Posted by Stan on April 9, 2003, at 13:35:59
In reply to Re: Anticonvulsants for Anxiety: which are best? » Stan, posted by Ritch on April 7, 2003, at 9:50:25
>>> Well.. thus far if benzos have had a better response than antidepressants/Buspar, probably Neurontin would be worth a try. There are some that find the positive effects wear off after awhile, it is rather short-acting (so you have to take it two or three times a day), some get a paradoxical reaction to it. The only thing I can say is try it and see what happens. Gabitril is in clinical trials for GAD. Neurontin's refined version (pregabalin) is in clnical trials for GAD as well. Gabitril can cause mental dulling as well. Have you tried any TCA's for your GAD? You might find nortiptyline effective.<<<<
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thanks for the reply, ritch -- i didn't realize that pregablin is an update of neurontin, so to speak -- i actually have a newspaper article from a about a year ago about pregablin that i have filed away somewhere, but i can't find it now. is the newer medication supposed to have fewer or less prominent side effects than neurontin, or is it intended to have a stronger anti-anxiety effect, or both? in the meantime i will try to get some samples of neurontin to try for a short while to see if it relieves anxiety without bringing on the "blahs" like benzos do for me. how would you compare the nature of the cognitive impairment that occurs with anticonvulsants vs the type that benzos bring on, if you've had any experiences with both? is it a similar "feel"?
i will have to research the nortriptyline a bit -- thanks for the suggestions. i'm one who has always eschewed the TCAs in favor of more modern meds, when it's possible that those old drugs work just as well as the new stuff. my limited knowledge of them has led me to believe that in general the TCAs affect too many receptors, causing troublesome side effects that i would object to. for example, meds with a strong antihistamine effect (e.g. remeron) put me to sleep immediately, as do those that block the "alpha-1" adrenalin receptor (e.g. trazodone). i found that remeron and trazodone were ok for mild anxiety relief, probably partly due to the properties just mentioned, but their sedative properties were so overpowering that they made me *more* depressed.
i did a couple of google searches to check out nortriptyline but haven't been able to pin down which receptors it interferes with -- if it does anything that causes sedation, dry mouth, blurred vision, etc., then i might have to look elsewhere. thanks again for your help.
Stan
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