VIDEO
TCA – TRICYCLIC ANTIDEPRESSANTS
TCAs (tricyclic antidepressants)
TCAs are still very useful drugs. They are good at reducing anxiety (and work quickly in this respect). They are also helpful in re-establishing sleep.
In addition they have some painkilling action and, if depression is associated with pain, they can be very useful. If you have had a previous episode of depression, and responded well to a tricyclic, it is likely to be a first choice of drug again. What has worked in the past is highly likely to work now.
However, there are disadvantages. They are potentially lethal in overdose. They can oversedate you and slow down your reaction time. This effect causes potential hazards when you are driving or operating machinery. They cannot be taken by people who suffer from heart disease or have a particular type of glaucoma (raised pressure within the eye).
Common side-effects of TCAs are dry mouth, constipation, difficulty in emptying the bladder, blurred vision and dizziness on a sudden change of posture (postural hypotension). They can contribute to weight gain. You might not get any of these sideeffects or you could get several. If the depression is helped, the experience of one or two of these side-effects in moderate degree is almost always an acceptable alternative to depressive illness.
Quite commonly people adjust to their antidepressant – a sideeffect that was troublesome at the onset of treatment may fade within 1 or 2 weeks.
