Use of Amitriptyline to Control Pain

Amitriptyline is a type of tricyclic drug prescribed to patients who are undergoing stages of depression. The drug impacts the balance of inhibitory or excitory brain chemicals that cause the brain to become unbalanced. Most doctors prescribe this drug in order to treat depression or other symptoms that lead to this psychological condition. When paired with an anticonvulsant or taken on its own, Amitriptyline can greatly control pain by affecting the 5-HT and noradrenaline levels. This lowers the spinal cord's dorsal horn inhibition.

Instructions

• 1

  Go to your doctor to get a proper diagnosis. Your doctor will prescribe a specific and suitable dosage as well as the duration for taking amitriptyline until such a time you are able to notice pain relief.

• 2

  Start with a low dose of around 10 to 25 mg per day, and slowly increase this for each week as long as the side effects remain tolerable, according to your doctor's instructions. This is called "titration." You may observe pain relief in as little as two weeks, but some may take to six to eight weeks.

• 3

  Continue taking the medication indefinitely. Your doctor may ask you to wean off taking the medicines slowly after two weeks to six months, depending on your condition. This will make sure that you will not encounter any side effects from immediate withdrawal.