Amitriptyline administration schedule

I've started amitriptyline as a preventative (for a second trial) and primarily to help with sleep. I have been prescribed 25 mg. tablets, and I have titrated to 75 mg./day.

For those of you who have tried amitriptyline and have had good luck with it, do you take the entire dosage at bedtime or do you take it in three doses (morning, noon and bedtime)?

Just wondering what is most effective.

Thanks so much!

Becky

well done becky for getting this far.
I never got further than 10mg at bedtime. Couldn't wake up.
Shows how differ we all are.
Good luck
P

hi i have been told that Ami is a slow realease drug, when i asked my doc the same question about splitting doses up throughout the day, Ami makes you very sleepy and so it would be hard to function in the day if you kept topping up with it, i have been on 75mg and have dropped to 50mg,

i was told to take it b4 bedtime, so i take it about 2 hours b4 and it has then started to work and i can barely make it up the stairs to get into bed and when i do i am out like a light, its lovely no tossing and turning, trying to drop off,

obviously i would prefer not to take it at all, but along with a beta blocker it has helped, reduce the severity of my M, bigger prob for me is weight gain, i am struggling with it, and despite going to gym 2/3 times a week and a pilates class as well i am still creeeping up on the scales,

Thanks for your responses, Pen and Theresae.

I've noticed the zonk-out effect of the amitriptyline. I think it hits me at about 1-1/2 hours after I take it. I've been taking it all in one dose in the evening, but I wasn't sure if that was the correct way (I didn't want to be dopey all day too).

I notice I fall asleep easily but wake up early, like this morning. I woke at 2 AM and can't go back to sleep.

I'm dreading the weight gain side-effect. If that's a side-effect, it usually affects me dramatically. So far, I haven't felt well while on it, so I haven't been eating much--hopefully I won't experience that craving for carbs (and then subsequent weight gain) that I experienced with nortriptyline.

How long did it take for the amitriptyline to have an effect on your migraines, theresae?

Hope it continues to work well for you. Thanks so much!

Becky

I was given a prescription and told to take 1-3 at bedtime (25 mg tablets). I took just one to start and have never upped it. I take it right when I'm ready for bed and when I hit the pillow I am out. Talking about a miracle sleeping pill. On a rare occasion that I wake up during the night I can always pop another one. For me it is like pushing a button for sleep. I have never had any after effects. I feel very refreshed in the morning. Although there was never a change in my migraines (maybe there could be if I took more but don't really want to), they are a magic pill for a good night's sleep. I am sold on them. Something else I like about them--they don't dope you up so much that normal stuff that would wake you up (like a burglar, storm, etc.) keeps you sleeping. You will wake up like you would normally and can get back to sleep. Like I said, on rare occasions I have popped an extra one but very rare. I have never had to up my dose to get this perfect night's sleep and when I have forgotten them (like on a trip) I have been able to sleep, so you don't become dependent on them either. At least, this is the story for me anyway. We are all different.

I have also never gained any weight on them (or any other meds). The only way you can gain weight is to take in more calories than you can burn, period. So if this or any other drug is causing you to gain weight, it is because you are either eating more (which you can control) or your metabolism is slowing down (in which case you have to eat less). Just another thing you have to weigh the pros and cons on. The only drug that had an effect on my weight was Topamax, and I lost weight. It wasn't because the drug itself was making me lose the weight. It was because it caused me to have no appetite, which was horrible (for me). If you want to lose weight, give it a try. It will do the trick.

Hope this helps. Amitritiline is a good drug for me for sleep but no effect on migraines.

hi there looking at post again and should of mentioned that the ami on its own didnt do much to my weight, only went up a few pounds, but went on beta blocker in september 09 (which slows metabolism) add to that the increase in appetite that Ami gives you, and the fact that i have always struggled with my weight and it has become a problem for me, dont want to scare you off giving ami a good try, like estre004 has said we are all different,

the ami took several weeks to start to kick in and on its own it only reduced the severity, still needed triptans, and then after another rough spell doc then added the beta blocker as well, and the two together has helped reduce severity and some of the frequency, cant really put down hard and fast figures, but i know that at the moment i feel better than i did 6 months ago, and can even manage to go to the gym now,

the biggest trade off for me is weight gain, fatigue, let us know who you get on.

I didn't gain weight, in fact I think I lost some. But as I have said before ,
I couldnt wake up unto 2 in the afternoon.
Too sleepy to eat...
It did hit my appetite, I ended up on a "tonic" and Iron shots through not eating.