Posted by brynb on August 24, 2012, at 8:09:11
In reply to Re: Selegiline-good for depression and anti-aging? » brynb, posted by SLS on August 24, 2012, at 6:05:22
> After reading your story and those of others, I am becoming increasingly impressed with tramadol as an antidepressant.
>
> Did you respond to any of these drugs?
>
> Effexor
> Cymbalta
> Savella
> Anafranil
>
> Thanks for the update.
>
>
> - Scott
Hi Scott,I couldn't tolerate Cymbalta or Effexor. Both meds made me physically ill and completely off, even at the lowest doses. I never tried Savella or Anafranil.
Tramadol has been effective for me at very small doses. I started at just 100 mg (50mg twice daily) during my last depressive episode, and this dose helped get me out of bed. I've been able to taper down easily since then (I'm sure the addition of Lithium has helped, too) and actually feel better from smaller doses of Tramadol (25mg or 50mg once a day).
The mood boosting effect is pretty immediate (within an hour or so) and it's not at all euphoric or synthetic feeling (I don't in any way get high from it). Plus, I haven't had any side effects.
That said, it's infuriating that so many psych docs discount and dismiss this drug. It doesn't make sense. Perhaps it has something to do with the stigma of opioids/opiates, and Tramadol is technically considered an opioid/analgsic (though it's a very mild one, at best).
-b
poster:brynb
thread:1023975
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20120818/msgs/1024114.html