9/27/2005
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 4  insomnia good for sleep!!! withdrawls suck! 25-75mg a night M 23 6 months
9/15/2005
 1  for pain severe anxiety attack, uncontrolled frightening thoughts had only one pill (10 mg) - had to call 911 because of the severe reaction - never assume what works for others will be OK for you F 51 1 days
9/13/2005
 4  trigeminal neuralgia weight gain, increased appetite, never seem satisfied with the amount eaten, nor type of food Appreciate the change from the constancy of the pain to at least a masking of it, knowing it is only a masking and not a cure. Has enhanced my ability to smooth over rough and jagged edges of nerves that came as a result of the head trauma. F 54 1 weeks
9/7/2005
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 5  Intense burning in vaginal area Weight gain, tired, calmer. It worked for my problem and I seem to have less anxiety over little things, such as problems at work, etc. It's the only medication that has helped me at all. I've tried many and I finally feel as though I have my life back. F 37 3 months
6/15/2005
 4  Insomnia, sleep disorder headache, neck/shoulder spasms 10 mgs is WAAY too much. I smash it and take no more than 2-3 mgs at a time. (I'm just starting out, though.) I take this dosage about 3 days in a row, until I wake up with headache and shoulder cramps, then I go off it for a couple days (the side effects go away immediately) until the sleep problems return, then back on it. It stays in your system pretty well over time. I didn't know this was a pain med ! I just use it for its drowsiness effect, and it does bring on a nice, deeper sleep. They say it's not habit-forming, but I'm sure you'll develop tolerance. Just don't take that whole pill at first or you'll be sleeping all day! And start at *really* low dose and increase very gradually, even if it means you're taking pill-dust as dosage. F 27 3 months
6/3/2005

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