I need opinions

[brandyt08]

HELP!!! I have been reading that some people are getting relief from taking
anti-depressants which it also helping their anxiety/depression.
I have bad anxiety and probably depression along with my ic so im wondering if it is something I should really try. If anyone is taking anything like this and they are having some kind of relief I would really like to learn more about it.

[stef000]

I take the generic of elavil----amitriptyline and it has helped me....
With the frequency and also it helps the painkillers actually work....
Since my problem was always frequency and urgency and urethral issues.....
And i must say that it does help me for sure.....some people like another one of the tricyclics like nortriptyline or tofranil.....
Since they have less incidences of side effects....
So its really up to you if you want to try them and which one you want to try....
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amitriptyline
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nortriptyline
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imipramine
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tricyclic_antidepressant

theres some links and also at the bottom you can check out other antidepressants......some find relief from effexor (i don't---just with my depression but not pain) and some find relief from cymbalta....
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venlafaxine
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duloxetine

so theres some reading for ya.....
really its an individual thing if it helps you and what side effects you get from it and such but i hope this sorta helps...
:hi:

[ABliske]

I was on Effexor (75 mg) before I got pregnant. It seemed to help with anxiety/depression, but was meant to be a pain reliever. I felt a sort of happiness high when I was on it. (My psychology teacher said that antidepressants do not work this way. That they don't make you extra-happy :lmao: but only correct an imbalance. Maybe I was depressed without realizing it.)

It's hard to say if my symptoms got worse when I went off of it. There were so many changes going on with my body. My frequency got worse, but that may have been the pregnancy.
Effexor was also hard to adjust to. I had to take 37.5 mg and step up. I threw up to the point of going to the ER the first time, but I had just had a hydro and nothing to eat. I was also starting Elmiron and Urisit-K. The next 2 days I took it with a lot of food and felt sick but after that it was fine.
The cost to be on it was $25 a month which I considered well worth it. I'm not sure if I'll go back on it though. I may if I experience any post pardum. In general though, I'm reluctant to be on any more meds. Even with it, I had to take a separate pain killer.
I took imipramine at an earlier time. It had no effect on me, but I was on a low dose.
Hope this helped.

[SharonA]

Most of us who take an anti-depressant like Amitriptyline (Elavil) for IC symptoms do so at a low dose which does not necessarily help with anxiety/depression.

You really should talk this over with your doctor. They are the only ones who can decide what medications you should try based on your symptoms.

I hope you are able to get some answers and that you will begin to feel better, soon. :)

[leelee88]

I take Tofrinal But like Sharon mentioned it is a low dose and was only meant for IC pain control. When I was going through a really depressing hard time I talked with my Dr and was prescribed Cymbalta. This really helped with my depression. So if you are having the feeling you are needing somethiing. Then I would strongly suggest talking to your Dr..

[lisabar36]

Hi, I am on Elavil also but a low dose so it doesn't do anything for depression since its such a low dose, but its for my IC, it really helps with that. I would talk to your doctor about it and see what they reccomend. There are so many anti depressants out there, I would do some research on what ones are well tolerated for IC.

[ICNDonna]

My husband takes a low dose of elavil for arthritis pain. Our doctor explained that it helps with pain because it interferes with the pain receptors in the nerve system.

Donna

[Cadyfatcat]

I take nortriptyline and it helps a lot, it was essential when I was first trying to get my pain under control - now If I miss a dose it is hardly noticed.

I take 25mg once at night - and I found that even that small dose, low for treatment of depression, helped my depression symptoms a lot when I started taking it.