amiltriptyline is one of the older meds. it's been found not to be that great of an antidepressant, but is still popular for use in tx'ing insomnia in chronic pain patients. we all know how lack of sleep can play havoc with our pain and fatigue cycles.

but a word of caution needs to be said here, i think. elavil (another name for it) is an ssri, and can interact negatively with other medications, especially if you are also taking another a/d which is in this same class of meds. remeron or lexapro, for example, or any of the modern ssri's. the interaction takes place at the central nervous system level, and can be dangerous according to my neuro.

i personally had a bad experience with this phenomenon myself. lots of negative emotions like rage and grief, way out of proportion to the situation and easily provoked, were stirring up before the mistake was caught. Very scary stuff, limbic nightmare really.

dr. annest always told me our pharmacists have a remarkable body of knowledge at their fingertips concerning the meds we sometimes have to take and how they interact with each other.

this particular one is something that you should absolutely have your doc and/or your pharmacist check against, and in combination with, every single other prescription and over-the-counter med you are taking before adding it to your rx regime. i would, anyway, just to be safe. (yes, you can do it on-line yourself, but how many of us really know how to interpret the results?)

anyhew, fwiw you guys...

alison