Taking very low dose less than 25 mg. Initially too groggy next day so stopped. Decided to give another try due to insomnia. Also depression. Started with even lower dose, titrating up slowly. Less grogginess but after a few days less effective for sleep so kept increasing very gradually. After 10 days started getting weird, agitated, anxious, foggy (not quite groggy), almost zombie-like feelings throughout the day. Some short periods of mild dizziness. Also vacillating between days of increased agitation/anxiety/depression/lethargy, and some days of feeling modestly better - unpredictably. I've heard that many anti-depressants have similar side effects initially which wear off over time. So I decided to try to push through this period - it's now been 3 weeks and continuing (no longer increasing dose,still just under 25 mg). How much time should I give it? Any thoughts? By the way, I am very hypersensitive to anti-depressants and even supplements with anti-depressant activity, can't take them - similar side effects as described but much more intense.
Do trazodone side effects wear off with time?
Question posted by MAT54 on 21 June 2017
Last updated on 28 April 2018 by Ccc7lineboro
5 Answers
My husband just started on 50 mgs the other day and got the diarrhea side effect has anyone got that one and how long does it usually last. Just called the doctor as well. No answer yet. He was up all night eating in and out of sleep so she is trying to help with being able to sleep and not eat at night. That part is working now this. Ugggg. Just to know if there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
Hello MAT54,
Are you still taking trazodone? How are you doing and did the side effects subside? I just started taking 25mg of trazodone at night for anxiety. I’m on week two and, like you, I’m experiencing brain fog. I also go between feeling OK one day to anxious and super tired the next, rinse and repeat.
Just wondering if the side effects went away for you. I am sensitive to SSRIs or stimulant like coffee (even sugar makes me anxious sometimes).
Hope you’re feeling better.
I have been on Trazodone for years. I'm allowed to take 2 100mg a night. But rarely do, usually I will take one, because of the groggy ness the next day. And feeling weird.
So in my opinion, and experience, NO it does not subside over time. ..sorry...
I actually hate it, only take if very desperate, and need to get up early, because of my insomnia. ... :(
Your side effects sound like you could be experiencing the effects of the active metabolite of Trazodone which is a stimulant called mcpp. It is a research chemical used to induce anxiety and headaches and some people metabolise more of the Trazodone into this than others. A quick Google search for mcpp Trazodone will help. I personally cannot tolerate Trazodone and believe there is newer and better medication nowadays.
Thanks Sigmundfriend. Any idea what the newer medication is? I've researched and the closest thing I found was Nefazodone which I understand was taken off the market some time ago because of liver toxicity issues. I was hoping I could eventually increase the dose up to the point where I might, in addition to sleep, feel at least some anti-depressant effect. I'm hypersensitive to SSRI's, extreme agitation/anxiety and can't tolerate them. Even 5HTP brought on this same side effect after taking it for a short time. Seems I just over-react to anything that increases serotonin and/or other neurotransmitters.
If you are suffering from depression and insomnia you could ask about mirtazapine but if you're only issue is insomnia I would try one of the z drugs for a short period of time.
I am presently taking 150 mg of trazdone for Sacrul nerve pain. My diagnosis is RSD, Fibromyalgia, I.C. and Pain in my entire body which never ends. I dislike taking such a high dose, and my doctor and I are trying to figure out a dosing schedule .
Mat54; Yes normally these type of side effects do go away but it's harder when the dose keeps changing when you get used to the dose and increase it then it makes you feel like you did when you started it. You have to try and let it regulate in your body. Could be that you are even more sensitive and might need to talk to the doctor again and let the doctor know what has been going on.
Thank you Chuck for helpful comments. I very much summarized original post. During the 10 day trial I titrated with very very tiny amounts every few days. Titrating this way is recommended by Doctors when Trazodone is used as AD but with much higher doses (e.g. start with 50 and work up to 150 or more per Doctor instructions). I was doing shavings and went from about 10 mg to about 25. Then stopped. Restarted a couple weeks later with just under 20 mg a few days then 25 and have stayed with that 3 weeks now. Doctor prescribed 25 (1/2 50 mg pill) and said I could start by breaking in half again initially - 12.5. Have had many talks with her, she knows I'm hypersensitive, she believed such a small dose would not produce side effects. Seeing her in 10 days, but my options have become very limited. Hoping side effects will fade, but wondering how long to give it... weeks, months?
Sorry, last post incorrect doses described. I never got up to 25 (keep forgetting how small the dose is when I break pills into tiny portions). Last 3 1/2 weeks I started with about 8-10 mg a few days, then 12.5 mg which is what I have been taking for 3 weeks.
Mat54; As you know we are all different, But in most people even in low dose as yours as long as you take it each day and close to the same time each day, Most people the side effects should ease up in 4 to 6 weeks. If not then its time for the doctor to do something else. The extra time on the side effects letting up is because you are extra sensitive. normally it would not be that long. But look at it this way part guess with the problems you have with meds and at least you are getting close to that time period it could very well be sooner. have a great day keep trying.
I saw my Doctor recently to discuss side effects 12.5 mg after 4 1/2 weeks. She says they should be gone by now and she usually changes or stops patients' medication if side effects last more than a few days! This seems a bit hasty, doesn't it? I have read in a number of articles that side effects can last several weeks, and 4 to 6 weeks, although longer than average, is not completely uncommon. Some days seem better than others as far as sleep, degree of anxiety and depression. Should I stop, or should I hold out until 6 weeks?
I should add that as a result of the stress and depression that led to the insomnia, I gradually picked up smoking again after many years. I had continued to be an occasional "social" smoker after quitting 19 years ago, but this "occasional" became more frequent very gradually in recent years, and in recent months I had been smoking more days than not. I am trying to stop again, have not smoked in a week. I have suffered intense irritability as well as depression when I quit in past, so possibly this is an additive factor at least over the past week. I've also read that there is some medical research that smoking could interact negatively with Trazodone - possibly because of impacts on liver clearance of both.
I'm interested in further comments from Chuck (who has been helpful) or from any others with knowledge. It would be nice to get input from an experienced Medical Professional because I believe my GP, as well-intentioned as she is, does not have the specific expertise needed to understand all the possible effects and outcomes of the myriad antidepressants and other psychiatric medications that are available.
Mat54; Myself I tend to agree with you Mainly when you first started the trazodone you were not taking it anywhere as close to the way you should have. And that can build up a bit of a resistance to the Trazodone. And as long as it has been out and people using it Even though you have been taking it for awhile at the dose the doctor said now. But because we are all different I think I would stay on it for a while yet if the doctor well lets you and I don't see why not if you are willing to keep taking it as the doctor says to see how it truly is going to work for you. Really on say the 12.5 daily for a week or two normally they would have raised that in just a few days. Given you the low dose due to your problems with medication.
To really get the better results with this it could take 50 to 100mg a day until you have been on that dose for at least a few weeks and see how you are feeling and if any side effects are still too rough on you, Then it would be time to try another medication. This is the way they had to do it with me way back when I was on it because it hit me so hard even the 12.5 to 25mg at bedtime and I would be foggy all day the next day. So ask if you can continue with it because just tell the doctor that at the beginning you were afraid of it and only took it a few times a week and you are more willing to try it now. Best of luck and hope this helps my friend hang in there.
Related topics
depression, insomnia, reflex sympathetic dystrophy syndrome, trazodone, side effect, dosage
Further information
- Trazodone uses and safety info
- Trazodone prescribing info & package insert (for Health Professionals)
- Side effects of Trazodone (detailed)
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