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Irritable bowel syndrome and Amitriptyline

Kate Kestrel

Hi everyone,

has anyone on here been prescribed low dose Amitriptyline for Irritable Bowel Syndrome- and if so - did it help at all?

A family member of mine (who is also autistic) has had long standing issues with digestive problems and a consultant has prescribed this for them. They’ve been taking PPIs for ages but haven’t helped much (in fact I sometimes wonder if they’ve made things worse in the long run). 

If anyone else has tried Amitriptyline for this issue (or for any reason) I’d appreciate any insights into whether or not it’s been helpful to anyone. 

thanks :) 

Parents

  • Hi Kate,

    I was prescribed amitriptyline as a migraine preventive medication and was taking it for around a year in total. I also suffer from gastrointestinal problems and I think it did help a little (I was having a flare up at the time and had lost lots of weight) and think it definitely helped calm my anxiety, at least initially, so that I managed to gradually get back to my normal weight. 

    Unfortunately it didn't really help my migraines so I decided to come off it (it also completely zombified me even at the lowest dose - I'm quite sensitive to medications - so I felt it wasn't worth spending my life half asleep!)

    Has your family member tried the low FODMAP diet? I've now been referred to a dietician to see if I can identify any food triggers. Overall though, I think stress and anxiety are the biggest factors for me (as you mentioned, the gut-brain axis) and reducing these are a bit of a challenge. 

    It may be worth them giving amitriptyline a try bearing in mind if they decide to stop taking it don't do what I did (advised by my GP I hasten to add!) and just come off cold turkey - I had some pretty horrible withdrawal symptoms.

Reply

  • Hi Kate,

    I was prescribed amitriptyline as a migraine preventive medication and was taking it for around a year in total. I also suffer from gastrointestinal problems and I think it did help a little (I was having a flare up at the time and had lost lots of weight) and think it definitely helped calm my anxiety, at least initially, so that I managed to gradually get back to my normal weight. 

    Unfortunately it didn't really help my migraines so I decided to come off it (it also completely zombified me even at the lowest dose - I'm quite sensitive to medications - so I felt it wasn't worth spending my life half asleep!)

    Has your family member tried the low FODMAP diet? I've now been referred to a dietician to see if I can identify any food triggers. Overall though, I think stress and anxiety are the biggest factors for me (as you mentioned, the gut-brain axis) and reducing these are a bit of a challenge. 

    It may be worth them giving amitriptyline a try bearing in mind if they decide to stop taking it don't do what I did (advised by my GP I hasten to add!) and just come off cold turkey - I had some pretty horrible withdrawal symptoms.

Children
  • in reply to AnnieH

    Hi Annie - this is really really helpful - thank you so much for sharing your experience - I really appreciate it. Everything you’ve written here is extremely relevant. My relative has tried various diet related things - but part of me wonders if they didn’t try them for a long enough period to get results. I think often there is not one answer to these sorts of chronic issues and causes are multifactorial. My relative has been dealing with a lot of stressful things in their life for a very long time - years. I think autistic people find so many aspects of life very stressful (I know I do) and the impact on our health can show up in lots of ways. Definitely with gastric issues. 
    You’ve confirmed what other people have said about it making you drowsy. My relative is probably going to be very unhappy if they get that as they are naturally far from drowsy - much the opposite! - and they like to b3 really sharp and on the ball. Still - maybe it’s being quite ‘wired’ that’s partly causing this. 
    Thanks for the warning about coming off it. Their Doctor has said to try it for 8 weeks and see how it goes. I’m just keeping my fingers crossed that the side effects aren’t too severe for them. And who knows - maybe it will really help. 
    I wish my relative would be referred to a dietician- I think that would be helpful. I don’t think anyone has suggested that (as far as I know). They’ve lost a lot of weight - even though they eat a lot. 
    Thanks so much for sharing your experience- it really is so helpful and reassuring to hear other people’s experience with these things. When you google Amytriptyline the results are a bit scary! 
    I hope that the changes you have made have worked for you :)