If I had a doctor who was not willing to use a drug that may help me because it was considered old school, I would find a new doctor. Despite its age Amitriptyline is still very often used for PN and definitely helps some people. If your doctor just wants you to try something else first, that is fine. But he not should rule out a drug which does help some people.

I was taking 25 mg. It was bumped up 50 mg but didn't notice any significant improvement from what I had at 25 mg. Some people get a benefit on a lower dose like 10 mg. But I have also seen recommendations from places like Mayo Clinic and others that a person might be prescribed up to 100 or even 150 mg even for PN alone before you abandon it for something else. I have had no real side effects from the drug. I did pop an extra 50 one day and it did seem to help quite a bit, but that may have just been a good day or a placebo effect.

One reason why a higher dose might be appropriate for me was because I suffered from occasional depression before I got PN. I was taking Prozac. That helps depression for some people but has no effect on PN. So, I just got the doctor to switch me from prozac to amitriptylene.

I guess the latest drugs that help some people and have the greatest exposure on TV ads are Cymbalta and Lyrica, neither of which have generics. But neither have not been proven to work any better than older generic drugs. While my insurance would probably let me go straight into the newer more expensive drugs and I can afford the co-pay, I don't mind trying the old ones first. For me, it is just a matter of trying things to see what drugs, if any, work best without intolerable side effects.

x1

yes identical.

off them now