Posted by Elizabeth on March 24, 1999, at 14:07:50
In reply to Re: MAOI Parnate, posted by Ruth on March 20, 1999, at 15:04:26
> I started on parnate after trying multiple other medications. I had a good response to it. As for side effects, the only problem I had was feeling very sedated and lethargic. I would wake up in the morning still exhausted. (I subsequently learned that the reason for this is that parnate eliminates REM (dream) sleep, one of the stages of sleep necessary for a good nights sleep.
I really don't think this is why you are feeling tired. Most people spend very little time in REM sleep while on Parnate (or Nardil), but feeling unrested is very uncommon with these drugs. (Also, it may or may not be true that all dreaming occurs in REM sleep.)
> As for the diet, it is really something you get used to. You know that there are just certain things you can't eat. Sometimes it gets frustrating at restaurants because there can be a number of things off limits (you need to ask lots of questions). But in trade off I'd take the parnate.
I think Alli makes a good point that once you're feeling better, it can be hard to remember that the tradeoff is worth it.
Also, I hope everyone is aware that many of the "MAOI diets" that are floating around are overly restrictive - that is, they list as "restricted" foods that are just fine. (Often, an item used to get included just because an interaction had been reported, even if the report was based on a single case which was not well documented and the food was later found to contain no tyramine. In other words, based on a rumor!) Compare two "restricted foods" lists and notice how many items are on one but not the other - this should tell you something!
poster:Elizabeth
thread:3352
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/19990601/msgs/3957.html