Joan Dykstra wrote about Amantadine/Symmetrel.
My meds began with only Eldepryl, with Amantadine added soon after. Later
Parlodel was added. More recently, Sinemet CR was added to my daily meds.
My experience with Amantadine is that it has good affect on tremor. For
good affect on slow movement and walking problems, I had to go from
Amantadine 100mg twice/day to three times/day. After about another year,
Parlodel was added.
(note- This was before I bought my Macintosh. I wish that I had kept
better records on the progress of my Parkinsons. It's difficult sometimes
to go back and construct a record of events. I recommend to new PWP, use
your Mac or PC to keep a record of your experiences and medications.)
A problem that I had with taking Amantadine three/day is that it would get
me feeling "wired" in the evening. And when I did go to bed, I would
frequently wake up 2-3 hours later and be unable to go back to sleep.
Since I have been taking Sinemet 50/200 CR twice/day, I have reduced my
Amantadine to twice/day. I never take Amantadine later than my noon meal.
I don't feel "wired" anymore and sleep much better. However, right hand
tremor has reappeared. But I can deal with a small amount of tremor. The
only time that it becomes a problem is when I'm involved in a frustrating
situation at work. There seems to be a direct relationship between
frustration and tremor.
I take Sinemet with orange juice in the morning and 7-Up or water in the
afternoon. I always take Amantadine with a meal though, because it seems
to irritate my stomach. The primary reasons that I continue with
Amantadine is 1) it seems to be very effective with my tremor, 2) lowers
the amount of Sinemet that I need, and 3) it may be able to protect neurons
in some patients (Scientific American Jan 1997). I get my meds through the
HMO provided by my employer, so I assume the Amantadine is generic.
I hope this helps anyone who is just starting or may be soon taking Amantadine.
Charley Countryman (46/6) [log in to unmask]
