Posted by Michael K on August 2, 2001, at 20:53:13
In reply to Re: Stimulants » Roo, posted by Elizabeth on August 2, 2001, at 8:12:57
> > What are stimulants used for? Are they only used
> > for ADD? Has anyone out there added a stimulant to
> > their antidepressant and had a good response? If so,
> > tell me about your experience.
>
> Adding stimulants to ADs has been common practise for a long time; in fact, before the tricyclic and MAOI antidepressants were discovered, stimulants were often used by themselves as antidepressants. They seem to be somewhat less effective than modern ADs, possibly depending on the particular population being treated.
>
> Stimulants are used for narcolepsy, obesity, daytime fatigue, and probably a lot of other things I'm leaving out, as well as ADHD and depression.
>
> I tried various stimulants with Nardil and Parnate, but, in contrast to Shelli's experience, I did have significant hypertensive reactions. The one time I tried a stimulant (Cylert) by itself, I did find it helpful for alertness, concentration, and mood; it also made it easier to maintain stable sleep-wake patterns. I'm interested in trying Cylert or another psychomotor stimulant again (this time with a TCA instead of a MAOI), but that will have to wait until my pdoc comes back from the standard August vacation. (Where do they all go during that month, anyway? Is there some special resort for psychiatrists that's only open in August?)
>
> -elizabethI take 70 mg of Parnate daily, which hasn't quite been doing the trick lately. So during a particularly stressful time (tax season), I added 15 mg of Ritalin daily. I had some success augmenting small doses of Imipramine with Ritalin many years ago.
Anyway, the Ritalin has helped immensely. I feel much better at work and, equally important, it has improved my sex life. How long this will continue with 15 mg daily remains to be seen, but for now I'm optimistic.
If anyone has positive experiences with Parnate and other stimulants, I'd love to hear about it.
Mike
poster:Michael K
thread:72923
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010731/msgs/73173.html