![[dr. bob]](/dr-bob-sm.gif)
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 4 of 4. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by JCastro on January 27, 2019, at 7:45:18
I have been on Parnate for 2 years and settled on 40mg (20mg, 2x/day) for the past year.
Fatigue and weakness have been a big problem with it and recently I introduced coffee which has ameliorated it from debilitating to manageable.
I've been having 3-5 cups a day but tolerance is developing. At cup 3 and above, I tend to get a transient headache up the back of my neck into my head. The headache doesn't correlate exactly with hypertension on my Rite-Aid blood pressure cuff. The highest reading I've seen from coffee is ~145/90. My norm is 120/80. Sometimes my BP is normal during the headache, sometimes it's ~130-140, and sometimes it's ~140 with NO headache.
Can one have high brain blood pressure but get a normal cuff reading? Is this coffee headache dangerous? It's not extreme, but I get anxious wondering if my head is going to explode.
I'd appreciate hearing from any coffee drinkers on Parnate or MAOIs, how much you drink, and if it causes problems. I found one anecdote of a Parnate user who drinks ~6 cups a day and said he is fine, but I know it's different for everyone. Thanks!
Posted by ed nieg on January 27, 2019, at 9:17:29
In reply to Parnate + coffee: safety, upper limit?, posted by JCastro on January 27, 2019, at 7:45:18
Have you tried increasing the dosage 60+ mg? Once you get in the 80-120 mg range the NRI effect of Parnate becomes more prominent and this may reduce the weakness/fatigue, which I know from personal experience can be quite debilitating. You can also try adding a TCA weak on the serotonergic front such as Nortriptyline.
I think coffee + parnate messed with my BP so idk if it's the best long-term solution.
Posted by baseball55 on January 27, 2019, at 17:05:50
In reply to Re: Parnate + coffee: safety, upper limit?, posted by ed nieg on January 27, 2019, at 9:17:29
High BP is not called the "silent killer" for nothing. There are no acute symptoms. The headache from extremely high BP caused by interaction of MAOIs with tyramine is an occipital headache and associated with extremely high (like 200+systolic) BP. But people can have very high (180+ systolic) BP with no symptoms at all.
120-140 is totally normal systolic range. Over the course of a day BP goes up, down and sideways. If you are worried about BP, take it every day at the same time for a few weeks and see what the average is.
Posted by Lamdage22 on January 27, 2019, at 21:24:40
In reply to Re: Parnate + coffee: safety, upper limit?, posted by baseball55 on January 27, 2019, at 17:05:50
I drank coffee like crazy on Nardil. Never had a problem however i started out low and gradually increased. But Nardil also brought on psychosis at times.
This is the end of the thread.
Psycho-Babble Medication | Extras | FAQ
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.org
Script revised: February 4, 2008
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/cgi-bin/pb/mget.pl
Copyright 2006-17 Robert Hsiung.
Owned and operated by Dr. Bob LLC and not the University of Chicago.