Posted by Elizabeth on August 29, 2001, at 9:04:39
In reply to Re: Parnate stuff » Elizabeth, posted by Lorraine on August 26, 2001, at 15:10:46
> > > That sounds promising. You might try them during a washout if your pdoc is willing.
> >
> > Washout?
>
> Periods between drugs when switching. Like if I switch from Parnate to Nardil, I will have a 4 day washout from the time I stop taking Parnate to the time I can start on Nardil.Ahh. I'm not taking MAOIs anymore, so I really don't need to worry about washout periods. What I am wondering is whether stimulants might be helpful to me (also since I'm no longer using MAOIs, I have a chance to find out).
> But, I assume you had no mood support? Anyway--sounds like they may be a good augmenting strategy for you--not necessarily with Desipramine.
I wasn't taking an AD with it. I was doing better -- not well, but better than I was without it. I think it might be a good addition to desipramine.
> It's been about a month, although I increase my dosage about 2 weeks ago.
How much are you taking now?
> Yes, the earthy colors give me comfort.
I can see that. I'd love to see pictures when you're done. :-)
> > The problem is that sometimes I awaken myself (usually by jumping out of bed) and other times I have attacked the person next to me in my sleep (!). (Nothing serious, but it does freak them out sometimes.)
>
> That can create some real excitement, I'll bet.Oh, yes. I have many funny stories I could tell about this. The most common thing that happens is when there's a chase scene in my dream, and I jump out of bed in an effort to run away from whatever-it-is. This generally wakes me up, and I find myself on the floor. (A couple times I've jumped out of bed without being woken up by the impact. The result was that when I woke up I was pretty disoriented.)
> No headache again today and rash seems slightly better. Now I need to eat some salt for the low blood pressure--yesterday during my afternoon "dip" at 4pm it was 93 over 56 so I think that explains the dip. You complained of a dip also didn't you? Did you ever take your blood pressure during a dip?
I took my blood pressure at various times. I wasn't able to find any pattern -- it was generally lower than normal, particularly the first thing in the morning. I don't think it got lower in the afternoon when I started feeling tired.
> Sleep meds are definately on the agenda? Is Sonata the place to start. I read it is short acting and you can take it again if you wake up in the middle of the night. Last night I fell asleep at 12:30 am and woke at 2, stayed awake until 5:00, then back to sleep until 8. This is not a good sleep schedule for me:-(
No, it's not. I've had problems with ireegular, fragmented sleep all my life, and it's a big hassle! Sonata seems like a good thing to try. I actually find Ambien short-acting enough that I can usually use it the way you're supposed to use Sonata. What I would suggest is that you start out trying Ambien at bedtime, and if it's too short-acting and you wake up in the middle of the night, try taking Sonata and see if that gets you through the rest of the night. It's not ideal, but it's better than nothing.
-elizabeth
poster:Elizabeth
thread:67742
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010828/msgs/76803.html