Posted by JohnL on May 15, 2001, at 5:28:02
In reply to NON-SSRI Antidepressants?, posted by sl on May 14, 2001, at 18:51:37
> Okay. I've been doing some research trying to pinpoint which chemicals I have problems with and why certain drugs don't work. What I've found is that Doctors seem to want to KEEP trying to treat me with SSRI's, but they don't WORK!
>
> Can someone give me a list of NON-SSRI Antidepressants to try? I had good success on Wellbutrin, but I seem to have faded out over the years. I'm on Effexor now, it's barely keeping my head above water, and I don't know where to turn next.
>
> slSL,
My favorite approach in situations like yours is to choose your favorite SSRI, whichever one you tolerate the best, regardless of how well or how poor it works, and add Zyprexa, Risperdal, or Amisulpride to it. Another good turbocharger for SSRIs is Adrafinil. I think good results are available with combinations of any of these. I do not like the idea of continuing with antidepressants alone when several of them have already been disappointing. Unfortunately, mainstream practitioners tend to stay within the antidepressant category way to long, in my opinion. Sure, one of them could turn out to be magical, but I think the magic is more quickly reached when other drugs are used, such as the antipsychotics and stimulants. And in my book, the quicker good results are achieved, the better.If you do want to keep trying more antidepressants, Desipramine or Nortriptyline could be good choices, since they have mechanisms on other circuits besides just serotonin. Try both, because one may work where the other doesn't. But again, I think good results are more likely when one looks in the antipsychotic category and/or the stimulant category instead. I know it sounds strange, but APS and stims can be a lot better at treating depression than the antidepressants. Disclaimer though...these are just my opinions, my observations, and my experience.
John
poster:JohnL
thread:62964
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010515/msgs/63035.html