When to increase the Elival?

[Lisa7577]

Hi all! I have been on Elival for about 2 months now and had great success with it. Although lately, I feel as though it's affects are wearing off. When I first began taking it I felt almost back to normal again. That lasted until a couple of weeks ago when my urgency/frequency started to increase again. Does anyone have any experience with this drug becoming tolerant in your system after a certain amount of time? Do the dosages have to be increased as you go? Any feedback would be appreciated! Oh, and one more thing regarding side effects. I noticed almost immediately that I began to gain weight after starting this drug. I'm not all that happy about it, but the pros are still outwieghing the cons at this point. If it continues, I'll have to re-evaluate.

Thanks again!!

[SharonA]

I have been taking Elavil at 25mg level for several years now. So far so good at that dosage without noticing that I need to go up in dosage amount to get the same results.

Weight gain seems to be a very common side effect. My suggestion is to try not to succumb to the desire to over eat. I know from personal experience that it is easier said than done, but if you take charge now, you should be able to drop those extra pounds.

[Lisa7577]

Hi Sharon,

Thanks for the quick reply. Do you mind me asking if you are taking any other meds for the IC. I am just on the Elival right now, and was hoping I wouldn't have to go on anything else. Maybe it's wishful thinking, but it seemed to be doing the trick for a while.

Thanks!

[SharonA]

Elavil is the only prescribed medication I take for IC. I do use Prelief, also.

[c2miracle]

Hello :) I have been taking Elavil for about 10 months now and it has been very sucessful. I still get up in the middle of the night to relieve myself, but it is not as frequent and the best part is I fall right back to sleep. Weight gain has not been an issue with me by taking this medication. I have actually lost weight! It could be the other meds I take which is Elmiron instillations and Tramadol for the pain. Sharon is right, if you can just control what you eat I believe you'll do great. Have a piece of fruit instead of the "junk" food. Take Care and Think Positive! :smile tee