Anafranil: Old School Anti-Obsessional... Any experience?

[Kobayashi]

So my GP has just advised me to stop following the advice of my PDoc as things haven't been going well with the Lexapro and Risperidone he's prescribed.

She (my GP) wants me to continue with the Lexapro and add 25mg of Anafranil at night - give things a week or so and if I tolerate it well I'm to come off the lexapro slowly and increase the Anafranil.

I read mixed reviews of this stuff. Some people LOVE it, others find the side effects too harsh. My Pharmacist told me that its old-school, and is making a come-back as its very effective if you can get through the side effects.

I have pure - O - no compulsions.

Anyone have any experience?

Nicko

[Daniel]

BTW, as you may know, it's FDA approved for OCD.

[TSOW]

My Pharmacist told me that its old-school, and is making a come-back

Every physician has a protocol for dealing with various diagnoses based on training and clinical experience.

Sometimes this will include medications that may not be the most recently introduced to market, but are meds with which the physician has extensive experience and uses them to determine a particular patient's response.

Medicine is as much art as it is science, and every physician has his/her preferred treatment strategy.

We should not be unduly influenced b the hype created by the pharmaceutical industry in consumer ads on TV, that seem to promote the idea that if the latest medication is not used, then there is little hope for successful treatment.

While new medications are important and necessary improvements in therapy, we should not consider the latest meds as being a status symbol such as needing to drive the latest model car.

If your physician has found success in working with Anafranil, then feel comfortable in giving it a try, and report your progress in detail so your doctor can evaluate your progress.

It's the only way you and your doctor can make the best choices for your treatment options.

[David Baxter]

A good example is the anti-hypertensives (blood pressure medications). Like most people these days, I was started on the new breed of these medications but struggled with various side-effects and by trial and error found one that wasn't too bad, other than occasional problems with postural hypotension and lightheadedness or dizziness.

Then, in 2007, it appeared that I was having allergic reactions to numerous things and possibly one of those was the anti-hypdertensive I was taking. Given that, by then, I'd tried nearly every type of modern drug for the issue, my doctor put me on a low dose of an older medication (the so-called "water pill"). Not only does that low dose control the blood pressure very well, but I have no side-effects at all. An added bonus is that I went from $80 - $100 per month on the newer medications to a cost of about $16 for a 3 month supply of the current medication.

[STP]

Isn't this like Paxil? Or similar to it?

If it is, then I can tell you my expereince was nil. It did nothing for me. My frined used it for awhile and she was really glad to have been put on it.

If it's not like paxil, then just ignore this, lol I just thought I would tell you a litle story!

[Daniel]

Isn't this like Paxil? Or similar to it?

Anafranil is a tricyclic antidepressant, not a SSRI like Paxil.

[STP]

Yes, I just looked it up, thank-you. Sounded familiar. So there you go a nice little story about paxil.

Back to Anafranil...

[David Baxter]

So there you go a nice little story about paxil.

You can never have too many Paxil stories.

[STP]

That's what i was thinking.

[Kobayashi]

Thanks for the responses guys. I'll give it a shot and report my progress.

Cheers!

KOB