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amitriptyline withdrawal

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amanda59745
amanda59745

Hi all, i have tried unsuccessfully to withdrawal from amitriptyline twice.  every time i get down to 5mg i start with awful symptoms, bad headaches, nausea, belching, abdominal cramps, back ache and  my bowels get so upset they feel like they are swollen i get bloated have wind and abdomen feels bruised. has anyone experienced this also?   

9 likes, 915 replies

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  • Sheena737
    Sheena737 amanda59745

    Posted

    Hi Amanda, Sammy & Tiffany,

    Nice to see you all again. I did send a reply a few weeks ago but l can't see it anywhere on the thread so who knows where it ended up.

    I'm not getting any of the nausea you are getting my my insomnia has been awful. After the neurotransmitter testing showing that my serotonin, melatonin, gaba and dopamine levels were all very low (thanks to Ami) I'm on lots of naturopath stuff and a high protein diet trying to rebuild the depleted hormones and chemicals in my brain. I'm still travelling but am settled in Penang for a month and I've actually started to have reasonable sleep for a couple of weeks now. I'm here on my own so I've been able to really slow the pace down, doing lots of swimming and relaxation and it all seems to be working. It such a relief to not spend my nights either wide awake or half awake. There is still the persistent post nasal drip that kicked in back in November when l dropped to 5mg. It drives me nuts at times but I'll get around to getting that sorted eventually. I'm sure the naturopath would be able to help me there but we've been so focused on sorting the sleep problem that the drip had been ignored.

    I saw my GP before l left to come away and then l saw the resident nurse to follow up on some other stuff. We were talking about home bad my sleep was and she calmly and innocently said 'Would you like took go back on Endep (Ami)?' Poor lady, l don't think she was expecting the reaction she got 😃

    • nancy72466
      nancy72466 Sheena737

      Posted

      Hi Sheena.....may I ask what natural things you went on to help with rebuilding your brain chemicals? I'm struggling so much. thank you X

       

  • anita49406
    anita49406 amanda59745

    Posted

    Hi Amanda I c ur post is a year old how did u get on did u manage to get off the ami please let me no as I want to get off it
    • diane_b
      diane_b anita49406

      Posted

      Hi Anita, I stopped taking amitriptyline 2yrs and 4 months ago. I went cold turkey from 150mg a night. It was hell for months, no sleep, aching, anxiety, stomach and balance problems. The anxiety gradually dissipated after about 6 months and then only appeared now and then. I still suffer many days from nasal drip and watery eyes. My stomach still can't tolerate many food groups. I adopted the FODMAP diet and that cured the stomach problems. My sleep can still be patchy but is very much improved. The nausea and balance issues still crop up most weeks. My GP can't believe I still have problems after so long but I know it's the amitriptyline that caused them. He tried to offer me gabapentin but I refused because apparently that's worse to come off than ami and I never want to go through that again. Overall I would say I am mostly free of withdrawal symptoms but it did take about 2 years. This medication really messed with your body and it seems not enough research has been done into the long term effects of it. If you stop taking it you will suffer but it does get better.

    • amanda59745
      amanda59745 anita49406

      Posted

      Hi anita, yes i got off of ami in decemember 2017 and yes it has been hard but, glad i am off it. I now have a type of IBS due to ami and take a probiotic daily  (im not sure it helps).  I am sad to say i have now had to replace one awful drug for another. I was on ami for nerve pain lower back and since coming off have gradually had persistant back problems. i am suffering with sciatica in both legs tbh it is the worst pain i have experienced and am on several medications. I have been offered ami several times and nearly gave in but, i opted for gabapentin which, i know is going to cause me a whole lot of problems getting off. I need to have something and feel so very sad it has come to this.
    • anita49406
      anita49406 amanda59745

      Posted

      Hi I think doctors should give more info on the cons of this type of meds and how difficult withdrawal is I never had agoraphobia b 4 ami morning anxiety waking at6 and over thinking the rest of the day until I feel sick I dropped 5mg last nite now on 10mg been on citalopram 4 weeks 2 day so hopefully it will kick in soon
  • paul26786
    paul26786 amanda59745

    Posted

    Hello Amanda,

    How did you get on with coming off the Amitriptyline?

    Did you manage it in the end and are you now withdrawal symptom free?

    I am having the same symptoms as you sad

    Paul

    • amanda59745
      amanda59745 paul26786

      Posted

      Hi Paul, yep off of ami 7.5 months now. no symptoms as such but, have developed ibs type symptoms. How are you doing? x

       

  • paul26786
    paul26786 amanda59745

    Posted

    I have been on amitriptyline for almost a year for ibs pain and discomfort.

    I started on 10mg then went upto 20mg then slowly increased the dose upto the max recommended of 50mg per night.

    I felt at the time that it didn't really help and I was tired a lot. Having taken up running to help with energy levels, health, fitness etc. I felt the poison was holding me back and looked forward to the energy I would have once off the poison and running several times per week.

    I got down to 10mg (1 tablet) the other week, then my idea was to have 10mg every other night to ween off it.

    Big mistake! By missing just one 10mg tablet, my head was absolutely horrid for 2 days. Worst head I have every had. Couldn't work/function, just sat like a cabbage.

    I then started taking 5mg (a tablet cut in half) each night.

    Then to reduce the dose more I dissolved 7 tablets (70mg) in 70ml of water.

    Each night I then dispensed via a syringe into my mouth 4ml of solution (4ml = 4mg of drug) and took this for 2 weeks.

    I then went down to 3ml and last night tried 2.5ml.

    My head has been fine doing it this way but since coming down from 10mg I find the same symptoms as you, i.e.:

    - Nausea (due to trapped wind in just the right (wrong) place)

    - Abdominal cramps

    - Back ache (a lot of this is due to trapped wind and can be eased when trapped wind passes either end or by bowel movement)

    Generally I feel bloated and achy in my abdomen, as you say Amanda, like they are swollen and feel bruised.

    I have had the above symptoms for the last 4 years but since coming off the amitriptyline it has been worse over the last couple of weeks.

    For the last 4 years I have had IBS (diagnosed via doctor) had all sorts of tests / blood tests / full body MRI scan, camera in both ends and ultra sounds scans

    All tests were fine.

    I am hoping to be completely off amitriptyline within the next couple of weeks, then perhaps my body/brain can get more normal and the withdrawal symptoms (I hope thats what they are) will disappear.

    It's crazy how many people on patient.info recommend amitriptyline for IBS but when you read the discussions about trying to come off amitriptyline, it's a totally different story!

  • charline94768
    charline94768 amanda59745

    Posted

    I have managed to go from 10 mgs to 5mgs without too many withdrawals symptoms. I did it slowly, took three months. I now have 5mg pills that I had compounded. Will stay there for a couple of months and then get the liquid. You really need to go very slowly coming off this medication. This is my fourth attempt. 
    • paul26786
      paul26786 charline94768

      Posted

      Hi Charline,

      What were your withdrawal symptoms this time?

      What were your withdrawal symptoms that made you fail to stop taking it completely previously?

      Thanks

      ​

      Paul

    • charline94768
      charline94768 paul26786

      Posted

      Hi Paul, my first attempts failed because I went too fast and I could not cope with the insomnia. Felt very emotional and anxious. This time I had hardly any withdrawals, maybe some stomach issues, a few headaches but nothing I could not cope with. I used to sleep nine hours every night and now sleep maybe six or seven but I am o.k. with this. My sleep is not as restful but I am plowing through. I still take .25 mgs of Clonazepam, but will deal with withdrawing from it after I come off the Elavil. 
    • armandolev05033
      armandolev05033 charline94768

      Posted

      Hello all,

      I hope my experience with ami can help you during this difficult moment. I stopped 25 mg of ami on the 9 of February 2017 cold Turkey without even knowing that it was an anti depressant. I was on for 3 months due to panic attacks related to work issues. The withdrawals was very bad (insomnia, anxiety, restless legs, headaches, panic, palpitations etc.) I found my self twice in the emergency after 5 days of stopping it. During those 5 days I am not sure if I got 5hours sleep. It was also very bad because I was on my own without any support from family. I was actually staying with my uncle during that period but he just didn't understand and said I am acting. I had to call 911 twice which causes me a lot of problems with him. At some point I moved to a different relative advise from my psychologist. My withdrawal last for over a year, and at the end my natural sleep came back. I had migraines headaches due to ami for about a year. But now everything is fine and I am back to normal. Still I am very weak, i get affected emotionally very easily but with time i am doing much better. Since i stopped ami, I am pills free I do not take any medication again. Good luck there is light at the end. Xxx

  • paul26786
    paul26786 amanda59745

    Posted

    Hi Charline,

    What were your withdrawal symptoms this time?

    What were your withdrawal symptoms that made you fail to stop taking it completely previously?

    Thanks

    Paul

  • paul26786
    paul26786 amanda59745

    Posted

    The insomnia isn't fun at all. I only had a couple of nights this week where I went to bed ok but woke up around 3am and was wide awake until I got up around 8am.

    Over the last few days I have alternating symptoms of back ache (sometimes very bad), due to trapped gas, abdominal cramps and today a burning sensation in my chest, back and abdomen (possibly due acid reflux) it is a bit painful but it is more of a constant discomfort.

    I am putting these symptoms down to Amitrypayline withdrawal symptoms.

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