Anafranil for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder User Reviews (Page 3)

• Phi...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 5, 2023

"So far, I have been on 25 mg for about 2 weeks. It has given me much more headspace than other antidepressants I've tried so far. Sometimes I can now redirect my attention and not fixate on the thoughts. Obsessive thoughts do still come, though, but I need to put in the work in ERP anyways. I am having good hopes for increasing the dose now. The only issue is it makes me really constipated right now. But compared to every other antidepressant, I believe this is one of the best for OCD."

• Inf...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 30, 2022

"My experience with Anafranil over the past 3 months is as follows: severely chronic constipation, urinary retention that hospitalized me the other day, a 60 percent increase in my depression, a 90 percent increase in my overall anxiety, and at best a 15 percent decrease in my OCD symptoms. Not to mention the sexual dysfunction that includes painful orgasms and low libido, and then there's the constant dry mouth. I cannot for the life of me recommend this medication to anyone. I'm currently 5 days away from discontinuing this medication and replacing it with Prozac."

• Use...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• August 12, 2018

"I definitely recommend Anafranil to anyone suffering from moderate to severe OCD. While on this medication, I noticed a great reduction in my OCD symptoms, and it had elevated my mood even. Though a few of this medication's side effects might be a little troublesome, generally, you get used to it, and it isn't life-changing."

• bal...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• November 18, 2022

"Anafranil gave me very serious balance problems. Within days of it for OCD, I began stumbling up the subway steps. The psychiatrist assured me it could not be from the Anafranil. Over a period of a few years, I twice fell and had to be treated and received facial stitches in the emergency room, lost part of a front tooth, suddenly fell for no apparent reason walking down the street, climbing stairs, going down stairs. I could have had extreme injuries, or in the case of falling down 15 steps at the train station, died. I asked my psychiatrist about Anafranil causing the falls. He said it would not in any way have caused these falls. On reporting my falling to an audiologist, she told me that research shows that Anafranil indeed does lead to balance problems in 30% of people taking it."

• Geo...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• April 26, 2018

"Been on since 1990, 25 mg at bedtime, and has worked fantastically for my OCD, which surfaced after a grand mal seizure. Generic ineffective - try to use the brand. Worst side effect is yawning, can also open the capsule and dilute in water partially if needed."

• Bca...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• May 23, 2022

"This is the only medicine that ever did anything for my OCD. I have tried everything!! (Zoloft, Paxil, Luvox, Wellbutrin, Celexa, Prozac) It does have some side effects. The bothersome ones for me are weight gain (not extreme like 5-10 lbs) & fatigue. I recommend taking it at night before bed because it can make you tired. If your body can adapt to the side effects, it's worth it. Especially if you have intrusive thoughts. I have obsessive checking behaviors & I also pick my skin, which is considered the same type of disorder as trichotillomania. Anafranil helped me completely stop this. I had no desire to think about it or do it anymore, it was crazy. If you have tried a lot of other things, give it a try in low doses, slowly. It will get better, little by little."

• Ser...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• September 18, 2022

"For those who are comparing OCD medications, you should note that Anafranil and Clomipramine are the same medication. Personally, I’ve found this medication to be the most effective for OCD, essentially removing all intrusive thoughts I had for the most part, as well as allowing me to easily dismiss or accept whatever intrusive thoughts did rarely arise, without it provoking an anxious response, meaning they could pass from my mind without issue. Unfortunately, however, the medication suddenly stopped working for me after a 3-year period and left me taking something much less effective. This has left me hoping that one day I’ll be able to go back on Clomipramine and that it’d work again, or that I could find another medication just as effective, if not more effective. It is an older medication, so it can have more side effects. Personally, I only had two: weight gain and orthostatic hypertension, however, the latter only appeared after a large dose increase much later."

• Anonymous
• January 23, 2012

"After trying a few different medicines (with no benefits), my doctor pulled out the big guns and gave me Clomipramine. I have severe OCD but the purely obsessional (intrusive thoughts). I used to be a checker and hand washer, though. I took it for over 1 year. Unfortunately, Clomipramine did nothing for me on 250 mg, which is pretty much the highest dose you can take. I did not have a lot of side effects except dry mouth when I was on it. I quit taking it after I ran out on a holiday weekend and saw the withdrawal symptoms: severe nausea. And even when tapering slowly off it over the course of months, I still had terrible withdrawals (vomiting and nausea)."

• Rlw...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 4, 2022

"I’d love to know how anyone else went on this drug? I’m only on 25 mg and also on Concerta 18 mg for ADHD, so I’m basically OCD/ADHD. I have been getting really bad insomnia, but I do find it is helping. I take it in the morning at the moment because when I first started, I found it kept me up worse when I took it at night. I will eventually increase. I get dry mouth, but it has also fixed my IBS. Please feel free to share experiences if the insomnia side effect goes away. I’m on week two now."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• September 17, 2022

"This medication has helped me immensely with my OCD. It has been life-changing. The only side effect I would like to warn people about is, I take Anafranil at bedtime, I have hunger pangs all night, and although it helps me fall asleep, the hunger pangs wake me up at 1 and 2 am. It’s not a normal hunger either, it can’t be satisfied, and it makes me crave carbohydrates like pretzels, sweets, etc. I gained weight initially on it because I didn’t look into this side effect. I am now more mindful, I jog on the treadmill, and I try to watch my calories during the day and find snacks low in calories, so if you wake up hungry, you can eat and go back to sleep. The weight can come off, you just wanted to let people know. I find Zoloft helped my OCD just as much without the crazy hunger."

• Wil...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 6, 2018

"I have been taking Anafranil 200 mg for OCD for three months, and it's not working. I'm getting severe anxiety, intrusive thoughts, and tremors. My GP gave me diazepam 2 mg for when I get really bad, and that helps, but last week he told me to stop taking it, and the psychiatrist told me to just ignore my thoughts and anxiety. I can't get into a private psychiatrist or a public one for a second opinion, so I don't know what to do."

• mic...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 18, 2015

"I was put on this medication earlier this year for OCD. I didn't really notice a difference other than it made me tired about a half hour after taking it. It did not seem to improve my OCD symptoms. However, I do wonder if I was on a high enough dose. My doctor only had me on 50 mg, and I have a high tolerance to meds, so I might give this another shot at a higher dosage. Also, I was only on it for a few weeks, I think."

• ocd...
• November 16, 2014

"I took Anafranil for only 3 months, it completely cured my 30-year obsessive-compulsive disorder. Free of OCD for 15 years."

• Ama...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• July 5, 2013

"My 13-year-old daughter is on this. None of the SSRIs worked to control her obsessive-compulsive disorder. Anafranil has been awesome."

• Anonymous
• September 13, 2008

"Anafranil completely rid me of OCD for the first time in my life. No other medication was as effective. I recommend anyone with severe OCD at least give Anafranil a try."

• Nut...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• June 16, 2013

"Works better on Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder than on depression. Also helps one sleep and counters nervous diarrhea."

• pcf...
• November 6, 2009

"It's the only medicine that worked for my OCD, and I have tried almost all of them."

• Lau...
• April 22, 2019

"It (Anafranil) saved my life - I highly recommend it for OCD."

• mik...
• November 10, 2010

"Anafranil made me feel alive again. I used to weigh 120 kg before taking it. I lost 34 kg in 2 months."

• lui...
• June 10, 2009

"I've been taking since last year, and my obsessive-compulsive disorder is treated with almost no side effects. I avoid alcohol since I started."

• Lal...
• December 16, 2017

"Took this medication for 5 months at 250 mg, and it did nothing for my OCD and GAD. It actually made my anxiety worse. So glad to be off it."

• Cas...
• February 14, 2015

"My husband gave clomipramine a try yesterday, and as a side effect, he got very violent and angry."