Generic Name: Amitriptyline for Fibromyalgia (amitriptyline)
Amitriptyline for Fibromyalgia Reviews
"After suffering for years and the pain of not knowing that I had fibromyalgia, I finally found a doctor who sent me to a rheumatologist who diagnosed me in one visit with fibromyalgia. The doctor said I probably had it for a long time. I was already taking amitriptyline for depression and irritable bowel syndrome when the doctor told me that it would be a great medicine for me to try for fibromyalgia. However, I had only been taking it when I couldn’t sleep. I started taking it every night, and my pain level has at least been cut in half. It's important to take amitriptyline every night for it to be effective for fibromyalgia. I have never had any side effects or bad reactions to amitriptyline and I have been taking it for five years."
Elavil (amitriptyline) "I have only been taking Elavil for two weeks but I've been in pain for twenty years. I also have big problems sleeping and staying asleep. Since I started Elavil, I have less pain plus I sleep well. I actually had a no pain day, which I have not had in a long time."
"I believe fibromyalgia symptoms started when I was around 14. It wasn't diagnosed until I was 41. I had been to many doctors complaining of lethargy and body pain/aches, and I never had any answers. One doctor said, 'Do you think this might be all in your head?' My life changed at 41 when I started on amitriptyline. I finally went into a deep sleep, felt more refreshed, and it substantially reduced the pain. I am currently 55. The original dose lost its efficacy over time. I am now on 125 mg, but I am very active and run and bicycle weekly. Don't get scared if you feel even more tired in the first 2 to 3 weeks of taking the medication, that will dissipate and you will feel refreshed all day."
Elavil (amitriptyline) "While it doesn't take away all the pain, it has helped with the tiredness and the feeling that I was wearing a lead suit. I still have bad days, but so far, I am pleased with this medication. It has helped me more than any other medication that I have tried."
Endep (amitriptyline) "I had unrefreshing sleep, and needed a lot of it. Endep is awesome as can now get a good night's sleep, feel refreshed for a few hours after waking, and decreases my body aches. No negative side effects for me luckily."
"My 10 rating is for the medicine's effectiveness for insomnia, not pain. I used to take lots of medications, including amitriptyline. I gained 20 pounds. To lose weight, I started adhering to a plant-based diet and exercising. After 4 months of diet and exercise, my pain was almost gone, so I dropped all of my medications. After that, I lost 15 pounds. A few months later, my insomnia came back. Because I wasn't sleeping, my pain increased again. So, I started back on amitriptyline. I take 30mg 4-5 hrs before bed. It takes a few weeks to kick in as a sleep aid and it might cause night sweats for about a month. After a month, I started sleeping like a rock and I have no side effects or weight gain. My previous weight gain was due to Gabapentin."
"Please do not let the negative reviews put you off. It works differently for everyone. Try it with an open mind. Takes a few weeks to work fully, but I felt a help immediately, even though I was sure I didn't have fibromyalgia, and then ups and downs until 3 weeks in. The first few weeks, 10mg gave 50% relief, then with 20mg almost complete relief. Don't let anxiety around meds get the better of you, as I did, after a rheumatologist messed about with the dosage...not helpful. I am now on 25mg and all the intense full-body pains are gone. Too scared to risk going lower, but I'm sure I would have managed on 20mg if my rheumatologist wasn't so lax about the dosing. I can't reiterate how important it is to have faith in the meds. It really helps that you don't overthink and read too many unhelpful blogs. Let the meds do their job and ease your anxiety. You will feel a thousand times better."
"I’ve had fibromyalgia pain since I was a teen. Finally after years of complaining my doctor referred me to a rheumatologist and after about 5 visits, I was finally diagnosed with fibromyalgia. I’m 46 years old now and have suffered all these years, and when I was prescribed amitriptyline, my life changed for the better. After 2 nights of taking it, I was sleeping better and the pain and leg cramps were gone. I’m finally living a normal, pain-free life."
"I've been taking amitriptyline since January 2013 after being diagnosed with fibromyalgia. I tried Cymbalta for a week, and my doctor decided that since it kept me awake 24/7, it wasn't a good fit for me even though it relieved my pain. I started with 25 mg. After 2 weeks, I had some breakthrough pain, so my doctor increased my dosage to 50mg, and I'm still on that dosage today. For the first full year I was on this, I never had pain and felt 'cured'. As time went on, it seems to help control my pain. I do still have pain, but at a low manageable level. I take this around 7 pm each evening to avoid feeling overly drowsy in the mornings. This med allows me to have a fairly normal life."
"I've taken amitriptyline for approximately 5 months now. I have an inflammatory autoimmune disorder and suspected fibromyalgia as a secondary issue. I've been dealing with both conditions for approximately 4 years. Life has changed significantly for the better since the introduction of amitriptyline, I take 25 mg at bedtime. I experience significant drowsiness in the morning, and I initially had a very dry mouth. The dry mouth subsided, but the morning 'hangover' feeling continues. I can live with it! I have almost no pain, I can eat again (previously had severe IBS), I sleep now (the quality is still questionable some nights), it reduced my mild anxiety, and I rid myself of my headaches. I pray it works forever!"
"I've been taking this drug for 15 years. It saved me. Within 3 days of starting it my fog lifted (to me, the fog was like looking at life through a movie camera). The deep tissue pain went away. It has never had any effect on my sleep patterns. For the first 10 years I was able to keep it to one 10 mg pill per day. The last five, I've had to double it to 20 mg (headaches). Way back, about 3 years into this I was having trouble sleeping - quite a few nights I couldn't sleep at all, so I thought if I could take 1/2 a lorazepam it would help. Not wanting to combine the medications, I didn't take the amitriptyline for 3 nights. On the following day I was on the floor in agony. I've NEVER missed another dose."
Endep (amitriptyline) "I have been on Endep for 35 years. I have fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, and plenty more. In the last six months, I have been getting very odd symptoms such as the ones provided within this article! Sudden weight gain, inability to eat properly, tiredness, rounded face, weakness, sore mouth and tongue, to slight more depression. At the moment, I am on a doctor's treadmill... everyone from my endocrinologist to a neurologist, GP, and many more have put their hands up saying I don't know! The medicines work really well for fibromyalgia, but after some time, they can work against you! Please look at the list of side effects. I have a lot of them. Good luck!"
Elavil (amitriptyline) "I have had great success with this medicine. It is meant to help you achieve sleep levels 3 and 4. It is meant to make you drowsy. Take it at night a couple of hours before you want to fall asleep. Poor sleep is a big problem with fibromyalgia. I have had fibro for 20 years. I still work full time, retail 56 hours a week. Yeah, it's tough some days. You have to keep moving."
"Doctors could not figure out why I had pain and sleepless nights. I finally told the docs let's pretend it's fibromyalgia and treat it. Doctor prescribed amitriptyline and I am 90% better. I still have occasional difficult nights but my life is much better."
"I was ready to check myself into a hospital for lack of sleep and pain, mainly from the lack of deep sleep. I was 30 and hadn't slept well in 16 years. My doctor started me on a low dose of amitriptyline, and it literally changed my life. I will not go without it. Anytime I have been out of town and left it behind for whatever reason, I am reminded of life before amitriptyline and how awful it was to live that way. I often wonder what exactly it is correcting in my brain or wherever."
Elavil (amitriptyline) "Elavil has been a life-saver for me. I have fibromyalgia and SAD. My ability to sleep through the night with Elavil has been amazing. Previously, I would wake up too early and not be able to sleep until it was time to get up. I was a wreck and thought I'd have to give up my job because I couldn't function on 4-5 hours of sleep. I find that I need 15 mg in winter months and only 10 with longer daylight days."
"I have fibromyalgia and suffered with anxiety and migraines. Also, menopause is setting in. More recently, I had an MRI and they also found a syrinx (cyst-like in my spinal cord) in the neck area. I have taken antidepressants before and have reacted badly to them. Amitriptyline 10mg at night was offered to me to help with sleep and pain. It's great, I sleep through, no more toilet trips or lying awake all night. I have an interest in life again. I had become quite housebound, but I'm up and about, even walked around town, which I haven't done in years. It's only a small dose, and it's worked brilliantly."
"Had fibromyalgia due to chronic sleep deprivation, which caused severe swelling in my hands giving me carpal tunnel pain every night. Also had swollen knees and severe stiffness. After months of trying alternative therapies with no improvement, I finally gave in and started taking 20mg amitriptyline. Within 3 days, this medicine changed my life, and I felt like a different person. Went up to 50mg but now back to 25mg and only about 75% of the time. If your health problems are caused by lack of phase four sleep, give this medicine a try."
"I was very recently prescribed amitriptyline at 10 mg for fibromyalgia, which was also just recently diagnosed after complaints since the age of at least 18 (now 38). It doesn't help me sleep, even with my low dose of Xanax that was prescribed a year ago for sleep. Combining the two has given me a more restless sleep, BUT... It has helped with my pain tremendously! Within days, I noticed I could work longer hours (self-employed, thank god), and when I do get sore, it's not as extreme as pre-amitriptyline. I've lost weight in these two weeks, as before I only ate once a day, and I think my body was holding on to any fat it could, now I graze throughout the day and think my metabolism has been kick-started again."
"I was prescribed this medication to help with the pain of fibromyalgia at night. I was started on 10mg and gradually upped to 30mg. I find I am sleeping better as the pain is not waking me during the night. I have had no side effects and a bonus is it has also helped ease my severe anxiety disorder a little. Thinking about asking if my dose can be upped to help with the anxiety."
"I've been taking this for 27 years, 50 mg a night, and except for a few flare-ups, I've been virtually pain-free. I find that it really depends on what manufacturer the pharmacist purchases it from. Strange but true. I highly recommend this medicine."
Elavil (amitriptyline) "I started taking Elavil at the onset of my fibromyalgia in 1997, had great sleep, and was able to continue my work and study without pain. In early 2010, I read the side effects of the medicine and recognized what was happening to me. I had been falling for no reason, broke an ankle, lumbar vertebrae, thumb, and many bruises. I had dry mouth so bad I could hardly talk, could not remember my words I wanted to say, and lost all sex drive. I slowly removed myself off Elavil with the help of my doctor. I have had lots of pain since February 2010 and cannot find a medicine to help me with my sleep and pain, but I will not use Elavil again. I have not fallen, lost my memory, or had any other side effects of this medicine since."
"Went through such amazing pain due to fibromyalgia and severe headaches, I wanted to die. After trying amitriptyline, my pain had completely disappeared. I also found I feel completely balanced, confident, and very happy. I just wish I fell asleep a little quicker."
Elavil (amitriptyline) "I was prescribed Elavil by my rheumatologist and have been on it for 10 days. He prescribed a dose of 25 mg, but I am super sensitive to meds and have only been taking 12.5 mg. Let me just start by saying I have been on everything from Zoloft to Lyrica for depression and fibromyalgia. I have had negative experiences with most of them. I was skeptical to even try Elavil after reading some user reviews, but decided to give it a try. So far, I have noticed that I have more energy and don't feel like I am in a fog. Other side effects I've noticed: 1. Dry mouth 2. Weird dreams 3. Tired in the a.m., but more energy later on. 4. Upper back pain in the a.m. This concerns me. 5. More social 6. No pain relief for fibromyalgia. If anything, I am more aware of it. Jury's still out :/"
Elavil (amitriptyline) "I was diagnosed 14 years ago with fibromyalgia. My doctor prescribed Elavil, 10 mg per day. It helped me sleep better, but my heart began beating too fast and was discontinued. It helped a little with pain."
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