My doctor won't prescribe me Clomipramine

[Bastille Day]

I have asked twice now and been turned down, he is however giving me Amitriptylene. He tells me they are almost the same product. I have did a lot of research myself and have heard nothing but good comments about Clomipramine. I really don't understand, perhaps it is because I told him I read a lot of good things about it in online research. And if they are almost the same product, then I see no reason not to at least let me try it. It only adds to the depression when you try so hard to help solve your illness yourself and your denied a chance. Last psychiatrist was the same way, pushed ssri's on me when they made me feel worse.

[paul m]

Hello Bastille Day. I agree with you it is very frustrating when that happens. I can only offer some possible suggestions and/or explanations . You may have tried all of my suggestions already and my explanations are not intended as a criticism. My explanations are just a little bit of a window in how docs sometimes think and I often disagree with how docs think.

I don't know why your doctor won't let you try a different medication. He may have valid reasons or he could have had bad experiences with the one medication or the drug rep for amitriptlyene is a more persuasive talker. Both meds are known for having a hugely long list of side effects and they both have a huge list of other medications that they don't always get along with, making prescribing more difficult. So perhaps telling the doc that you had heard good things about it may have been what is making your doc stubborn, but once again that is only a guess on my part.

I'm not saying that either med is a lousy medication, both can be beneficial and I think that your doctor should at least give you a better explanation why he/she has for not prescribing it.

There are some differences between the two meds. Ampitrptlyene leans more to inhibiting the reuptake of serotonin and Clomipramine is more known as a reuptake inhibitor of serotonin and norepinephrine and Clomipamine has a better record on OCD than depression.

Perhaps if you tell the doc that you have researched the side effects and how the medication may react with your other meds ( www.drugs.com is a good place to look for interactions and side effects. ) and if perhaps you can find some sort of scholarly article about how well Clomipramine works. By telling the doc that you are aware of the side effects of both medications and aware of how they might interact with any current medication that you take as well as a specific article that states why you want to take a certain medication the doc may be more willing to listen to you as then he knows that you are making an informed decision. You may already be doing that, but most docs want to hear proof of how you arrived at that decision, especially if it conflicts with their own thoughts.

While we often think that docs are well informed, they often only have general knowledge on medication as there are 1000's of medications and new ones come out each yr. As the average monograph on a medication is anywhere from 25-75 pages long, nobody could possibly read and remember all of the information on every medication and doctors are no different. Good Luck and Take Care. paul m

[Bastille Day]

The first time I saw him I had a list of two medications CLOMIPRAMINE/ANAFRANIL 10 - 25 - 50 mg and TRAZODONE. I told him I spent a lot of time researching my mental health issues and these two drugs were what I came up with. But yet a man who didn't even know me as this was my first visit, simply glanced at the research notes and prescribed me Ampitrptlyene. My question is, if Anaifril and Ampitriptylene are the same as he suggests, then letting me try Anafril should not be a problem.

[paul m]

Hello Bastille Day. It sounds like you think that how I replied was a criticism of you. Perhaps I'm wrong, but if you did, I assure you that I didn't intend it that way. I take it that your main complaint is why a doctor won't let you have more say in what you take.

As I mentioned doctors have a variety of ways of prescribing meds and not all of them are good. While I didn't explicitly point that out, I did say things like perhaps the last drug rep who was around was pushing amitriptlyene and believe me that happens, it's not right , but it happens. I also said that I often disagreed with the way doctors think and that I thought that your doctor should give you a better explanation.

I could have been just sympathetic and left it at that. I am sympathetic and I hate it when what is happening to you happens to me. So I tried to explain a few methods that I have found around a doctor's stubbornness, but my comments were not meant as criticism. Nor are these remarks meant as a criticism, just trying to explain myself. Take Care. paul m

[Lisari]

I have the same problem with you. My doctor just doesn't prescribe me Clomipramine.
I had several psychological outbreaks due to wrong prescriptions and inadequate evaluations. My experiences with local doctors over my anxiety issues have not been ideal so far. The only thing left for me to do before visiting another practitioner is go to an online doctor advisory site and look for a second opinion that will allow me to know what to expect when it comes to medicines and prescriptions. I do respect every doctor, but I still need a second opinion after all these failures!