Doxepin and Headaches: What Users Say

• jbg...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 5, 2016

Doxepin for Insomnia "I was given a sample pack of 3 mg Silenor to help with my inability to stay asleep. I followed the instructions, and unfortunately, it did not seem to work for me. It made me very anxious and agitated during the night. I did sleep but kept waking up. In the morning, I was very groggy and unsteady on my feet. I felt like I had been drugged and had a minor headache all day. I do not think I will take it again, as it is obviously not the drug for me."

• dru...
• October 27, 2010

Doxepin for Insomnia "I have taken Silenor 4 times over the last 10 days as needed. I tried a little Doxepin twice before, and pure Doxepin gave me a headache and a hangover groggy effect. Silenor allows me to get 8 hours of sleep with no side effects, yay! It's a great medicine...finally. If you have trouble sleeping, then you should try it."

• Diz...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 10, 2017

Doxepin for Insomnia "Silenor works very well, keeping me asleep longer than usual. I normally wake up 3-4 times a night without it. But I have extreme dizziness and headaches the next day. I think I'll go back on my Lunesta because I have trouble functioning the day after Silenor. It is a great medicine, but I'm not sure if it's for me."

• MS4...
• October 29, 2016

Doxepin for Insomnia "Difficulty sleeping through the night. I did sleep the first night, but then most of the next day on Silenor. The second night, tossed and turned, but slept for about 4 hours. Felt drugged the next day. Took the third night, slept off and on. Felt horrible the next day: tired, weak feeling, headache. Also leaves mouth extremely dry. Not going to take Silenor anymore."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 28, 2017

For Insomnia "Started off with 25 mgs of Deptran to help with my sleep, anxiety, and mild depression. I slowly increased to 50, and once I hit 75 mgs, I experienced severe sedation during the daytime. I found it hard to get out of bed, to function, and ended up resting on my couch for up to 2 hours per day after getting out of bed! I heard it is good for some people who have trouble staying asleep, but my problem was the exact opposite. I have trouble drifting into sleep. Deptran (Doxepin) increased my anxiety/nervousness, gave me headaches, puffy eyes, tremors, and made me too tired to function properly, and it wasn't even helping me get to sleep! I was on this medication for 3 months, so I gave it a decent try. Still weaning off this medication as I write this."

• Itc...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 9, 2019

For Urticaria "I've had urticaria for 2 months on and off. I have taken every manner of topical and antihistamine offered by the dermatologist. Finally, my GP suggested 10 mg doxepin in the evening for urticaria. I had a very strange reaction to this drug. The rash (which covered my back) disappeared instantly and completely within 2 hours. Then I fell fast asleep. Within 2 hours, I woke up very psychologically disoriented, and the rash had returned even worse than it was before. I calmed myself down, put some steroid cream all over my body, and went back to sleep. The next day, I was very nauseous and had a headache all day. It was such an extreme reaction, so I will not take this medication again. Glad it works for others!"

• Sle...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• February 13, 2016

For Insomnia "My doctor prescribed Doxepin 45 mg 'at bedtime' to help me move my sleep cycle back to a normal time - it had gradually slipped later and later until I wasn't getting sleepy until 4-6 a.m. My experience is that Doxepin is useless for this purpose (confirmed by my pharmacist) - it does not help me fall asleep at all, but it will keep me asleep for much longer, which unfortunately is just reinforcing my shifted sleep cycle. In addition, I've had lots of side effects, ranging from a mild headache to migraine halos, irritability, anxiety, and worst of all, a 20-point rise in the first blood glucose reading after waking. If your problem is staying asleep, this will probably help, but if your problem is falling asleep, it's pretty useless."

• Mou...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 11, 2016

For Insomnia "My doc prescribed 40 mg at bedtime to shift my sleep cycle. History of acute anxiety attacks w/ tachycardia and essential tremor. First dose I felt agitated, anxious, and my heart rate went up to 160. It did not help me fall asleep any earlier, next day blurred vision and 'migraine aura.' Things went downhill from there. My doctor said to continue it for at least 4 weeks and the side effects would go away. They did not - things continued to worsen. The tremor increased to where I could not use the computer, headaches got worse, anxiety increased, I became irritable and angry, and my blood sugar went through the roof. After 5 weeks I threw it away - blood sugar still high and tremor still worse after quitting a month ago."

• Dai...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 30, 2016

Doxepin for Insomnia "I have had chronic insomnia for 5 years. I struggle to fall asleep, and once I'm asleep, I never sleep longer than 45 minutes to 1 hour without waking up. I take Ambien when I can afford it, so I have to limit myself to only a few times a week. I was given a sample pack of Silenor about a year ago, but the online reviews made me not want to try it. I was desperate last night, so I tried one 3 mg. My heart raced, and it did not make me sleepy. I took another half of 3 mg and finally dozed off about an hour later. The amazing thing is that even though I never felt sleepy from it like I do with Ambien, I actually slept for 3 straight hours on the Silenor. I do have a tiny headache today, so I don't know if I will take it again."

• JCo...
• July 16, 2021

For Anxiety "Before, I was taking amitriptyline for depression/anxiety, and it worked in just 2 weeks. I was completely depression/anxiety-free for the first time in 7 years. I didn't want to stop taking amitriptyline as it worked WAY better than the countless SSRIs I tried in the past, but sadly, amitriptyline raised my resting heart rate way too high (a common side effect of amitriptyline). So I switched to doxepin, which I hoped would be similar to amitriptyline, as doxepin is also an older TCA type of antidepressant, but doxepin for me was a disaster. It gave me really bad nightmares and extreme vivid dreams. It also caused me to have a headache almost all the time I was taking it. It also caused a heavy sedation feeling when taking each tablet (I took 50 mg each night), and all that aside, it didn't work well enough on my depression/anxiety. I have switched to citalopram now, and those side effects have gone, and I'm doing okay, so will stick with citalopram. Doxepin suits some people, so good luck if you try it."

• Sti...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 13, 2016

For Insomnia "Low-dose doxepin did not help at all with my insomnia. I tried doses from 5 mg to 20 mg, and it never helped with either falling asleep or staying asleep. Side effects: very dry mouth, sore throat, headache. On the plus side, it's very inexpensive, and I was able to discontinue it without any withdrawal effects."

• Vin...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 19, 2019

For Insomnia "Use doxepin 6 mg for insomnia. Dreams seem real. Slightly headachy. Overall, pretty good!"

• Jul...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 8, 2021

For Insomnia "This medicine might work for other people, but after taking this medicine for about a week, I felt like I am choking, and I had a really bad headache and eye pain. I stopped taking it."