Nortriptyline for Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome User Reviews

• kay...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• March 9, 2025

"Took many years of extreme episodes and being put on random (even harmful) drugs before finding this on Reddit. Requesting it changed my life. I've been on 50 mg of nortriptyline for years now. Went from 7-day intense episodes admitted in a hospital every other month, gathering many thousands in hospital bills to episode-free and finally able to hold a real career. I have bouts of nausea if I forget to take it for a few days (ADHD), and they have led me into full episodes at times, keeping them in your system is important. They may have made me gain weight in the beginning. I didn't consider them a cause but found out down the road that that can be a side effect. However, this year I lost all of the extra weight I gained over the years, so I think there's a possibility all the weight gain had much more to do with all the episodes of not eating for 7 days and losing 10+ lbs during each episode, and then binge/unhealthy eating when fully better because I'd gone so long without."

• Gra...
• April 17, 2021

"I tried a number of different anti-nausea medications and was misdiagnosed about 5 times over the course of a year. I went through cycles of vomiting so bad that I couldn’t eat or drink anything for 2 weeks and ended up in the hospital for dehydration. IV fluids helped for about a week or so, and then I started getting sick again. Finally, my gastroenterologist decided we were going to try 25mg of nortriptyline, and within 6 weeks, the vomiting nearly completely stopped. I still get sick about once a month, give or take, but tend to just vomit once and then feel fine. Much better than daily vomiting and gastroparesis brought on due to it. I had been on SSRIs before, but the vomiting occurred on and off those because they work differently. I also have no side effects, unlike other antidepressants. Highly recommend giving nortriptyline a try if you’re having gastrointestinal distress with no known cause."

• Anonymous
• July 16, 2008

"Nortriptyline has helped to make me virtually symptom-free for almost seven years. I have cyclic vomiting syndrome episodes, but this medicine is a miracle. It has definitely improved my quality of life."

• Ang...
• November 20, 2013

"I have had Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome for almost 5 years, and I tried many different medications, and so far, I have been taking these for almost 2 years, and I haven't had an episode since! I know the pain I have been through and pray for anyone that has it!"

• Sei...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 8, 2018

"If you’re prescribed this, please be careful! This medicine has caused me to have a seizure, an ER visit, no driving until I’ve been seen by a neurologist. I was only taking it for a week before I had my seizure."

• Ems...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 8, 2021

"I have had cyclic vomiting syndrome (CVS) since I was a kid, unfortunately, it has followed me into my adult life and hasn’t gone away. I take liquid nortriptyline because I hate pills, and it seems to work almost instantly, however, you do have to wait some time when starting it for it to work. I take it every night at bedtime, and it has taken my stomach pain away. Only very rarely I’ll get episodes now."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• September 19, 2015

"I began feeling nauseated years ago, out of nowhere. Whenever I ate, I got sick. Even times I wasn't eating, I'd feel nauseated. I'd get bad migraines that could bring it on or come after the vomiting. So nauseous to the point I was vomiting non-stop and in the ER at least once a month. YEARS went by, and nobody could figure it out. After being diagnosed by doctors at Riley Children's (once I turned 18, they stopped talking to me) and doctors at the Mayo Clinic, I began taking nortriptyline, and it has worked MAGIC. My ER visits are down to a few times a year versus every month."

• Mat...
• January 27, 2017

"I have had cyclic/chronic vomiting syndrome for 2 years now, and I've only just a few months ago got treatment for it. It works very well, but I still get nauseous sometimes, but haven't vomited since September."

• Big...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• September 20, 2024

"I've had cyclical vomiting syndrome for several years now. This was the worst experience of my life. With episodes lasting up to fourteen days at a time, I stumbled upon this medicine prescribed by my gastroenterologist. This medicine immediately gives me the worst hemorrhoids I've ever seen. Although it helps with the sickness, there's a decreased intensity of pain, not as many episodes, but ultimately it does not take the sickness away. What makes this sickness reverse is fighting through episodes and pushing through stuff you can't normally do while being sick. It's really mental. I know because my dad was dying, and I had to force myself to be at the hospital every day, vomiting and all, but I got up anyway and went. Vomiting and all. After a couple of months of pushing and pushing, the episodes slowed and stopped. Now I just vomit, and food is challenging along with light and noise."

• Anonymous
• January 4, 2010

"I agree - a small dose keeps me virtually symptom-free for 5 years. Only side effect is mild sleepiness, but I take it at bedtime, so it's not a problem."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• December 5, 2012

Nortriptyline "This has helped reduce the severity of my attacks. They are still incapacitating, but the vomiting is not as severe. Unfortunately, it has not affected the amount of attacks I get."