Imipramine: Side Effects and Effectiveness in Treating Multiple Sclerosis

Imipramine (often misspelled on the Web as imapramine) can also be found under the brand name of Tofranil. A tricyclic antidepressant, Imipramine has many clinical uses but is sometimes prescribed in low dosages as a sleep aid for multiple sclerosis.

Issues:

Difficulty getting to sleep and staying asleep happens to be one of the symptoms of my multiple sclerosis. Because of this, Imipramine was prescribed for me in 25 mg pills. The instruction given with this drug was to start at one pill, increasing by one pill every three days until I reached four pills a day for a total dosage of 100 mg. The pills are to be taken at night before going to bed.

Effectiveness:

My experience with this medication has been mixed. Initially, there was no effect at all. However, after reaching the full dose, though I was able to stay asleep through the night, increased lethargy was noticed within one week of being on the complete dose. This extreme apathy continued until several days after the dose was reduced back to 75 mg daily instead of the 100 mg.

75 mg is considered to be an extremely low dose of this medication but staying at the 75 mg has enabled me to sleep through the night instead of waking three and four times during a sleep session, without having the additional side effect of the intense lethargy. It has not been particularly effective in getting me to sleep, though there is a slight drowsiness approximately one hour after taking this medication.

Warnings:

1) Because of the possibility of increased depression and or suicidal tendencies with any of the tricyclic anti-depressants, my doctor did a screening and maintains frequent follow-ups while I am on this medication.

2) Although I did not have this issue, according to WebMD, "This medication passes into breast milk and may have undesirable effects on a nursing infant. Breast-feeding while using this drug is not recommended. Consult your doctor before breast-feeding." Additional warnings that did require my monitoring included possible problems with diabetics, thyroid medication, photosensitivity, and a number of others.

3) According to Phyllis B. Books, DC, DACBN of the Books Family Health Center, there is a reduction in vitamin B2 and enzyme CoQ10 while taking Imipramine. I was unaware of this when I first started on the medication, but am now including these in my supplemental diet.

Overall Review:

Although I have found an increased ability in remaining asleep through the night, I have not found Imipramine to be that effective in inducing sleep. Also, the increased dosage which might help me get to sleep more quickly was not worth the drastic apathy side effects I suffered at the increased level.

Sources:

http://www.webmd.com/drugs/drug-8664-Imipramine+HCl+Oral.aspx?drugid=8664&drugname=Imipramine+HCl+Oral
http://www.booksfamilyhealthcenter.com/Research.html