Emsam, MAOI patch, has no restrictions at 6 mg (low dose). At 9 mg (middle dose) they ask you to watch out but I eat most things with my dr's blessing. The developer of the drug told her that the FDA insisted on restrictions but that no need showed up in testing. At 12 mg (high dose) restrictions need to be followed but even then I am not 100% adherent because I know that I don't react. Like the other night I had pork cooked in a little soy sauce among other ingredients. Very little is actually in my food. I don't eat edamane or cheese or any soy product at all (and never drank beer) but honestly the restrictions get very normal very quickly. 6 years ago I would get anxious and read ingredients really carefully and avoided everything but now I know how my body reacts and while I do read ingredients as I grocery shop on something that might have a risk to it, when the mexican restaurant brought my food with cheese I didn't send it back, I ate around it. Sure I ate a little cheese (I'm on 12 mg so need to be somewhat careful) but nothing happened and I knew it wouldnt.

The one and only time I have ever had any reaction was a medication and that was nothing; my face flushed, I realized I should take my blood pressure, it was up for me but not bad, I told my pdoc and she adjusted something and that was it.

It looks a LOT harder than it is. And the drug works so well that I don't care. I miss cheese but there's always American slices, Velveeta shreds and mozarella which I can eat. Once I didn't realize an appetizer at a holiday party had cheese and ate quite a bit and was fine; you just watch your face for flushing and if you get that or a headache you check your blood pressure. You do need a monitor but that's cheap. I used to have one in the car and one at home because my asthma meds can cause issues and I needed those away from home more often but nothing ever happened so I quit worrying about it.

Don't get too freaked out about the diet, really. The worst thing that has ever happened to me was about 3 weeks into it I got a horrible virus at work and threw up for 3 days. I got really dehydrated and didn't know that I am to take the patch off at the beginning of dehydration. So the stuff concentrated in my bloodstream and I got a head to toe bright red rash that got a lot of attention at the emergency room. But when the patch came off and I had some IV benadry it was gone in 30 minutes and it's totally avoidable; now I remove the patch for 24 hours if I vomit or until I can keep fluids down well. The stuff has a long half-life so missing a change or having it off is not a big deal at all.

IT's really not as scary as it sounds at all.