Is It OK To Take 8 Mg Of Tizanidine?

In medical terms, muscle relaxants are drugs that prevent and curb muscle tightness and spasms. Carisoprodol, Orphenadrine and Methocarbamol are a few common muscle relaxants. 

However, Tizanidine is quite a popular name owing to its quick results. Usually, doctors prescribe this medicine when you have accidentally torn a muscle due to stroke, sclerosis, or spinal cord injuries. 

The medicine is tolerable for many, but again, it has its own side effects. In order to mitigate the risks of heavy dosage, people keep asking- is it ok to take 8 mg of tizanidine or not. 

What Are The Applications Of Tizanidine?

• For starters, Tizanidine is used to reduce spasticity which happens due to spinal or brain injury. The medicine functions by a central mechanism, although experts aren’t too sure about its use to decrease muscle tone. 
• A few doctors suggest that tizanidine use is necessary when presynaptic inhibition takes place in the nerves. The drug is quite helpful for polysynaptic pathways instead of monosynaptic spinal reflexes. 
• The primary use of this drug in relaxing muscles is to provide a damp effect to nerve impulses. Most of them arrive from spasming muscles that pass along the brain’s nerve fibers. 
• A special type of medicine called central alpha-2-adrenergic agonist belongs to the same class as Tizanidine. It is another strong muscle-relaxant that is less prescribed as compared to the latter. 

Tizanidine’s Right Dosage

The medicine comes in two different forms of tablets- 2 and 4 mg. There are three capsules weighing 2 mg, 4 mg, and 6 mg. So, the highest general dose a person should ingest is 6 mg. 

So, is it ok to take 8 mg of tizanidine? Well, the answer is yes, but under the doctor’s supervision. 

It’s not like people don’t consume 8 mg but only when they need relief from spasticity for a long time. In the case of an 8 mg of Tizanidine dose, the results last for 6 hours or more. 

What’s the initial dosage like?

Usually, people start with a much lower dose, like 2 or 4 mg, owing to its possible side effects. Doctors might increase or decrease the dose after observing the results for a few days. 

People who don’t see a change after the medication have been prescribed the medicine for 4 days straight with a 4-mg dose. Hence, 8 mg is not something prescribed at once- it’s more like a process. 

In severe situations, individuals can repeat the ingestion every 6-8 hours. 

Things to watch out for:

• Make sure you do not take more than three doses. 36 mg of Tizanidine in a span of 24 hours isn’t good for the human body. 
• Doctors always suggest this medicine with caution. Patients dealing with kidney or liver impairments are generally not recommended Tizanidine because it reduces the clearance rate. 
• Prolonged use of the medicine can reduce liver and kidney functions. 

Storing Tizanidine

The Food and Drug Administration recommends storing the medicine at a 77℉ or 25℃ temperature. In fact, a temperature between 59–86°F or 16–30°C is fine but only for a restricted period. 

Pharmacists must take care while dispensing the medicine in a container. Before buying, check whether the container has a child-resistant cap or not. Change it immediately if you find the drug without its cap. 

A List Of Side-Effects One Might Encounter

Unfortunately, Tizanidine comes with a number of side effects when not taken correctly. You are most likely to watch the following consequences if you are between 18 and 60 years old-

• Drowsiness, energy loss, dry mouth, dizziness, and reduced blood pressure. 
• It is also related to rare psychosis and hallucinations and has affected at least 3% of people. 
• Thirdly, Tizanidine dosage should be tweaked from person to person in accordance with the requirements. 
• It is not too suitable for those who trust spasticity to sustain their balance and posture. 
• In severe situations, Tizanidine can result in low blood pressure or head rush due to excessive sitting and getting up too fast. Thus, there are increased chances of falls. 
• The medicine can also have a negative impact on a person’s driving or machinery-operating capabilities. Hence, no alcohol is ideal!
• A few have also reported withdrawal symptoms like high blood pressure and rapid heartbeat when the dosage stops abruptly. Experts withdraw tizanidine slowly. For instance, they decrease the dosage to 4 mg and then 2 mg. 
• Older people should take very few quantities of tizanidine. 
• Finally, it also causes allergic reactions like urticaria and anaphylaxis. 

Severe Side-Effects To Watch Out For-

• Tizanidine, when interacting with other medicines, including the hepatic enzymes metabolized like CYP1A2, can cause reactions. Furthermore, alcohol makes the symptoms worse by maximizing its peak concentration. 
• Doctors must monitor liver enzymes such as aminotransferase after beginning the treatment. The drug is not too recommended in combination for more than one month. 
• Multiple dosages of the medicine and its modification sometimes lead to clinically significant differences. One can find tremendous side effects or quick activity onset. 
• For those wondering about 8 mg of tizanidine, the ingestion is safe. You need to take the medicine every 6-8 hours. 16 mg is the maximum single dose in a single day- do not exceed it. 
• People under the age of 18 years should watch for early symptoms of tizanidine and must stop the dosage right away. 
• Those dealing with kidney disease must stay away from the drugs. Increase the dosage only if it’s extremely needed. 

This Is The Right Way To Take Tizanidine…

You might wonder, what’s the right way of taking medicine? Are you doing it wrong for so long? Absolutely not! It’s just that Tizanidine comes with some careful considerations. 

For example, both the food and timing make a big difference. It is important to stop drug usage completely if the person no longer needs it. 

Those wanting temporary relief must consume the medicine for shorter durations. If someone forgets their dose accidentally, it’s safe to skip it out and wait for the next dose. 

You can safely curb the risks of overdose by not ingesting any more Tizanidine between 6-8 hours since it has complicated effects. Also, the impact differs from one person to another. 

Tizanidine and Its Relation With Food

The impact of food is complex on Tizanidine, and it differs from one individual to another. Food has the chance of increasing side effects if the person doesn’t keep an ample dosage gap.

In various cases, there have been adverse events. It is vital to follow the doctor’s instructions properly and ask whether the medicine is ingestible without or with food. 

Additionally, if you no longer wish to continue the medicine, slowly reduce the dosage. Doing so at once will increase the chances of high blood pressure and quick heart rate. 

A Few Tips To Remember

There’s no hard and fast rule when consuming tizanidine, but a bunch of tips might be helpful, like:

• Do not keep the capsule in open air for a long time. 
• Consuming it with food increases 20% the chances of absorption, although it slows its efficiency. 
• It is possible to ingest tizanidine with food or without it but the dose must be consistent. 
• The medicine is short-acting, which is why it might take a few days to show its results. 
• Consume the medicine exactly as prescribed by your healthcare provider. Any less or more of the dosage can have health repercussions. 

Interactions With Other Medicines

Medicines interacting with tizanidine react in three ways: it either reduces the impact, impacts how long it functions, or increases the side effects. 

Interaction between two drugs does not necessitate stopping either of them. All you have to do is talk to your doctor about the drug’s management. 

Medicines that have a higher chance of interacting with Tizanidine are: 

• Amiodarone
• Acyclovir
• Anticonvulsants
• Anti-anxiety drugs
• Amitriptyline, Nortriptyline, Imipramine and other antidepressants
• Diphenhydramine and other antihistamines
• Chlormethiazole
• Azelastine
• Ciprofloxacin
• Duloxetine
• Saquinavir and other HIV Medicines
• Low blood pressure medications like ACE inhibitors, barbiturates, calcium-channel antagonists like diltiazem and beta-blockers
• CYP1A2-inhibiting medicines like rifampin and cimetidine
• Metoclopramide
• Morphine, oxycodone, and other opioid analgesics
• Pimozide
• Zolpidem or other sleeping pills
• Chemotherapy medicines and treatments
• Medicines that help to treat psychological illness, like thioridazine and clozapine
• Topiramate

The reason why CYP1A2 inhibitors should not be taken with Tizanidine is because of possible drug interactions. The CYP1A2 enzyme helps in metabolizing drugs. Thus, if the inhibition takes place, the body will not process efficient drug cleaning. 

A few pieces of evidence also show that tizanidine interacts largely with alcohol or other nervous system depressants. Make sure you don’t consume opioids or alpha-2 adrenergic agonists with tizanidine. 

The Bottom Line

Ask a doctor- is it ok to take 8 mg of Tizanidine they’ll surely say no at first. It is important that you get a proper consultation before settling on the medicine. Tizanidine inhibits motor neurons- something that lets the muscles relax. 

As a lot of side effects come with the drug, it is crucial that people take the right dosage. Tablets come in 2,4,6, and 8 mg, which are prescribed according to the individual’s requirements. 

Having said that, here comes an end to this article. Thank you for reading it till the end. Also, keep following us if you want to read such informative content.

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