Posted by bleauberry on December 31, 2009, at 11:44:03
In reply to Re: savella question » floatingbridge, posted by ihatedrugs on December 31, 2009, at 3:02:54
Ah yes, it was ihatedrugs I was thinking of. The one that got some benefit from Savella but was in a rage all the time. Couldn't remember who that was.
Certainly no drug will work for everyone. I think generally Savella will show itself in 5 or 10 years to be more reliable than others. But for now, I think there are two very common mistakes made with Savella.
1. Doses too high. There is even a case report of a lady in remission with just 20mg per day. I failed ECT and exotic combinations, but felt improvement on mere 6.25mg bits? Shooting for 50mg to 200mg as recommended, I believe increases the risk of inefficacy or side effects by overshooting the actual needed amount.
2. I have read responses from several people who were actually in the clinical trials. The general message coming from them was that while Savella can show some benefits in the early days or weeks, it isn't really until 3 months 9 months later that the true goodness comes to life.
Their theories are that it rebalances the HPA system and autonomic systems gradually over time. The ones who had the fullest response stayed the course. I think going easy on doses helps increase the potential for that to happen without complications or early termination.
> I tried Savella early this summer and it did not work for me. I gave me energy but I was in a horrible angry mood most of the time. But as we've all learned in this forum, everyone is so different and if you don't feel well give it a try. It may very well be your miracle New Year drug!
> Happy New Year!
> ihatedrugs
poster:bleauberry
thread:931267
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20091227/msgs/931787.html