Breathless, tired, lack of interest in life

[ThisisMax]

Hello
Quick thread, if I could have any feedback Id be very appreciative.
Im male, 49, asthmastic but well managed, no wheeze, no asthma attacks. Fairly fit. Have put on a bit of weight due to chronic neck issue- Occipital neuralgia. Nerve blocks worked for this, then failed so I am on 2Omg Amitripyline about 6 weeks now.
Blood pressure slightly high.
Im a tired all the time, feels like my chest is smaller, air hunger, constantly wanting to sleep. Have to push through tiredness most of time with kids and work etc.
Bloods are fine. Saw cardiologist in Dec for review and all normal.
Triple vaxxed. Had mild covid in Feb.
Is this long covid, covid side effects, middle age, asthma, amitripyline side effects??? (well documented and definiely has affected me, but to this extent?)
Opinions welcome.
Thank you.

@CorsicaDreaming & @catfunk Thank you. It did occour to me that it was covid related but probably harder to work out as I started Amitripyline 6 weeks ago which is known for its tiredness as a side effect.
I got covid in Feb so thought I would be over it by now. It was a very mild dose too.
I think I will do GP check up and maybe look at the amitripyline too.
If its covid I suppose I just have to slowly work on getting fitter?

@Fantail999 Thats very interesting. I had amitripyline for chronic pain years ago and gave it up. I had to re-start this time as last nerve block failed.
I started on 10mg and then upped to 20mg. I take at 6.30pm to try and avoid next day sleepiness. The sleep as you describe is long - I can easily do 10 hrs straight but also take ages to wake up and promise myself a nap which sometimes I have to have. I find it leaves me kinda sedate, uncaring abnout most details - slightly stoned (two glasses of wine feeling) so thats the downside. The upside is that it has reduced by pain by 90%. Maybe I should try to taper to 10mg so see if it as effective with less side effects. I would have though tafter 6 - 8 weeks on it I would have got used to it but its either it, something else or post covid making me feel this way. Thanks for sharing your story - inteesting how long its taken you to adapt. Do you think you are fully adapted now or still tired?

Is there a chance (it's common and I'm in this situation) that you don't actually have asthma and have another lung condition?

I have often wondered that but I do know if I run out of preventer I will see a difference in a few days. But I never really have to use my rescuer. I did have a respiratory assesment which diagnosed me in my 30's after years of post nasal drip etc. Maybe I should consider that. I definitely breathe up in my ribs as opposed to in my diaphraghm.

@ThisisMax - Did you find any good treatment for post nasal drip?

It is also something I suffer from but I'm never quite sure the best way to deal with it.

That sensation of chest heaviness is classic long Covid. Mine took over a year to clear up, but I still have relapses of the fatigue, breathlessness and post nasal discharge, over two years on since getting out of hospital.
As long as your cardiologist is happy that your heaviness is not angina, you can just wait for it to settle. Pace yourself, do not over exercise, and have rest days whenever possible. You can gradually increase activity as you improve - I can now walk a couple of miles, after initially gasping for breath at 100 yards.

@CorsicaDreaming Yes I did. I went for allergy tests (the proper skin prick Ig ones to find out allergens) I reduced contact with horses, cats and started hot washing bed sheets, put in wooden bedroom floor. But the best thing I did was 6 x sessions of Rhinolight which stopped it completely. No recurrance in 6 years.

imj.ie/severe-rhinitis-medicamentosa-successfully-treated-with-rhinolight-endonasal-uv-phototherapy/

midlandhealth.co.uk/gp-consultation/lifestyle-and-wellbeing/rhinolight-treatment-hayfever/

I'm still constantly tired. I think I will talk to the GP about stopping it as unfortunately it has done nothing to reduce the frequency or duration of my migraines.

My ex used to describe amytriptiline as being pinned to the bed. He was given it to make him sleep, which is a common off label use.

@ThisisMax - wow that sounds amazing about the Rhino light. I will definitely look into that. Thanks very much.

We've only just bought a lovely new wool carpet for the bedroom so that's not going yet!! 🤣