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General health

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Original poster

Anyone ever taken amitriptyline?

24 replies

Pickleypickles · 10/07/2018 08:18

I got prescribed amitriptyline yesterday for sciatica, I took it at about 7pm by 9pm could hardly keep my eyes open so went to bed. Heard DD crying at about 1.30 but i thought i was dreaming so dont know how long she cried for before I woke up 🙁 then when she woke up properly at 7 i still REALLY struggled to wake up. Still feel all groggy like a hangover without any of the sickness. Is this normal? I dont want to take it again if it does that to me but i cant sleep with the pain either. I'm a single mum so terrified if something happens in the night i won't react properly. Is this what it does to you? Or do you think it was a combination of those and being tired anyway from.not sleeping well for 5 nights due to pain?

OP posts:

SassitudeandSparkle · 10/07/2018 08:27

It did make me drowsy when I took it for nerve pain. I asked my GP if I could take it quite early in the evening because if I took it late on then like you, I struggled to get started in the morning!

It might get better so I would take the tablets for a few more days to see if it settles down and the lack of sleep may well have contributed. But speak to your GP or pharmacist for advice as well for support.

gamerchick · 10/07/2018 08:29

I couldn't get on with it, it's lovely to make you sleep but the next morning I felt like I was dragging my head across the floor.

Apparently it passes as you get used to it though.

Original poster

Pickleypickles · 10/07/2018 08:30

Thanks for speedy responses! I will persevere for a couple days then see ìf it gets better.

OP posts:

Haberpop · 10/07/2018 08:30

I have been on it for months now, I take 30mg at 6pm and am awake and functioning by 6.30am but it did take me a while to get used to it and no longer have that hungover feeling in the morning. If I am late with a dose it knocks me sideways the following morning.

MyVisionsComeFromSoup · 10/07/2018 08:32

agree it takes a few days to get used to - I take 25mg at 7pm, bed at 9/9.30 and am OK from 6.30 the next morning. Any deviation from that routine messes things up .

daisychicken · 10/07/2018 08:34

What doseage are you taking?

Originally I was prescribed 10mg, the smallest dose. But as I couldn't cope with that amount and cut to 5mg, it still made me incredibly drowsy the next day but was better than 10mg. So might be worth a quick phone call to see if you can lower the dose (cut a 10mg tablet in half - chemist's sell pill splitters)

I also found if I took it later than 6pm then I was like a zombie the next day but the other side of that was the earlier I took it, the sooner I fell asleep.

I've been taking it for a few years now (for pain) and now take 10mg and can take it up to 7pm ish without a huge noticeable increase in drowsiness (but my condition makes me very tired anyway!).

Worth just asking about reducing dose and adjusting timings.

Alexandrite · 10/07/2018 08:34

I was prescribed this when my husband died in May to help me sleep. It didn't say how many to take so i took 1 (10 mg) as that works out at £4 per month and i didn't really want to spend more than that!
I find it ok although i have still sometimes had sleepless nights with it

OllyBJolly · 10/07/2018 08:40

Couldn't take it - turned me into a zombie. I could sit and stare into space for hours thinking it was a few minutes. Really scary. I was taking a cocktail of drugs at the time but I do think it was the Amitriptyline that was causing the drowsiness.

Namelesswonder · 10/07/2018 08:43

DD took it for nerve pain for a while - first few weeks she was napping on the classroom floor as she was unable to stay awake (teacher was great!), settles down after a couple of weeks and fine once she got used to it.

ASucculentchinesemeal · 10/07/2018 08:47

My husband takes it, he had the same problem at first - he was out like a light, couldn't wake up in the night and struggled to wake in the morning. Rest assured it does get easier.

QueenOfMyWorld · 10/07/2018 08:53

I actually use it as a sleep aid so I'm not surprised it had that effect on you

allypally999 · 10/07/2018 09:10

I must be odd - I can take up to 50mg and have no side effects and frequently don't sleep.

VickieCherry · 10/07/2018 09:14

I took the 10mg dose for chronic pain for a while, and found it made me very tired at first but it wore off as I got used to it.

SilverHairedCat · 10/07/2018 09:16

Yes, I'm like this even on 5mg! God knows how anyone copes on the really high doses. I didn't get on with it for nerve pain - the effects never wore off, so I stopped taking it.

SilverHairedCat · 10/07/2018 09:17

@Alexandrite that doesn't sound like you were getting it prescribed by a doctor, which is worrying. You should always be told a dosage.

AstrantiaMajor · 10/07/2018 09:44

I found the same. I cut the tablet in half. I know it’s a faff because they are small.

Alexandrite · 10/07/2018 09:45

Don't worry it was prescribed by my GP. Just checked and it said said 1-3 to be taken at night. Therefore I didn't know whether to take one, two or three! A friend asked the pharmacist for me and they said start with one but if that doesn't work take more. I worked out with the prescription charge taking one per day works out at £4 per month

vintagebella · 10/07/2018 12:39

I take 35mg at night and I'm fine with it. I take it early evening but still need a while to wake up in the morning. I was like that before the meds though! It takes a while to get used to it so you might have to give it a couple of weeks.

On the other hand, my daughter can't tolerate amitryptaline and takes gabapentin. The amitryptaline gives her a sort of 'brain block' and she can't process information.

If you really can't get on with it you can always ask to change further down the line.

goose1964 · 10/07/2018 16:55

I took it for chronic pain but instead of making me tired it did the opposite, so I had to take it two or three hours before bed. The only side effect was a dry mouth

MinesaPinot · 10/07/2018 20:51

Yes, I was prescribed it years ago. I suffer with really bad health anxiety and have to be really careful with triggers. I won't go into what I was going through, but suffice to say I just couldn't sleep and was waking in the middle of the night with panic attacks. I was on the very lowest dose for 6 months and I found it really helped. As far as I remember it took 2 or 3 days to get used to, but after that I was sleeping properly. I emphasised to my GP that I couldn't have anything that would affect my day to day work life, as I work for quite a demanding firm so I needed to be able to function properly at work so she prescribed Amitryptaline but kept a very close regular eye on me. I haven't had it since, but I did need Sertraline a couple of years ago (but that's another story).

AnnaMagnani · 10/07/2018 21:10

It doesn't suit everyone.

I prescribe it practically every day to people who are fine with it.

Personally, I was practically unconscious for 24 hours with just 10mg. Tried it again - same thing. I do not have time in my life to 'get used to' this. It's not for me.

Rebecca36 · 10/07/2018 21:14

Yes I have had it prescribed for me on a few occasions. Very pleasant indeed and a good muscle relaxant. Short term use only but worth having, it can address an acute problem.

Pollaidh · 10/07/2018 21:18

It's sometimes used as a sleeping tablet, so definitely makes some people sleepy. I take it long-term as part of a pain management regime. I seem to remember being really groggy in the first week or so.

TheRealHousewifeofCheshire · 10/07/2018 21:19

Yes i was the same and couldn't function at all

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