MizSuz
Posts: 1881
Joined: 1/1/2004
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*CAVEAT* I'm not a doctor, I'm a person who manages her own mental health quite closely.
quote:
ORIGINAL: RiotGirl
Hi Mz Suz
Yes, it was only the trileptal he gave me for the first month. It had my life into a major uproar. When he upped the dosage to 600 at night and in the morning he also added serquiol.. starting at 50 one night, 100 the next.. i only made it too the hundred as i had that really weird experience.
i am indeed looking for another doc.
Ya know, I know a couple of people who had great success with seroquel. I, and someone else I know, did NOT do well on seroquel (I had a few 'weird' moments on seroquel, too); and it was a cummulative degradation as I increased the dose kinda-thing, apparently like you. It's like anything else, I suppose. You have to find what works for you.
Trileptal and seroquel are different kinds of medications and given (generally) for different kinds of things. One's an anti-seizure medication (being prescribed in an 'off-label' kind of way) and the other is an anti-psychotic (possibly also being prescribed in an 'off-label' kind of way).
Is the doctor who put you on these medications a general practitioner or a psychiatrist? I tend to think that if I'm going to take meds that are being prescribed in an 'off-label' way (like trileptal and depakote for mood stabilization) I'd prefer to be advised by someone who is most likely to be up-to-date on the studies and literature, i.e. a specialist. I try to avoid using phychiatrists that do their primary practice in public service simply because I wonder if they are too busy to 'read the lastest paper' or too under-funded to 'attend the most recent symposium.' That could be a total stereotype, but it's mine and I own it.
quote:
ORIGINAL: RiotGirl
Ohh.. the last time i saw him i managed to get an anxiety med (buspirone) from him as well.. and depakote.
When i was 17, depekote and celexia (i think its spelled) seemed to work.... but he wouldnt give me the anti depressant
Interesting choice for anti-anxiety. I don't have personal experience with it. For me, use of benzodiazepines bridge the gaps. I don't use anti-anxieties regularly and find that if I need them often then I probably need a dosage adjustment with my other meds, a lifestyle change, or some combination of the two.
Depakote is also an anti-seizure medication (I think - been a while so I'd need to look it up) rx'd in an 'off-label' way for mood stabilization. Depakote wasn't a good choice for me but it sounds like it worked for you. I do believe celexa is an anti-depressant; taking an anti-depressant in conjunction with a mood stabilizer is a pretty common (and fairly successful) approach for bi-polar treatment. If you're going to take depakote you should be getting your blood levels drawn and liver function checked regularly. Do you? It's also a good idea to stay away from grapefruit when taking Depakote.
If this is a new doctor (who wouldn't give you the anti-depressant) he may have wanted to try to 'stabilize' you before adding other medications. Or maybe he was afraid to because celexa is getting bad press (especially if rx'd to young people) these days. Or perhaps you were bouncing all over his office when he saw you so he didn't think something akin to a mood elevator was in order. The only way to know why he made the choices he did is to ask him. If you're looking for another doc then it's moot.
I'd encourage you to enter into new doctor/patient relationships as if you are interviewing the doctor as much as he is assessing you. I'd also encourage you to insist that the doctor explain what he is giving you and why he is giving it to you, insist that he help you understand the potential side effects and what risks you may be taking in taking that medication. In short, what is his PLAN for you and what should you expect to experience by following his plan? Then make sure he cares about what your plan for yourself is. As I said before, I do not care to take medications during the day and my doctor is sensitive to my concern for that. I am NOT ok with hand-tremors and I'd rather take something that is less potentially harmful to my soft organs (liver especially). What is important to you may be different.
There's other ways you can help yourself be well. Get to know what sets you off and set up plans to not let yourself go there. I find that I can gauge when I am at risk of having trouble by observing a number of things in my life.
1. My sleep patterns. If I don't get regular sleep for any length of time I get more than 'a little bitchy.' Other people get a little bitchy, I get sick. It's ok to not sleep well occasionally. It's not ok for me to not sleep well usually.
2. Some times in life we get depressed. It happens and it's natural, especially in response to difficult things. Being stuck in depression, having recurring suicidal or homicidal thoughts (even if there is no plan to do them), sleeping or being tired too often for more than a few days is worthy of closer examination.
3. Being the life of the party happens and going through unusually productive times is normal. It's normal to have times when we are inordinately horny or when we may want to splurge on things. Experiencing all of these things (or urges to these things) at the same time for more than a few days, especially if punctuated by a short-fused quick temper, is a sign. I look closer.
4. If I find myself in a cycle I get committed to working with my doctor to getting stabilized and I reduce my stress (which requires recognizing where the stress is coming from). My stability is the first priorty in my life, before all others.
5. Being otherwise ill can often set off a cycle. Diarrhea, the flu, etc., are all ways that our bodies gets stressed. They can have an effect and it's worthwhile to pay attention to dramatic mood swings if we become otherwise ill. It's always important to stay well hydrated.
6. I always feel better in general when I get a regular diet and exercise regimen going and stick to it.
I can go for years with no or little problems; and as I've gotten better at knowing myself I find that I head the bad stuff off long before it's bad enough to turn my life upside down. Things are usually pretty damn good, actually.
Now, that's how it works for me. You have to find what works for you. I wish you the best of luck in finding what works for you quickly, with little required adjustments or trials.
< Message edited by MizSuz -- 3/9/2005 12:51:34 PM >
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“The more you love, the more you can love—and the more intensely you love. Nor is there any limit on how many you can love. If a person had time enough, he could love all of that majority who are decent and just.”
- Robert Heinlein
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Docs, meds, idiots - 
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