Tricyclic antidepressants are a type of antidepressants that are used to help with anxiety and depression, especially when Lexapro and Zoloft aren’t able to work. They are sedative, and some people may worry if they should be mixed with cannabis. There are a few concerns that do possibly come with this, including tachycardia, your blood pressure hiring, and increased anxiety, heart attack, and panic attack risk. But let’s look further at the different aspects of taking tricyclic antidepressants.
What are they Exactly.
These are basically the second line of these antidepressant medications which are used when the first set of this doesn’t perform.
These include the following:
Asendin
Elavil
Norpramin
Tofranil
Vivactil
Sumontil
Sinequan
Quitaxon
Should they be mixed?
The simple answer is now. It’s not advised to mix it, as it can possibly create some negative side effects. That’s also because THC and CBD also do desensitize your liver enzymes called P2C19, which is something that can cause major problems in the future, and it can impact how the antidepressant medications are metabolized, which is something that causes some pretty adverse side effects as a result of this.
Are there benefits though?
Well, for some people, cannabis may be the solution needed to get off TCAs completely, and there are a lot of compounds in it which are good for stress, including terpenes, cannabinoids, and your flavonoids, which play a major role in this. CBD is also a natural antipsychotic, and it can actually help with the psychoactive properties of this. However, there are some major things to be mindful of if you do combine this.
They include the following:
dry mouth
Constipation
Blurred vision
Urine passing issues
Dizziness
Drowsiness
Gaining weight
Too much sweating, especially night sweats
These are but a few of the issues that can happen.
One major thing that you should be mindful of, is your heart rate and the blood pressure you have. these can increase to levels that are so bad that it may cause you to have to go to the ER, and it does put you at risk for a heart attack.
TCAs are also something that does contraindicate for a bipolar disorder condition, and it can actually trigger bipolar episodes a lot more, especially if you have rapid cycling as well, especially when compared to other kinds of drugs that you have as well.
What to do if you have to use both?
If you do need to use both, the first thing that you should do is talk to your doctor because it’ll help ensure that you get the right dosage for each of these conditions, and if there are problems, you want to make sure that you talk to your doctor right away.
You should try to consider one over the other though. While you might need both, the problem with this is that it can cause a lot of negative results from this, including drowsiness, blurring of your vision, weight gain, sedation, sweating at night, and constipation. You should not mix TCAs with other kinds of antidepressants, including monoamine oxidase inhibitors, or even SSSRIs.
You should try to avoid mixing both of these together period, as it can cause some major issues. You definitely will want to consider a few options as well. While you may need the TCAs, you also may want to look at alternative options for treatment, especially in the case of if you want to use marijuana instead, as it may be a better option for those who need it.
