Did anti-depressants help anyone with generalized vulvodnia?

Just wondering!

I was wondering the same thing. I'd really like to know if they have helped anyone. I was just diagnosed with vulvar pain and was given zoloft. I had a lot of side effects and was only able to take half a pill. I took it for a month and had no results. On my return visit my doctor prescribed wellbrutrin and he wants me to take it with the zoloft. I haven't started it yet but I hope I don't have any more side effects. My doctor also told me you have to be weaned off anti depressants because you can have problems similar to withdrawal and I wish he had told me before I started.

It sounds like the problem may be that you've been prescribed SSRIs, which are not as effective at managing chronic pain than SNRIs or Tricyclics. I don't know everything about this because I just started researching it, but I found a helpful article about it. I can't post a link because I'm a new member, but if you go to the Mayo Clinic website and search "antidepressants for pain" it should be the first one.

I'm planning on trying an SNRI soon, as I'm not ready to resort to something as intense as a Tricyclic anti depressant. I've tried anti depressants in the past and have had some pretty bad side effects, so I'm trying to find the one with minimal ones, which sounds like what you need too! I'm looking into Pristiq, which has great reviews so far but also doesn't seem to be covered by any insurance carrier so...we'll see. My second choice is Effexor, which I have reservations about because it's known to dampen some people's sex drive (I have to be honest, I'm holding out for a cure that lets me enjoy sex and life again, so this is a dilemna). The good news is that anti depressants can be prescribed in lower doses for pain than for depression, so that should help for those of us who are sensitive to side effects.

I'll keep you guys updated and please do that same. Hope that helps!

I'm having some success with duloxetine (an SNRI). I think I need a bigger dose than the 60mg per day I am on, but the specialist said I can go up to 120mg.

Ok, cool I just looked that up. Cymbalta is the brand name. Have you had any bad side effects with it? From what I'm reading, they seem pretty minimal in most people, but I prefer to ask people about their actual experiences with drugs.

No side effects - and I feel much better on it than I did on tricyclics. I have way more energy, no constipation, and no dry mouth. It's helped my low mood a lot as well.

I'm on a tricyclic called nortriptyline 30mg at the moment and haven't felt it ease my pain so far about 3 months in... I've also had side effects of agitation and anxiety through the roof for some reason, along with dry mouth. I'm hoping my GP may try me on pregabalin / lyrica this week.

Hope your GP agrees to a switch, Waahwaah. I'd say three months is long enough to know if something is promising or not. Pregabalin is actually also used for treating anxiety, so hopefully you wouldn't feel anxious on it.

Thanks PainBlogger. Yes I'm seeing him tomorrow and hoping he will let me switch. He said last time if 30mg doesn't work he will look at something stronger but didn't specify so I'm going to ask for pregabalin I think. The anxiety is awful, and making even slightly better days hard to handle as I'm so anxious all the time... Fingers crossed! Really glad to hear you're getting something from the duloxetine.

In respect of this post about antidepressants and this condition - you'll find some people have had success with drugs like amitriptyline or nortriptyline, while others haven't, or have had success with other drugs like lyrica / pregabalin etc.To anyone reading this post thinking of trying medication, I would say look at your options and give it a try. Lots of people have felt much better after finding the right meds, the right dosage. Don't be put off by one persons response to a particular drug. Vulvodynia is caused by so many different and combined, complex factors that we are all individuals and will respond in different ways. I say this because I have done this myself - looked at what did or didn't work for others and felt down about it. But I know, I just need to find what is right for me.