Hello, several years of symptoms now and still not diagnosed. My gp put me on gabapentin a while ago, 3×100mg per day. They haven’t worked at all. I’ve heard that amatriptoline can be beneficial for pain relief. Should I ask my gp if I can try that or are there any negatives to it? Thanks for any replies. Andy
all meds have side effects.
i started on so many that i rattled.
then i realised that amitriptyline made me sleepy.
gabapentin made me bloated as did pregablin.
like everything else everyone is affected differently.
i have never felt so unique!!
try the gabapentin and see how it goes.
try the amitriptyline, just be careful not to drive when it is doing its thing.
Amitriptyline is a good drug for neuropathic pain relief. But you need to take it in the evening. The general advice is to take it by about 8pm so you don’t have any hangover type residual effects the next day.
So while it’s good for pain relief, it’s not very effective for daytime use.
Have you tried Pregabalin?
Whatever you try, you should give it a while to see if it works, then if you come off the drug, taper it off slowly, rather than stopping abruptly.
Sue
hiya
amytriptyline works effectively for me.
i am lucky to have a neuro and gp that understands me and some of my issues and i appreciate what i do isnt the standard!
over the past 12+ years i have taken amtrip between 10-50mg. evening at 6pm for dry mouth etc as sue describes. i also can take it at 8am which helps with pain and doesnt affect activity thru daytime. to taper off i have one at 6pm each 2nd night for a week at 10mg then stop and its never been a problem. i use it short term (4-6 weeks) which again shouldnt be effective but it is for me.
gabapentin made me poorly-constant runs-never again as got enough to deal with.
hope you find something that works for you.
ellie
Thank you for your replies,the night pain is the biggest problem and also the fatigue during the day. Having insomnia for years doesn’t help with that. I took the gabapentin for a month with no side effects but also no benefits. The tests I’ve had have ruled out a lot of things including ms so I feel like a bit of a fraud posting on your forum now. I’m wondering if I could have fibromyalgia because I get pain all over and can’t control my temperature. Does amatriptoline affect driving the next day if you just take it in the evening? That would be a problem as I’m a driving instructor. Andy
If you take Amitriptyline at the right time of the evening you should be alright. Take a small dose (10mg) by 7pm and see how you feel the next day (when you don’t have an early start). Then you’ll know that size dose is OK. The following week you could try increasing to 20mg, but stick to taking it at 7pm.
So long as you are careful and take them early, you won’t have any dangerous side effects. In fact, I can take them in the daytime now because I’m used to taking them, I never have any side effects at all.
In fact, you might find you sleep better because Amitriptyline can help with insomnia. And if nighttime pain is keeping you awake, it’s possible you’d get a benefit in terms of fatigue.
I don’t think it hurts you coming and asking us for help even though you don’t have MS. There was a time when you thought you might. And there are others who come on the forum who don’t have the diagnosis.
Sue
Thank you sue, I have an appointment with my Gp soon so I’ll ask him if I can give it a try. Andy
Hi
I have been on amitriptyline 30mg for a couple of years to help me sleep when I had my depression, however over the last few weeks I haven’t be sleeping well and keep being awoken by pins and needles in my fingers. Has seen much change from the gabapentin or with the amitriptyline. I get pin and needles everyday.
Thanks
Stacey
Hi I have recently started gabapentin for TN and found it to be a life saver much higher dose though 900mg. I started on 300 and had no improvement then went to 600 which did help a lot so it may be worth disscussing uping your dosage. I have been on amitryptaline in the past for other pain issues but didnt find it helped much other than getting a good nights sleep. This doesn’t mean it wouldn’t work for you though and it’s definately worth a go. Good luck
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Thank you for your replies. I see my gp tomorrow so I’ll discuss the options with him. The pain keeps me awake at night so a stronger dose of gabapentin may help with that but if amatriptoline helps you sleep I might prefer that. Although it’s unpleasant,I can cope with the pain during the day.
So, saw my gp today and he’s put me on amatriptoline. 10mg for 1st week then 20mg 2nd week and 30mg thereafter. He wants to see me in 4 weeks to check progress and discuss possible referall to another neurologist for 2nd opinion. I’ve not seen the current one for nearly a year despite lots of tests and no appointment to discuss results. Hopefully I’ll get some sleep now!
Hello again, does anyone have any experience with the neurology department at the York hospital? .I’ve seen my current neurologist in Hull twice in 2 and a half years so my Gp has referred me to them. They’ve given me an appointment at the ms clinic in May and I just wondered what to expect. I’ve been on amitriptyline for 2 months now and it’s not helping with the pain at all but I have been sleeping better so not so fatigued now. Would it be advisable to ask if I can up the dose for the pain or is 30mg the maximum you can take? Thanks for any replies. Andy
Hello AW1
I have been on amitriptyline for a few years now and I take it at 10 at night, my dose is 50mg I take the yellow ones. I don’t have any problems waking up in the morning to get to work and that’s at 6.30 in the morning.
Meanwhile my sister takes the blue one 2 of them which is 10mg and takes then at 7 in the evening and is zoned out by ten.
Kay
Hi, so after extensive tests all being negative my neurologist told me that they’ve checked for things they can treat so now they’re going to check for things they can’t treat. I’m having a mri on my legs and a muscle biopsy. This is very worrying because I don’t know what conditions they can’t treat. Does anybody have any ideas? Thanks