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Re: neurontin vs. depakote for mood stabilizer

Posted by James Justice on August 23, 1999, at 10:10:14

In reply to neurontin vs. depakote for mood stabilizer , posted by Carmen on August 21, 1999, at 19:22:17

> Was just put on a low dose of neurontin to start for mood stabilizer and to control anxiety problem. Was on Depakote for 5 mo., but made me feel blunted - no desire to do anything. Anyone else have this w/Depakote? How have others found neurontin for stabilizing mood and social anxiety? Thank you for your input.

Carmen,

I have a lot of good things to say about Neurontin. I started taking it 5 months ago with a dose of 400mg 2x/day. It was prescribed to me as a mood stabilizer. The amount I was taking did nothing for me. Then I read that Neurontin can be prescribed and taken at doses up to 4,800mg a day (or 12 capsules!). So I encouraged my doctor to slowly increase the dose over a period of 2 weeks. At first, I noticed no change, but as I approached the 2,400mg/day dose I noticed that I was becoming increasingly less anxious and jittery.. this was a wonderful surprise for me because I didn't know that there were any medications other than the habit-forming benzo's and barbiturates that could do a good job at reducing anxiety. My doctor continued to increase the dose, and stopped at 4,000mg/day, or 2 capsules 5 times a day. I have been on this dose for about 4 months. It has proved to be a wonderful mood stabilizer, a great anxiety reducer, and has virtually eliminated all traces of social phobias. I feel better than I have in years! 10 pills a day sounds like an awful amount of medication to take every day, but for me it is definitely worth it!!
I should mention that I have gone through almost 6 years of psychiatry and 35 drugs to help me feel better. Neurontin does a better job managing my moods and anxieties than any of the previous meds I have tried.
And as for social phobia: A new study in the August 1999 edition of The Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology concludes that Neurontin has been shown to significantly reduce the symptoms of social phobia.

I should also mention that I have been on Depakote in the past, and I consider it a useful medication for mood disturbances. It is usually more useful than Neurontin in treating mood disorders of the bipolar (manic-depressive) variety. For me, Depakote didn't quell my anxiety like Neurontin does. I consider it to be useful, but not extraordinary. I would choose Depakote over lithium any day.

Hope you find a useful medication. I am not saying that Neurontin will work for everyone, but for me it worked wonders!

James


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poster:James Justice thread:10476
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/19990814/msgs/10548.html