Tapering off low dose of Amitriptyline

That's amazing Sheena I'm so happy for you. I did read the thread 😊 which was what made me go back on 10 after going down 7.5 and not knowing what was happening! After taking the 10 again once my symptoms improved within 2 days! I had no clue what was happening very scary and ruined my christmas😔 what percentage did you taper by? And when you went slowly were the withdrawals less severe? The nausea was so bad dropping 2.5mg I struggled to drink water. I thought I was doing great as I had no withdrawals when I first reduced (except it was harder to fall asleep) then a week later I woke up with horrible nausea that lasted until I figured out it might be the withdrawal. I know everyone is different but have you heard or experienced withdrawals setting in a week later??? I'm just trying to mentally prepare for my next attempt. I think that will help the anxiety if I know what is happening to me. Thank you for responding it's nice to know I'm not alone.

Hi Tiffany, l tapered by 2.5 each time and stayed on that for 6 weeks before cutting again. 2.5 is the smallest l could cut a 10mg tablet as we can't get the drops down here in Australia. That seemed to work OK for me but my symptoms are different (insomnia, increased pain levels and anxiety). They have all been pretty good although I did have a lot of trouble sleeping last night. I have also noticed wd symptoms kicking in more a week or so after a cut once the higher dose half life has worn off.

Amanda has very similar wd symptoms to you and she needed to taper extremely slowly. You sound like you need to do the same. It will take a while but every cut is less Ami in your system and a step in the right direction.

Thank you for your response. We do not have the liquid here in Canada. But my doctor suggested I contact a compound pharmacy they can change the pills into a liquid. If you are struggling going lower perhaps that would be an option for you too 😊

I will check that out too. I'm on such a low dose now compared to where l and have managed so far but getting rid of the last 2.5mg could be the hardest.

I hope it is not too horrible for you. This drug sucks? I am so happy you are almost there!! ? I cannot believe how long it takes. But what's the point in hurrying to get of the drug and being sick with withdrawals for weeks or months. Thank you for all your help today it really made me feel better and not so alone.

Hi Sheena 😊how is your tapering going? Are you nearly off of it now?

Hi Tiffany, l'm still in 2.5mg but started skipping every 3rd night a week ago. It's been going OK but last night was a skip night and here I am at 4am having been awake since 2.30am. So, not sleeping too well. As long as l get a reasonable sleep most nights I'm not too worried.

Did you get to the compounding pharmacy? How's it going?

Not yet I have it all organized though. Being that I had to get off pantoprazole twice because one dr took it away then I was so sick then they put me back on then took it away again slowly I suffered two bad withdrawals Oct and Nov. Then Dec I tried to cut back on the Amitriptyline and was so sick the doctor I now see who actually listens 😁 said we should wait a month to make sure it was a drug withdrawal issue and make sure nothing else is going on being that every month I got really sick for a week. I am convinced it was the drug withdrawal. She agrees but wants to just make sure just in case we are dealing with something else too. I'm glad to hear you are almost off of it 😁😁😄

You a right, it is a horrible drug and I wish I'd never heard of it, I've been on 100mg of Amitriptyline for 25 years, I was prescribed it after leaving hospital following a serious accident I had when I was 23, I'd been in hospital for 11 months and was soaking up large amounts of opiate pain medication, I actually was on the couch for 18 months stoned, eventually a doctor turned up at my house with my mother and basically said ''get in the car'' your'e going to hospital.

I was told Amitriptyline was an antidepressant that had pain relieving qualities in ''some people'' and no one knew why it just was, i came home opiate free, on 100mg Ami and pretty much pain-free (to my surprise).

I got lazy quickly, run out and was in no real hurry initially to get another script filled, after a couple of days with no Ami I became much more motivated to replenish the supply.

Symptoms were and in no particular order, chronic upset stomach, diarrhea, restlessness, insomnia with crazy dreams at night and sleepwalking where I got myself into all manner of predicaments whilst semi-conscious, one night I came too tangled up in a barbed wire fence in my underwear.

These days I just do not run out, this drug or the lack of it terrifies me, it's bigger than everything.

Don't touch it.............    

Thank you for responding. I had no clue what was happening to me considering the bad withdrawal effects did not hit me until a week later is that normal? Did you taper by 1 mg each month? When you did get withdrawal symptoms going slower were they as bad as your 10 to 5 drop? My 10 to 7.5 was horrible. The nausea was so bad I could barely drink water and eat a cracker. The chest pains scared me too as the doctor said there is no withdrawals with this drug so I had no clue what was happening.

Hi Tiffany, everyone is different and yes a week later the withdrawal can hit you, for me it was always 3 days i got where i would dread the 3rd day after i reduced. My withdrawal  effects were never as bad as the first time when i went from 10 mg to 5 mg that was horrendous. OMG Tiffany my nausea was also that bad i could only eat dry crackers and drink water lol. My GP also said that he  did not think it is withdrawal as Amitriptyline in not addictive. It is NOT addictive but it is the anticholinergic effect that we experience, it changes brain chemicals and that's what we experience.  I kept a diary of my weaning off this medication. I have just looked back my first attempt was 19th January 2017 when i cut the 10 mg tab in half. I went back on 10 mg  the day my pain , nausea etc occurred 22 nd Jan, and stayed here  for 3 weeks as was frightened to cut again.  I then did 10 mg one day and 7.5 mg ( cut some tabs into 4) the next day for  3 weeks and only experienced  bloating slight nausea and belching.  3rd March just went onto 7.5 mg every day , Day 3 on my new regime  again head pain , cramps more nausea but stayed here  and it settled after 2 weeks all good. I then did 5 mg one day and 2 days of 7.5 mg , this regime i did only for 9 days as  my nausea, belching and cramps all getting worse so went back to 7.5 mg but still 4 days later the symptoms persisted i panicked and went back to 10 mg 5 days it took for the symptoms to stop. I then spoke to my GP as needed help and this is when  got prescribed liquid. 1st April went to 9 mls , 3 weeks later went to 8 mls all fine, 3 weeks later went to 7 mls all fine. Again 3 weeks later dropped to 6 mls, i then started to get slight headaches. So dropped less and went to 5.5 mls for 2 weeks then to 5 mg. I stayed at 5 mg for a month as the slight headache persisted. I started Omega 3 fish oils as  read on (point of no return website good for  the symptoms). 3rd of July i dropped to 4.5 mls for 2 weeks then to 4 mg for 2 weeks. I increased the drop as felt ok.It is now August but i was too eager with my reducing as suddenly felt dizzy, nauseous,  anxious, had neck pain sinus issues. I increased to 5 mg again and reduced much slower and all ok again.I stayed at 5 mg for 2 weeks then dropped to 4.5 mg for 3 weeks then 4 mg for 3 weeks all way down to  1 mg by the 4th December. I experienced some nausea and bloating at different times but nothing like before. I then obtained a very small syringe and took 0.8 mg  for  3 days then 0.5 mg  for 7 days then 0.25 mg for 4 days and took my last dose on the  20th December. I am fine no symptoms. Just go slow Tiffany is my advice, i know it is a pain but for me having few symptoms is worth the wait. If you look back on here Sammy made her tablets into liquid form, if you are unable to get the drug in liquid form as it makes it much easier. xx  

Thank you for all your info Amanda it really helps ease my anxiety about tapering. After my last experience a part of me says nope we will just stay on this forever but I know that is just the fear talking. When you were tapering slowly how long on average did you experience withdrawals for? A couple days or weeks? I'm so happy you are off of them that is such a big achievement!! People don't understand my brother took 30mg of Nortriptyline for 3 months and tapered himself off within a month. Not one side effect. He said it is all in my head and 10mg is so low just stop even if you have a bad week of nausea. No thank You!! I'm not sure how different his med was I think it is the same class as amitriptyline. I will go very slowly I want to make sure I succeed. Thank you for all your help and congratulations on beating this drug ????? I hope your original issues did not come back. Have a wonderful New Year 2018 and Amitriptyline Free😂😄😉

Yeah, I have a test at urologist ( amitriptyline urine retention) coming up and my neurologist said to stop my 10mg 3 days before test for accuracy. He said such a low dose shouldn't cause a problem . I don't know what I'm going to do yet. I'm leaning towards just staying on it.

A couple of weeks for withdrawals ugh😔 no fun. Hopefully it was not as bad as your first attempt. I can not imagine living on crackers and water for weeks if the nausea is bad for weeks. I guess I will just take it slow and listen to my body. What would your recommend based on your experience 10% less every couple weeks to start And see how I cope?

Hey Amanda

How are you doing? Now that you are off of this drug. I'm about to start another attempt at tapering quite nervous but I will be going MUCH slower

I am so happy to hear that you are off 😁 4 weeks is amazing congratulations and hugs. I ended up being so dizzy I fell again and had body shakes. The doctor thinks we should wait for the 6 month mark but I cannot keep being dizzy and nearly passing out it is dangerous! I am going to start tapering again slowly now that is know what to watch for so it is not so scary. Did you experience any withdrawal when you finished your last dose? Congrats again??

Hi Amanda,

I am starting my tapering and having a lot of anxiety which I am 99% sure is me. After my last attempt I'm terrified. I am wondering how you are doing now? I hope things have gotten better?

That's awesome. I wish I had that experience ? I know some people have a HORRIBLE time. I'm pretty sensitive to meds in general. I'm happy for you though 😊

Yeah I have some medical testing in a couple of weeks after that I have to decide whether to go back on it or not, I really haven't had too many problems with it. I also have anxiety but I can't really tell if it was helping or not

Hi Amanda,

My mom is 85 and her GP does not believe coming off Ami has withdrawal symptoms so I am so glad I found this forum. Your comments have given me hope. My mom was on 10mg for 20 years and her new doctor wants her to come off of Ami as it is a terrible drug. But, she is suffering so much with symptoms that I almost wonder if it is worth it at her age. I have been tapering her on my own from 10mg every other day and then to 2 days, to 3 days, etc. for two weeks. She is now on 10mg every 5 days but went to 6 days after one week because she forgot to take it. Her symptoms are nauseau, heart palpitations, diarrhea, headaches, and fatigue. I did not know about liquid Ami. I think this might be the way to go. How would you suggest transitioning her at this point? Or perhaps, continuing with how I am doing it until she is down to 1 a month and then using liquid?

Thank you for your help. It is so appreciated!

Take care and stay safe!

Lisa

I'm about to try and get off 10 mg Amitriptylan. I've been on it for 25 years. When I weaned down from 25 to 10 mg, it wasn't bad. But when I tried to get off it, it was awful. My question is this: I'm not a good sleeper. Does going off this drug entirely cause bad sleep for months afterwards? Does that sleep problem eventually go away? I have been taking it for the last 3 years at 10 mg really only for the sleep benefit. It no longer works for my headaches, so I figured I really should not be taking it for just sleep.

Thanks for any insight or advice. I hadn't considered the drops, but that is great info as I cannot cut a 10 mg tablet.

I use a pill cutter to cut the 10mg in half. I'm trying to get off of amitriptyline too.

Hello, I've been taking Amitriptyline 10 mg for 4 years because of acute sciatica. As recommended, I started to reduce the amount three months ago. At one point, the withdrawals were so intense like severe flu symptoms. I had to go sick from work. It's now the beginning of October. I stopped completely one week ago. I have had a lot of nausea, acid reflux, belching, wind and mild flu symptoms again. Nearly there but it's been tough. I sleep fine now because I feel lousy. Thanks for listening. xx

i am very much inspired by your plan for teparing .....

here is my plan

( 10mg=200ml)

9.5 mg - 190 ml. (For 3 weeks)

9mg -180 ml. "

8.5mg-170ml. "

8 mg - 160ml

7.5 mg-150ml

7mg-140ml

6.5mg-130ml

6mg-120ml

5.5mg-110ml

5mg-100ml

4.5mg-90ml

4mg-80ml

3.5mg-70ml

3mg-60ml

2.5mg-50ml

2mg-40ml

1.5mg-30ml

1mg-20ml

.8mg -16 ml. 3days

0.5mg-10ml. 7days

.25mg -5 ml. 4days