pamelor for tension headache - Headaches & Migraines Message Board

hornetz · 07-19-2001, 12:12 PM

Hi all,
Its my 7th day of taking pamelor which is a older trycyclic antidepressant and I feel more depressed than I did when I started taking it, also it seems to make more short fused and aggressive than I normally would be, I’m only on 10 mg at night because I’ve tried various antidepressants in the past and been unable to continue taking them for any longer than a few days because bad side effects, The main reason I’m taking the drug is because I get terrible headaches which in themselves make me depressed and its supposed to be a preventative type of treatment and I must say it does seem to be helping with them.
Has anyone had similar effects on pamelor or any other antidepressants, I don’t know what to do, should I give it longer or should I stop taking it, apart from it making me feel down the side effects aren’t all that bad.
Any feedback would be kindly appreciated.

mlgable · 07-20-2001, 08:12 AM

Since you have only been on it 7 days you need to wait a bit to give your body more time to adjust to the medication. Any side effect can be temporary until your body gets used to the medication. If you still have the side effects after the amount of time your doc specified for you to try the medication then by all means mention this and see what they say. Always ask you doc how long it will take before you body adjusts to any new medication so you know when to let them know how something is or isn't working for you.

Cat54 · 07-20-2001, 12:47 PM

Hi,

I was on this for a little over 3 years. It takes at least 2-3 weeks to start working well. It helped in the prevention of my migraines for a bit, but I recently went off it as it was no longer helping. I have menstrual migraines though, and am going through menopause and at this point I don't think anything will help them. Best of luck to you!

hornetz · 07-21-2001, 03:23 AM

Just writing back to say thanks to cat32 and mlgable for the info and I'll give them a week or so longer to see what happens. In the past I've taken amitriptylene but found it really difficult to get out of bed in the morning and felt tired most of the time so the doc prescribed pamelor instead,I don't feel too bad today but keep on feeling a bit dizzy, does anyone know if this is just one of the temporary side effect and will go after a while, also I'd be interested in anyone elses experiences who have tried pamelor.
- Thanks again

lovelei3 · 09-02-2001, 11:36 AM

I was on Pamelor about 6 yrs ago. I was on it for migraines. I had an undiagnosed sleep disorder and it was also good for it. Allowed me to get a decent night's sleep.
One of the negatives with Pamelor is that I must've gained more than 10lbs. No one ever told me the tricyclics are notorious for stimulating your taste for sweets. I just happened to read that in some literal I'd found on antidepressants. You could've knocked me over.
Started taking 600-800mgs of Motrin after that. But, of course, that's not good for my pancreas. I've taken Imitrex. It was very good.
But, I've been taking Verapamil for the past 4 yrs now. 180mgs everyday keep the migraines away. It's usually prescribed for heart conditions or high blood pressure. Who knew, it's also great for migraine prevention.
Whatever you take, I hope you find pain relief w/the least amount of side effects. It isn't always easy to find both in the same preparation.

Take care,

lovelei