Tricyclics are older medications, but that is GOOD. They are not 'almost never used' at all. The older tricyclics are good because the side effects are very well known and won't be a surprise. Generally they are safe, effective and inexpensive. Wiz was finally able to learn to cope and function well when a tricyclic was added for his sleep problems. It gave his system and other medications that boost that he needed in order to learn to cope and behave like a reasonable human being.
Nortriptyline may make you tired, so take it in the evening and not before work or driving especially the first few weeks. I took a small dose of it before bed for a long time because it helped with some of my health issues. I know several people with severe anxiety who are greatly helped by nortriptyline or other tricyclics when a small dose was added to their medications.
It isn't a good thing to assume that a medication won't work because it is 'old'. honey is one of the oldest medicines in the world and it is still very effective. It is used to help heal infected wounds, burns, skin irritations, internal infections and many more things. The ancient civilizations used it and modern doctor up on the very latest things use it too. Dr Oz even recommended one special kind to help if you get sick with an infection. At one point when I was in the hospital for cellulitis a few years back they told me they would likely use honey on my muscle if they had to cut the infected tissues away (I had the bacteria that causes necrotizing fasciiatis, aka flesh eating bacteria, but was blessed that they found a combo of antibiotics that my cultures responded to, so I got to avoid surgery to cut out the dead muscles or amputate my leg!) because it is one of the best dressings to help it heal. Honey from hives in yoour local area is often suggested to help with allergies. It somehow helps your body not react to the local plants if you consume a small amount every day (one allergist said a teaspoon, another said a tablespoon). It helps thank you's spring allergies far more than the allergy shots did or that any of the medications we have tried every helped - and we tried every OTC and prescription antihistamine that was in use when his allergies were so bad when he was little.
Up until my cellulitis, I had never thought of honey as a medication but like many older medications, it can be very effective. So try to be positive about the new-to-you medication because older medications can be very effective and are often far safer than the newer medications.