How does nortriptyline work

If you have diabetes or are at risk for developing diabetes, discuss with your doctor how this medication may affect your medical condition, how your medical condition may affect the dosing and effectiveness of this medication, and whether any special monitoring is needed.

Avoid these and other hazardous tasks until you have determined how this medication affects you. Glaucoma: This medication may cause symptoms of glaucoma to worsen. If you have glaucoma, discuss with your doctor how this medication may affect your medical condition, how your medical condition may affect the dosing and effectiveness of this medication, and whether any special monitoring is needed.

If you notice changes to your vision, such as blurred vision or difficulty focusing, contact your doctor as soon as possible. Heart disease: Nortriptyline can cause slowed heart rate, resulting in heart attack, irregular heart rhythm and strokes. If you have heart disease, discuss with your doctor how this medication may affect your medical condition, how your medical condition may affect the dosing and effectiveness of this medication, and whether any special monitoring is needed.

High blood pressure: Nortriptyline can decrease the effectiveness of some medications that are taken to reduce high blood pressure. If you have high blood pressure, discuss with your doctor how this medication may affect your medical condition, how your medical condition may affect the dosing and effectiveness of this medication, and whether any special monitoring is needed. Seizure disorder: Nortriptyline may increase the risk of seizures, particularly for people who have a seizure disorder.

If you have a seizure disorder or a history of seizures, discuss with your doctor how this medication may affect your medical condition, how your medical condition may affect the dosing and effectiveness of this medication, and whether any special monitoring is needed. Serotonin syndrome: Severe reactions are possible when nortriptyline is combined with other medications that act on serotonin, such as medications used for nausea with chemotherapy and "triptan" migraine medications.

Combining nortriptyline with other medications used to treat depression may also cause serotonin syndrome. These combinations should be avoided. Symptoms of a reaction may include muscle rigidity and spasms, difficulty moving, changes in mental state including delirium and agitation. Coma and death are possible. Stopping the medication: Stopping treatment suddenly after prolonged therapy may produce nausea, headache, and a general feeling of being unwell. These symptoms do not mean that you are addicted to the medication; they mean that your body has become accustomed to the medication.

If you are thinking of stopping the medication, check with your doctor first. Your doctor may want you to decrease the dose of the medication gradually when it is time to stop taking nortriptyline.

Sun exposure: Nortriptyline can make your skin more sensitive to sunlight. Sun exposure can lead to a rash, itching, redness, or severe sunburn. Use a sunscreen and avoid sun exposure especially between the hours between 10 am and 3 pm. Thyroid disease: Some people with an overactive thyroid gland have reported an irregular heartbeat when they have taken nortriptyline.

If you are taking medication for thyroid or have an overactive thyroid gland, discuss with your doctor how this medication may affect your medical condition, how your medical condition may affect the dosing and effectiveness of this medication, and whether any special monitoring is needed. Urinary problems: This medication can cause difficulty with urination. If you have difficulties with urination or conditions that make urinating difficult, discuss with your doctor how this medication may affect your medical condition, how your medical condition may affect the dosing and effectiveness of this medication, and whether any special monitoring is needed.

Pregnancy: This medication should not be used during pregnancy unless the benefits outweigh the risks. If you become pregnant while taking this medication, contact your doctor immediately. Breast-feeding: This medication passes into breast milk. If you are a breast-feeding mother and are taking nortriptyline, it may affect your baby.

Talk to your doctor about whether you should continue breast-feeding. Children: The safety and effectiveness of using this medication has not been established for children less than 12 years of age. If you have a history of urinary retention, your doctor will monitor you more closely while you take nortriptyline. For people with hyperthyroidism or who take thyroid medication: Taking this drug could increase heart rhythm irregularity for you.

Your doctor will need to monitor you very closely. This drug should be used only if the potential benefit justifies the potential risk to the fetus. Talk to your doctor if you breastfeed your child.

You may need to decide whether to stop breastfeeding or stop taking this medication. For seniors: Seniors might experience more side effects from nortriptyline. Confusion, irregular heartbeat, and changes in blood pressure have been noticed more commonly in seniors.

Your doctor might start you on a lower dose. It may cause suicidal thoughts and behavior in people younger than 24 years during the first months of use. This dosage information is for nortriptyline oral capsule. All possible dosages and drug forms may not be included here. Your dosage, drug form, and how often you take the drug will depend on:. However, because drugs affect each person differently, we cannot guarantee that this list includes all possible dosages.

Always to speak with your doctor or pharmacist about dosages that are right for you. Nortriptyline oral capsule is used for long-term treatment. For this drug to work well, a certain amount needs to be in your body at all times. If you take too much: You could have dangerous levels of the drug in your body. Symptoms of an overdose of this drug can include:.

But if your symptoms are severe, call or go to the nearest emergency room right away. What to do if you miss a dose: Take your dose as soon as you remember. But if you remember just a few hours before your next scheduled dose, take only one dose.

Never try to catch up by taking two doses at once. This could result in dangerous side effects. How to tell if the drug is working: Your symptoms of depression should get better or be more controlled. It may take a month of treatment before you notice that your depression is getting better.

Your doctor will monitor you for side effects while you take nortriptyline. Your doctor may also monitor:. This drug may make your skin more sensitive to the sun. Be sure to use sunscreen or wear protective clothing to prevent sunburn. A prescription for this drug is refillable. Your doctor will write the number of refills authorized on your prescription.

There are other drugs available to treat your condition. Some may be better suited for you than others. Talk to your doctor about other drug options that may work for you. Disclaimer: Healthline has made every effort to make certain that all information is factually correct, comprehensive, and up-to-date. However, this article should not be used as a substitute for the knowledge and expertise of a licensed healthcare professional.

You should always consult your doctor or other healthcare professional before taking any medication. The drug information contained herein is subject to change and is not intended to cover all possible uses, directions, precautions, warnings, drug interactions, allergic reactions, or adverse effects. The absence of warnings or other information for a given drug does not indicate that the drug or drug combination is safe, effective, or appropriate for all patients or all specific uses.

Exercise, mind-body therapies such as meditation, and herbal supplements all have the power to treat depression. Learn which of these may be right for…. There's very little information about taking nortriptyline with other herbal remedies and supplements. They are not tested in the same way as medicines. Tell your doctor or pharmacist if you're taking any other medicines, including herbal medicines, vitamins or supplements.

Nortriptyline is from a group of antidepressants called tricyclic antidepressants. If you're taking it for pain relief, it will change the way that your nerves receive pain signals so your pain goes away. If you're taking nortriptyline for depression, it's thought to work by increasing a chemical called serotonin in the brain. This helps to improve your mood.

If you take nortriptyline to treat nerve pain, it usually takes a week or so for pain to begin to wear off. You may start to sleep better at night. If you take nortriptyline for depression, you may start to feel better after a couple of weeks. It can take 4 to 6 weeks until you feel the full benefits.

Do not stop taking nortriptyline after 1 to 2 weeks just because you feel it's not helping your symptoms. Give it at least 6 weeks to work. Although nortriptyline is an antidepressant, the doses are lower if you take it to help pain. Taking nortriptyline as a painkiller will not change your personality or make you feel any different. If you're taking nortriptyline for depression, it helps to lift your mood gradually so you feel better.

You may get on with people more easily because you are less anxious. Nortriptyline will not change your personality or give you a high of feeling happy. It will simply help you feel like yourself again. Do not expect to feel better overnight though. Some people feel worse during the first few weeks of treatment before they begin to feel better. When nortriptyline is taken for nerve pain, most people are able to sleep better within a few days and the pain starts to wear off after a week or so.

If your pain does not get better or you have side effects, talk to your doctor as there may be other treatments which work for you. Talk to your doctor if you take nortriptyline for depression and you do not feel better after taking it for 6 weeks, or the side effects bother you. If you take nortriptyline for pain, once your pain is under control, you'll probably continue to take it for as long as it's working for you.

Some people take it for many months and even for years. If you take nortriptyline for depression, it's likely you'll take it for several more months once you're feeling better.

Most doctors recommend that you take antidepressants for 6 months to a year after you've stopped feeling depressed. Stopping before then can make depression come back. Talk to your doctor about the risks and benefits of continuing to take nortriptyline for more than a few months. There do not seem to be any lasting harmful effects from taking nortriptyline for many months or years. Nortriptyline is not addictive but you can get withdrawal side effects if you stop taking it suddenly.

You may have flu-like symptoms like feeling sick, muscle pain and feeling tired or restless. To help prevent this happening, your doctor will probably recommend reducing your dose gradually over several weeks, or longer if you have been taking nortriptyline for a long time.

You may get withdrawal side effects when you stop taking nortriptyline, especially if you stop taking it suddenly. These side effects are a physical reaction as the medicine leaves your body. They can include sweating, being sick, feeling anxious, and difficulty falling asleep. To help prevent them, your doctor will probably recommend reducing your dose gradually over several weeks, or longer if you have been taking nortriptyline for a long time.

Do not stop taking nortriptyline suddenly, or without talking to your doctor. Paracetamol and ibuprofen are safe to take with nortriptyline for a short time. Talk to your doctor if you need to take them for more than a few days.

A few people have sex-related problems while they take nortriptyline. Both men and women may have changes in their sex drive. Sexual side effects are not very common and should pass after the first couple of weeks. If they do not, and this is a problem for you, go back to your doctor to see if there's another medicine you can try. Nortriptyline is usually prescribed by your doctor if other painkillers, such as paracetamol and ibuprofen, have not worked.

Nortriptyline does not work any better or worse than other medicines for nerve pain. Nortriptyline does not work any better or worse than other antidepressants. However, sometimes people respond better to one antidepressant than another. The best antidepressant for you depends on your symptoms and what medicines have worked for you in the past. Talk to your doctor if you are not feeling any better after taking nortriptyline for 6 weeks or if the side effects still bother you. Nortriptyline can change how hungry you feel.

Some people feel more hungry when they're taking it, and others feel less hungry. So your weight may change when you first start taking it. If you start to have problems with your weight while taking nortriptyline, talk to your doctor or pharmacist.

You can drink alcohol while taking nortriptyline but it may make you feel sleepy. It might be best to stop drinking alcohol until you see how the medicine makes you feel. Apart from being extra careful with alcohol, you can eat and drink normally while taking nortriptyline. Nortriptyline does not affect any type of contraception including the combined pill and emergency contraception.

There's no clear evidence to suggest that nortriptyline affects fertility in either men or women. However, speak to your doctor or a pharmacist before taking nortriptyline if you're trying to get pregnant. Some people feel sleepy while they're taking nortriptyline.