Glycopyrrolate - My Story

Hello everyone,

I have used this site for some time now and for those of you stopping by here looking for first time answers let me assure you it is well worth the read.

I have suffered from pretty much full body sweating for the past 10 years (I am now 27). I have tried everything, seen every specialist and had every test known to man. I have been told it is anxiety, depression, stress etc etc but I have always known that any of those just mentioned were only ever as a result of the sweating and any form of anti-think straight medication just bent me sideways and never touched the taps.

I am not going to get into the whole story as you will find similar on this site BUT THIS IS THE IMPORTANT BIT

18 months ago I was prescribes Glycopyrrolate (I am in the UK), paid about 300 pounds for the pleasure and was told to take 1-2 1mg tablets three times a day. My boner soon deflated when it only reduced my sweating by around 20% which I felt was not worth the side effects (I was a fairly heavy drinker and this makes the whole dry throat thing 100x worse).

At this point I accepted my fate as well as the fact I would just be a sweaty sod for the rest of my life... I went back to dreaming of a world where we all had to wear air-conditioned space suites and escalators ran from my bed to my work.

Sorry, anyway, last week I decided to try this stuff again BUT as recommended by various posters AND the difference is HUGE.

I am on day ONE and just walked into town, round the shops and back (5 miles) in around 25 degree heat with, I would say, an 80% improvement.

This time I did the following - I have not had a drink (alcohol) for the last week, I essentially cleansed by body first through healthy eating and moderate exercise. Last night I took 2mg before bed (1am) this morning when I woke I took 2 more (8am) and at midday I took a kicker (1mg). I am now hoping I will be done for the day (I will test laster and report back). Most importantly, IMO, I did not eat between dinner last night and the kicker (midday) today.

So the sacrifice for me will end up being a bit of a dry mouth/eyes and no more getting drunk all the time. Neither are of any concern as I forgot what dry felt like and I only drink because it makes me forget about the sweats.

Good luck to any of you reading this and thinking it relates to you. If this holds up my life has just changed for ever. fingers crossed.

Knick.

Here is a quick update three or four days in.

I reduced the dose to half on the second day and I went down to around a 50% reduction in sweating. Day three I took nothing and we were pretty much back to normal. I wanted to do this to be sure of the speed the drug works at so that I can time everything right. I think with the right timing you can save on 1 or 2 mg a day and, in turn, reduce the side effects. It looks like I will need 6-8mg over 24 hours to be almost fully dry on a busy, hot day and I would not want to do this every day as the dry mouth and sore throat were bad (I coughed up a little blood from my throat) and, not sure if anyone else has had this but I have had outbreaks of itching over my upper body which will last for a few minutes and the subside at the point where I would usually begin to break into sweat.

I found that using a mouthwash to gargle helped the top of the throat and moisturising in general helped a little with the itching.

For me Glyco will become very important to me as I will use it for busy days as work, weddings/funerals and when I am forced into spending a day doing such medial activities as shopping, however, I will then take days off when I know I am not moving about to much and have the option of using my car. To put this into context I would imagine 4 or 5 days a week will be spent friend Glyco. I am still very positive about the effects and look forward to my first opportunity to use it which will be a meeting in Geneva next week, airports are usually hard work as i the train there, walk to the gate etc etc etc.

So glad you're having early success. I also use the lowest dose that suits my situation--sometimes nothing.

I hadn't thought of the gargling, but will try it. I do sometimes have not only dry throat but hoarseness--worth it though.

Continued good luck!

Hi Knickerless - I'm happy the Glyco is helping you. It takes time and practice to fine tune the use of this medication. It sounds like you are doing all the right things trying to figure out what works best for you. Over time it will become automatic on how much to take and when. Until then, there will be times when you take it and didn't really need it......and times when you skipped and wished you hadn't. I always take it when I'm not sure what the day holds just to be safe. My side effects eased up after a while. I hope yours do as well. 2 things that have also helped me are 1) Some type of cardio before work in the morning (Just do It). Luckily my gym has a steam room so I can sweat out some extra after a quick workout. It's relaxing and "wrings you out" before you start your day. If you can't find a steam room try a sauna. I don't go every morning but on the days I do I can tell a difference. 2) I carry the Listerine pocket spray and dissolving strips throughout the day. They help with the dry mouth (and yucky breath) that happen with this med because it dries you up inside. Anyway, continued success to you and please post any tricks of the trade that you find along the way. You will find the best benefit of Glyco is psychological. Knowing that you have the option of taking it to plan ahead will greatly reduce your anxiety and the control that HH has over you.

Hi All,

Quick update. I have been seeing an osteopath/herbalist who for years has made me wonderful tinctures to help me with sleep and anxiety and she took a look at the Glyco, did as little research and thinks she can make a herbal version. Obviously this will not be as strong etc but going back to the stacking idea, it could work well enough to limit the glyco dose and keep the side effects at bay. I am due to pick it up later this week and will keep you posted but please feel free to PM me if you want to know more.