How many months do the amitriptyline withdrawl symptoms last?

Posted , 6 users are following.

I was wondering if i could get some answers as to how long it took you to get over the amitriptyline withdrawl symtoms? I know the amount taken and the amount of time it was taken for plays a large role of this. i was on 10mg for around 4 years then 50mg for around 2 years. The VA prescribed this for sleeping. Long story short, I had to stop taking the Amitriptyline abruptly on Febuary 6th, 2019 because it caused my heart to go into V-Tach. So i have been off the drug completely for 5 months. I am STILL having withdrawl symptoms. The brain zaps, dizziness, hot flashes, constant headaches, body aches, fatigued, no energy. I am sleeping better now, but at first it was horrid. maybe 4 hours a night tops. sometimes only 1. If any of you can share how long it took you to get completely over your withdraws, i would very much appreciate it. thank you

0 likes, 9 replies

9 Replies

  • Posted

    i was on 20mgs for 5 years, i also had to stop them suddenly. it wasn't the best experience ive ever had. Mine started to slow down after about 3 months id only feel bad every so often. then it went completely about 4 months.

    hope this helps.

    it will get better I'm sure. it can be a horrible experience

    • Posted

      Thank you Fanta. I'm glad that your doing better now. I am hoping any day now that I will wake up and feel like a brand new person. I remember thats how it was the last time the VA had me on this medicine and I stopped taking it. Felt horrible for months then one day I woke up, and it was completely done.

  • Posted

    how are you feeling now? i've decided to come off amytriptyline for fibromyalgia. i've been on 10-20mg for about 2 years. for the first few days of not taking it i kept having dizzy spells and headaches but i didnt feel dazed like i have done since being on it, im managing to sleep ok which is a bonus i didnt expect that because im usually reliant on them for sleep. the most troublesome withdrawal symptom im having is feeling so sick all of the time and the hot sweats, is it likely to stay like this for a while or does it gradually ease off each day? i know its different for every person but the thought if feeling like this for months is making me want to go back on it 😦

    • Posted

      I am sorry to hear that your struggling with the withdrawl symptoms chelsey. How am i feeling now? As of today, 7-14-19, I have been completely off Amitriptyline for 5 months 2 weeks. The first 2 months were hard. Symptoms were somewhat heavy but tolerable. sleep was non existant, but since then, it has improved. it seems like around month 3, things seemed to level out and the symptoms were just here and there. then, at the beginning on month 4 and up to today, the symptoms hit like a wave of hell. and i mean symptom all at once. i have had a constant headache since June 1st. nothing i take is helping it. I have read that this us very normal. Its called delayed withdrawls. your body doesn't know how to continue to fix or heal itself and it will crash...but this us a good thing. because it will learn to fix itself after each new wave and crash. but it isnt easy, as you know. I have read where some folks will use CBD oil to help, so I have gone that route, but again, not much relief. i dont know alot about the stuff, but i have read where people fighting withdrawl symptoms that use cbd for relief, need the FULL SPECTRUM cbd oil. Other than that, I eat healthy, drink alot of water, workout daily. I honestly think that sleep is THE most essential thing that promotes your body and brain to heal. but if you cant sleep, you cant. and thats what is so frustrating. i hope you can find some relief. take one day at a time. keep your head up and continue to move forward. best of luck!

    • Posted

      thanks so much for your reply. i'm glad youve had a few normal months but sorry to hear its come crashing back down on you. since i first commented my sickness has eased off but the sleeping situation is awful, im so tired in the day but cannot sleep at night but i expected that due to the drug making me so drowsy before. im going to stick to it purely because i dont want to go through those first few days again. i hope your body heals itself quickly for you x

    • Posted

      chelsey, how are things going with your sleep? i've been dealing with the insomnia after coming off for many months now. Is it improving for you at all? wishing you a speedy recovery

    • Posted

      hi mary, i have been off amitriptyline for over 2 months now, and my sleeping pattern is near enough back to normal. i do have the odd night here and there where it takes longer to drift off but ive got to the point now where once im asleep im asleep for the night. i dont feel groggy when waking up in the mornings like i did when on amitrityline, my energy levels are great and i no longer have the spaced out/dazed feeling which is great. i was only on a low dose of 10/20mg so i think it took a lot less time for my body to adjust than it has for others but i feel i am at that place now where everything seems back to how it was before i started taking it. what dose were you on? hang on in there it does get better i guess its just different time scales for everyone. also, horlicks drink helped me get back into a sleeping routine, i dont know if this was just a placebo effect but either way it seemed to help x

    • Posted

      thats so great! im so happy to hear you are sleeping well and feeling better. good for you! i was on 25mg for a month and then 10mg for a month. ive been off for about 10 months and i'm beginning think the insomnia is permanent now. everyone seems to recover their sleep after several weeks to several months so im just gonna have to find a way to accept it at this point.

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