Any experience with Savella?

[Martlet]

Just got back from my doctor's and he told me to research Savella to see if I want to give it a try for a severe fibro flare. I was wondering if anyone here has tried this medication and what effects it may have had.

Thanks.

 

[heapsreal]

not tried savella but used reboxetine a few years ago and its just a noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor, probably not to different to savella. I found it gave me too much energy and sweated all the time perfusely which is common with these types of meds and it made sleep almost impossible. I onlt used very small dose like 1/4 of tab. In saying all that, everyone is different so have a go and see how u do. personally i find tramadol better for pain energy and mood, it has some similar actions to antidepressants, so need to be careful using it with AD's. They make tramadol in slow release over 12 and 24 hours but i prefer the 12hr as it can interfer with sleep as well. one more thing , look into baclofen, its a muscle relaxer then can also help with sleep and different to benzo's although works on a similar recptor site.

cheers!!!

 

[Martlet]

Heaps

Thanks for the info. Tramadol isn't touching the pain at the moment. I will look into baclofen though. I'm a bit nervous of the savella. I refused Cymbalta.

Thanks again!

 

[*GG*]

Just got back from my doctor's and he told me to research Savella to see if I want to give it a try for a severe fibro flare. I was wondering if anyone here has tried this medication and what effects it may have had.

Thanks.

So you are just going to take this for a short period of time, not sure it would be covered when you move?

GG

 

[Mya Symons]

I have Fibromyalgia also and I am on Savella. My experience has been good. Nothing works completely to take away the pain, but for me, Savella seems to take away some. It works especially well to take away some of the stinging type pain. I found that it has to build up in your system for about a month before you start to feel the effects. Also, if you don't titrate the doses at first, it will probably make you nauseous. Usually the docotor will start you off with a titration pack.

I have tried gabapentin and Lyrica and I hated both. My memory and concentration problems doubled while I was on nerve medication. I was always in a fog. Savella seems to work for the same type of pain the nerve medications work for, but without the nasty side effects. I would say it is definately worth a try.

There is a lot of people on my husband's side of the family with CFS and FMS. I convinced them to try Savella and it has worked well for them also. However, everyone is different.

 

[Sushi]

I haven't tried savella but did use strattera (norep re-up inhibitor) and cymbalta (nor-ep & serotonin re-up inhibitor). The were prescribed for me at very low doses (below the normal therpeutic) for OI. They made a huge difference with OI and interestingly the fibro that I had had for years almost disappeared and even though I stopped these meds a couple of years ago, the fibro hasn't come back.

I stopped them cause my symptoms were better, I wanted to get more to the cause rather than "drug" the symptoms, and they cost a fortune.

Sushi

 

[Otis]

I would suggest titrating very slowly. Try and get at least sample two titration packs.

Tachycardia is a possible side effect.

Another common problem is severe sweats. I had to discontinue almost right away because I've got severe heat intolerance and savella aggravated it badly.

Those that it does help it seems to do a pretty good job.

 

[Sushi]

I would suggest titrating very slowly.

I had to titrate strattera and cymbalta very slowly--starting with a third of a capsule every third day--took about 6 weeks to get up to my tiny dose.

Sushi

 

[Martlet]

Mixed results then. My doc said he has no samples or he would have given me some. He also mentioned slow titration and said he would never give me the full recommended dose because I'm quite sensitive to meds, so that ties with what some of you are saying. But Otis, you mention rapid heart beat, which probably rules me out. I already have re-entrant supra-ventricular tachycardia, so I don't need anything that might trigger that. I can also vomit almost on command, so nausea is also a concern for me. Darn. I am right back where I started.

 

[Mya Symons]

Mixed results then. My doc said he has no samples or he would have given me some. He also mentioned slow titration and said he would never give me the full recommended dose because I'm quite sensitive to meds, so that ties with what some of you are saying. But Otis, you mention rapid heart beat, which probably rules me out. I already have re-entrant supra-ventricular tachycardia, so I don't need anything that might trigger that. I can also vomit almost on command, so nausea is also a concern for me. Darn. I am right back where I started.

Martlet, I also have very bad problems with nausea. But, if you start out with a small dose and then work your way up each week (for 4 weeks) to your regular dosage, it usually takes care of the problem. Everyone is different, so you might not develop the side effect of the rapid heart beat. It has worked so well for methat I suggest trying it and then you can stop right away if you do happen to feel the heart problems coming on.

 

[heapsreal]

Dont give up yet, i would still try it, u might not get any side effects, and it might be the best thing u have tried. If u do get side effects just stop it. For your svt, do u or can revert it back yourself ie valsalva monuver(spelling??) or do u have to go to hospital for adenosine or cardioverted. Valsalva is where u hold your breath and bare down and u increase the pressure in your chest and abdoman, this stimulates a nerve which can then slow your heart rate down, its freaky but it can work.

When all else fails u can try to raise your own noradrenaline and serotonin levels with amino acids which can work well. Im also very sensitive to ad meds. If u took the amino acid tyrosine(500mg-2000mg) first thing in the morning on an empty stomache and dont eat for 30 min, tyrosine can help increase noradrenaline levels. As for serotonin u can use 5htp which i think is a good mood buster and serotonin also helps with manging pain, u could take this 30min after tyrosine and take it with food. I find these amino acids have no side effects like ad's and worth a look at too.

cheers!!!

 

[Martlet]

LOL ... You are right! I think I will give it a shot. If everything goes as planned, we will be moving house in a couple of months, and I could really do with some relief.

ggingues - Fortunately, we have Tricare, so what's covered here is covered globally. Also, my doc here has agreed to keep me on, provided he can coordinate records with whatever doctor I get over there. Depending on where we live, it will either be a German doctor assigned to us by Tricare, or will be an American doctor on the nearest military installation, so I was quite relieved when my doc said he has another patient overseas.

 

[*GG*]

ggingues - Fortunately, we have Tricare, so what's covered here is covered globally. Also, my doc here has agreed to keep me on, provided he can coordinate records with whatever doctor I get over there. Depending on where we live, it will either be a German doctor assigned to us by Tricare, or will be an American doctor on the nearest military installation, so I was quite relieved when my doc said he has another patient overseas.

good to hear, hope things work out for you!