nortriptyline

[Christine222]

Took 10mg last night for the first time. Even though it made me tired I found it very hard to sleep. And when I did sleep I dreamed a lot but I did not feel like it was a deep sleep at all. Now today my bladder is still driving me nuts and even though I am eating I feel so HUNGRY it is making me sick. I am so tired and I just want to sleep but I am afraid to take this again. Anyone else have the same results with this. This is basically Elival (sp)? just a newer version of the drug.

[saradep]

I took elavil for about 3 days and felt exactly what you just decribed. I felt like i was in a coma for 3 days and it took a good day or two after i stopped to feel normal again. I only took 10 mg's too. It did not work good for me it actually took my pain away but the other adverse reactions i could not take it no longer.

[partners]

I took Nortriptyline recently when I came off of Trazodone and found I was awake all night with no appreciable difference in my bladder. I stayed on for four days and then had to come off due to exhaustion. Nortriptyline is a metabolite of Amitriptyline and nortriptyline has a higher affinity for noradrenaline than serotonin, which is why I think it can wire people more than Amitriptyline can. Amitriptyline has a higher affinity for serotonin. I found this information in a pharmaceutical book when I was trying to figure out what the heck was going on.

Hope this helps.

[cmclien]

Hi,
Nortriptyline is a 2nd generation tri-cyclic, where elavil is a 1st class. The 2nd generation class of drugs is supposed to be more tolerable, less side effects. I tried elavil once and felt sleepy until 4pm the next day.

I took nortriptyline for a few weeks and got used to it, the restless sleep improved after a few nights but I still felt kinda "tired and wired" as I would describe it. I felt very unmotivated to do anything. My husband takes it and doesn't feel anything. I think alot of these drugs take a few weeks to get used to. I had to go off of it because I developed an allergic reaction to it. Now I'm trying a weak muscle relaxer but its giving me restless sleep too!

[partners]

Interesting how we all respond so differently. I was up all night without sleep with the nort. and had some sleep with the amit. No bladder help with the nort. and some very obvious bladder frequency reduction with the amit.

Here's some wiki info that explains things better

Nortriptyline is the active metabolite of amitriptyline that is demethylated in the liver. It inhibits the reuptake of norepinephrine (noradrenaline) and, to a lesser extent, serotonin with negligible effects on dopamine reuptake. Nortriptyline also has antagonistic effects at a variety of receptors:
Strong: H1
Moderate: 5-HT2, α1-adrenergic, mACh
Weak: 5-HT1[1]
These effects account for some therapeutic actions as well as for most side effects (sedation, hypotension, anticholinergic effects, etc.). Nortriptyline may also have a sleep-improving effect due to its affinity for 5HT2A and histaminergic receptors.[2] In the short run however, nortriptyline may disturb sleep due to its activating effect.
Like other tricyclic antidepressants, nortriptyline also blocks sodium channels, possibly accounting in part for its analgesic action.

[MelindaP]

I love my Nortryptlyn! I was on Elavil, but I was hungrey all the time! I did not have that all with Nortryptlyn when I switched. I started out on 10mg, then upped to 20mg slowly. I think it has been a lifesaver for me!
MelindaP

[partners]

Does the sleeplessness from amitrip. go away?

I hear so many awesome things about nortrip. and amitrip. so I started to take about 10mg iof amitrip. in the evening to see if I could abate my flare. I don't feel as much urgency but, my sleep is horrible. I've had insomnia for 5 years now and done and seen all the specialists but so far the only thing that works is zopiclone. I had hoped the amitrip. might be different this time around but I wake up every hour for about half an hour and then after 5 hours that's pretty much all I get. Has anybody had this experience and does it wear off? I would love to be able to take this drug.

[cmclien]

I don't know, most people amitriptyline knocks out! I have the same problem as you that most medicines prevent me from sleeping. I find after about 4 nights it improves. It did with nortriptyline and now with norflex. I was just about ready to give up on it and then finally slept last night. I find taking a 3mg melatonin consistently at bedtime helps me the first half of the night and sometimes longer.

[123456]

I take Imipramine (same class of drug) and I have to take it in the MORNING or it will keep me up all night. I take 50mg @ 10 AM. Then, before bed I take 10mg of Valium. No problems sleeping what-so-ever

[nottoc4]

I took Imipramine,25 mg 3 times a day for over 1 1/2 years. I also take Ambien and had no problems sleeping.I gained over 30 pounds while on Imipramine and have been off it since mid November and the 30 pounds has just melted away. No effort on my part although I did have open heart surgery in November. I'm sure that helped with some weight loss.

[partners]

Maybe it's a drug for daytime

Maybe I should try taking it in the daytime. I take 6 mg of melatonin as is, and don't want to bump it up any more. The scary thing is that my thoughts get pretty dark when I'm on amitrip. and I'm not sure if it's the sleep deprivation, or the drug. Last time I took it I was totally despondent after a week, but again... no sleep. I'll try in the daytime.

Thanks to all that replied!!

[425runner]

Interesting..I was going to ask my neuro about the Elavil but I'm already taking Wellbutrin XL and according to drugs.com there are interactions between these two. Does it help any of you in other ways, besides sleeping?