He was on Neurontin which did help his pins and needles, but the Baclofen
seems to be helping his spasms better. He had been on Elavil before and it
made him so drowsy and also did no good for his libido either. Some of the
newer antidepressants do not seem to have this effect.
Each person seems to be different. I've noticed a common thread here that
it seems like you just have to keep trying different combinations.
Medication does seem to make things more bearable, but I'm looking in from
the outside and can't really speak for Steve.
I know Steve is improving, though. He can stand to be touched, is much less
cranky, has more stamina, can stand on his feet for longer periods of time
and has become interested in sex again (haleluya!!!). It's not like we
noticed it day by day, but if we look back 3 months, or 6 months, we can see
big improvements.
Keep the faith....
Amy
At 10:14 AM 4/5/97 -0500, you wrote:
>>At 08:45 AM 4/1/97 -0500, Bryan Kessler wrote:
>>>for those asking,
>>>
>>> Antidespressant drugs of the tricyclic nature have long been used as
>>>adjuncts to other medications used for pain control (Elavil is the most
>>>commonly used)
>
>and Jim replied,
>
>>I was started on Amitriptyline Hydrochloride (the generic name for Elavil)
>>when I was first in the hospital. When I came home I was still taking it. I
>>asked what it was for and was told it was an antidepressants. Since I
>>wasn't depressed and I don't like taking medication unnessarily, I cut back
>>on my dosage and eventualy stopped taking it.
>>
>
> As a mater of information, I too took Elavil in hospital (but knew that
>it was not "necessarily" for its antidepressant effect.) Elavil has been
>used for years as a drug added to something else being taken for pain
>conrol. But it is NOT a pain medication in itself. You raise a VERY
>interesting issue -- you asked what the drug was "for" and was told it was
>an antidepressant -- maybe it was beig used to help -- or at least to try
>and help pain control (doesn't always work) --but it makes my blood boil to
>hear people stopping their antidepressants because they don't feel depressed
>--THAT'S WHAT THE DRUG IS SUPPOSED TO DO. I have heard of too many patients
>who do this --then need to be re-started --
>
>ANTIDEPRESSANTS are NOT short term medications --becuase depression is not a
>short term phenomenon!
>
> Anyway --not saying you are guilty of that Jim --but clearly, one of MY
>pet peeves.
>
> As I already said --ask your doctors what the medication is, what is
>being used for -- what it is "usually" used for may not be the same -- most
>common example these days is aspirin -- pain control, fever control for
>years --but now significant evidence to suggest it is useful in preventing
>heart attacks --
>
> take the bull by the horns and educate yourself about your meds
>--clearly some MDs are negligent --or too busy for this ;-(
>
>bryan
>
>