# Anyone here taking low-dose amisulpride regularly?



## GregW (Jul 6, 2011)

I have now unsuccessfully tried nearly all the antidepressants on the market (except the MAOIs), as well as counselling and therapies like CBT, for my depression and social anxiety. My conclusion is that my problems are simply not very responsive to changes in serotonin or norepinephrine activity levels, even though others are helped by conventional antidepressants.

I am now looking into a dopamine approach to my issues. I've looked into various dopaminergic medications, but tolerance seems to be a limiting factor with many of them. This led me to wonder about low-dose (50-200 mg/day) amisulpride (Solian) which has been mentioned as helping dysthymia (used in Italy for this I believe) and also being able to help the "negative" symptoms of schizophrenia (lack of emotions, apathy, social withdrawal, etc). I am not schizophrenic by the way, just using this as an example of the drug's apparent ability to help with emotional blunting.

I know there have been threads on this site about amisulpride before, but none seem to indicate whether anyone found it beneficial as a daily medication for social anxiety and/or depression. Is anyone using it this way? Has any serious tolerance stopped you from being able to get continued benefits?

Any information would be of great interest.


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## Oioioi123 (Nov 1, 2011)

I'm not but I HAVE and it's probably my 2nd favorite med next to Nardil. Not only did it cut down on anxiety but it actually helped with energy motivation and dysthymia. It's an excellent excellent med way too often overlooked, take only in small doses 25-50mg, raises dopamine. I'm really surprised more people here don't use it to be Honest. When I say dysthymia I'm not sure if that's the correct wording but to explain it, I just felt happier and I didn't have that monotone drained voice kinda thing, I actually felt happy and passionate when I talked because I actually had an interest to talk to people not just because I had to. I found instea of quickly getting to the point and ending the convo or let them talk I would find myself doing the talking and it quit surprised myself. It's quick acting to so sometimes I'll still take 50mg with Nardil somedays as a social an dopamine booster. It's something I'll always have on hand


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## GregW (Jul 6, 2011)

Oioioi123 said:


> I'm not but I HAVE and it's probably my 2nd favorite med next to Nardil. Not only did it cut down on anxiety but it actually helped with energy motivation and dysthymia. It's an excellent excellent med way too often overlooked, take only in small doses 25-50mg, raises dopamine. I'm really surprised more people here don't use it to be Honest. When I say dysthymia I'm not sure if that's the correct wording but to explain it, I just felt happier and I didn't have that monotone drained voice kinda thing, I actually felt happy and passionate when I talked because I actually had an interest to talk to people not just because I had to. I found instea of quickly getting to the point and ending the convo or let them talk I would find myself doing the talking and it quit surprised myself. It's quick acting to so sometimes I'll still take 50mg with Nardil somedays as a social an dopamine booster. It's something I'll always have on hand


Thanks very much. Dysthymia definitely describes a chronic lack of emotions and motivation, from what I have read of it, and this is often a problem for me. Occasionally I happen to have more emotional expression and motivation naturally (this fluctuates with me) and my confidence and social anxiety greatly improve when this happens, so I reasoned amisulpride could therefore help me. I first ever read of amisulpride only a month or two ago, in a discussion of what could help apathy and withdrawal in schizophrenic people, and I would have overlooked the drug otherwise (being classified as an antipsychotic, which of course it is at high doses).

Thanks also for the dosage suggestions, it sounds like 100 or 200 mg would be too much. MAOI's are nearly impossible to get from anyone besides specialist psychiatrists here in the land down under, otherwise I'd have tried one too. We do have bupropion, used only as a quit-smoking aid under the Zyban brand, so I have thought of combining that with amisulpride for added dopamine effect, very carefully at low initial doses of course.


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## ricca91 (Mar 11, 2012)

Actually, I'm VERY interested about people's experience with low-dose amisulpride. 

Here where I live Levosulpiride is OTC, because it is indicated for dyspepsia, but they are very similar.

It seems a wonder med, but I am really concernes about the prolactin increase, which I believe it occurs even at low doses.


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## GregW (Jul 6, 2011)

ricca91 said:


> Actually, I'm VERY interested about people's experience with low-dose amisulpride.
> 
> Here where I live Levosulpiride is OTC, because it is indicated for dyspepsia, but they are very similar.
> 
> It seems a wonder med, but I am really concernes about the prolactin increase, which I believe it occurs even at low doses.


This prolactin issue has been on my mind too since I first heard about it, and yes it does seem to happen at low doses from an article I saw. All I can do is try it and discontinue if this becomes a serious problem I guess....there is ALWAYS something negative about an otherwise positive medication hey!


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## swim (Apr 4, 2011)

GregW said:


> used in Italy for this I believe


At first it made a big difference, mood boosting in no time, but now I don't feel any effect from it (maybe I built tolerance to it). I take 50mg every other day as suggested by pdoc to avoid increase of prolactin levels. I'm thinking to cut it definitively as I'm starting to feel way better due to the increase of prozac dosage.


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## Lost123 (Mar 11, 2013)

GregW said:


> This led me to wonder about low-dose (50-200 mg/day) amisulpride (Solian) which has been mentioned as helping dysthymia (used in Italy for this I believe) and also being able to help the "negative" symptoms of schizophrenia (lack of emotions, apathy, social withdrawal, etc). I am not schizophrenic by the way, just using this as an example of the drug's apparent ability to help with emotional blunting.
> 
> Is anyone using it this way? Has any serious tolerance stopped you from being able to get continued benefits?


At a dose of 50 mg in my country (Italy), it is approved for dysthymia (a form of depression characterized by little dopamine).

At a dosage ranging between 50 mg and 300 mg it is indicated for the negative symptoms of psychosis.

At the dose ranging between 400 mg and 800 mg it is indicated for the positive symptoms of psychosis.

In some cases amisulpride 50 mg may even cause mania.

Among the side effects are an increase of prolactin and difficult to suspend it after prolonged use.

For what is my experience, amisulpride 50 mg can be too much stimulating, so I have not found very useful to be taken long-term, but only for a few days as it has a very fast antidepressant effect.


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## Lost123 (Mar 11, 2013)

If you want you can answer my question I posted here: http://www.socialanxietysupport.com/forum/f30/provigil-modafinil-amisulpride-194689/#post1080930154

If you want to read the experiences of Italian users can do it with the help of a translator at this link: http://psyco.forumfree.org/index.php?&showtopic=55817


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## swim (Apr 4, 2011)

Ciao lost secondo me si può prendere anche 100mg per la distimia, anche se lo psichiatra dice di no, infatti su wikipedia riporta che fino a 200mg è una dose anti-distimica ma solo sopra i 200mg diventa antipsicotico. Che ne dici?


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## Lost123 (Mar 11, 2013)

Nel foglio illustrativo del Solian che puoi trovare su torrinomedica.it è scritto che dai 400 agli 800 mg e fino a 1200 mg in rari casi, è per i sintomi positivi della psicosi e dai 50 ai 300 mg è indicato per i sintomi negativi, quindi suppongo quelli causati da poca dopamina... secondo questo potrebbe ipoteticamente essere antidistimico persino fino a 300 mg, ma l'indicazione per la distimia, quella che è stata testata negli studi, è di 50 mg. Per cui io non andrei sopra i 100, e ho letto che per qualche persona anche 50 mg è troppo, ed è meglio 25 mg. 
Io in passato non mi sono trovato bene con l'amisulpride presa tutti i giorni a lungo e la sto valutando per le pause dal modafinil, per evitare il down dei giorni dopo. Inoltre ho letto parecchi utenti lamentarsi di un aumento di prolattina o difficoltà di sospensione.


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## Lost123 (Mar 11, 2013)

Di recente ho letto dell'aripiprazolo (abilify) a basse dosi come antidistimico e antidepressivo o come aggiunta a un SSRI, che dovrebbe anch'esso aumentare la dopamina ma in maniera differente dall'amisulpride, ma non ho esperienza diretta però qualcosa ho trovato pure in questo forum, dacci un'occhiata.


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## swim (Apr 4, 2011)

Lost123 said:


> Di recente ho letto dell'aripiprazolo (abilify) a basse dosi come antidistimico e antidepressivo o come aggiunta a un SSRI, che dovrebbe anch'esso aumentare la dopamina ma in maniera differente dall'amisulpride, ma non ho esperienza diretta però qualcosa ho trovato pure in questo forum, dacci un'occhiata.


Per carità gli antipsicotici atipici (a parte l'amisulpride a dosi basse) hanno troppi effetti collaterali, ad esempio acatisia, aumento di peso (come se non bastasse quello dato dalla paroxetina), insorgenza di sindromi metaboliche inoltre l'abilify e la paroxetina interferiscono tra loro mediante il citocromo cyp2d6 il che vuol dire che se uno già prende la paroxetina, il dosaggio dell'eventuale abilify in aggiunta viene moltiplicato per diverse volte e oltre a quello gli effetti collaterali. Continua se vuoi la discussione con i messaggi privati, non so se è consentito dialogare in un'altra lingua nei thread.


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