How should Amitriptyline be used?
Amitriptyline comes as a tablet to take by mouth. It is usually taken one to four times a day. Take amitriptyline at around the same time(s) every day. Your doctor will probably start you on a low dose of amitriptyline and gradually increase your dose. It may take a few weeks or longer before you feel the full benefit of amitriptyline. Amitriptyline, a tertiary amine tricyclic antidepressant, is structurally related to both the skeletal muscle relaxant cyclobenzaprine and the thioxanthene antipsychotics such as thiothixene. It is extremely sedating, and thus improvement of sleep patterns can be the first benefit of treatment. Amitriptyline exhibits strong anticholinergic activity, cardiovascular effects including orthostatic hypotension, changes in heart rhythm and conduction, and a lowering of the seizure threshold. As with other antidepressants, several weeks of therapy may be required in order to realize the full clinical benefit of amitriptyline. Although not a labelled indication,
