Posted by Tomatheus on August 21, 2012, at 18:27:11
In reply to Anyone else new to MAOIs? Scared, posted by Roslynn on August 21, 2012, at 15:25:57
Roslynn,
I was a bit apprehensive about the dietary restrictions pertaining to MAOIs when I took them, but I never had a hypertensive crisis. I mostly stuck to the diet, but there was one time when I ate some monterey jack cheese without thinking that it was an aged cheese (and apparently it is), and I didn't have any reaction to it whatsoever. So, while I would still recommend adhering to a diet that's essentially tyramine free, I would say that it seems that the risk of experiencing a hypertensive crisis from eating some food with tyramine in it isn't as absolute as it's sometimes made out to be. I've also read that the sensitivity to tyramine (the trace amine in most of the foods to be avoided if you're taking an MAOI) can vary considerably from one individual to the next, which may explain why some individuals may be more likely to experience hypertensive crises than others. Unfortunately, I don't think that there's any way to predict how sensitive to tyramine you're going to be, so given the fact that hypertensive reactions can and do occur from eating the wrong foods, I think it would be best to play it safe, especially during your first few months on an MAOI.
Well, I can't think of anything else to add as it pertains to the MAOI diet, but I wanted to chime in and let you know that I didn't find the diet to be too problematic, and I'd also like to wish you luck with Nardil. So, good luck!
Tomatheus
Dx: schizoaffective disorder
Treatments: Abilify, 5 supplements, & counseling
tomatheus.blogspot.com
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