Posted by SLS on October 8, 2001, at 14:03:51
In reply to Re: hanging in there » SLS, posted by shelliR on October 8, 2001, at 5:11:02
Hi Shelli,
> I know you'll hate me, but...
I hope you don’t.
> There are drugs that you know will help you. Stop being so picky!
The main one I had in mind was Lamictal.
> > (now running away)
I’m still here.
> > Maybe I'll even end up practicing what I'm preaching. Damned drugs.Damned drugs. Damn it!.
I hope you knew where I was coming from. I hope I made myself clear in conveying to you that I am as picky as you are, and that I also place great importance on my physical beauty and sexuality. But I am trying to pound the idea into my head that I don’t have the luxury of too many options at this point. I am frustrated for us both.
> EFFEXOR IS NOT A MESS!
> Scott,
It's hard because the odds for remeron working don't even look good. At least not a lot of people on this board have found it to be very successful with depression.Yeah. I don’t see universal praise of this drug either. However, I would certainly place it above Serzone. I probably have more reason to be pessimistic about the chances of Remeron working for me than you do. In 1992, the folks at the NIMH put me on a drug called idazoxan. Like Remeron, it blocks NE alpha-2 receptors. It made my depression significantly worse. In 1996, my doctor chose to try Remeron immediately after my having had an intolerable experience with moclobemide. I was unwilling to put myself through that again. After two days of taking Remeron, I was pretty sure it was making me feel worse – pretty sure. Not only did it make me feel worse, but it made me feel worse in the same way that idazoxan had – I think.. Knowing their commonalities, I was sure that Remeron would produce the same result, so I stopped taking it. I’m hoping that I was overreacting then. I still don’t have a good feeling about it, though.
> And it would feel horrible to fight hunger all the time; that's how most people describe it. It's really unhealthy to be obsese and a bad self-imagine is not nothing; and I could see me going there.
Did the 15 pounds you gained on Lamictal push you into the category of obesity?
> I think it was Dr. Stahl who was giving his patients heavy duty diet pills with remeron.
Really? How well did it work? I’ll keep that in mind.
> The only hope I would have is that the wellbutrin would help diminish that urge to eat and eat.
I’m hoping that some of the stuff I’ve read about Remeron is true. Some doctors seem to feel that once the dosage is pushed beyond 45mg., the NE effects offset the H1 effects, and appetite is reduced.
> Effexor I tried years ago and couldn't keep it down. Even a half of pill.
For how many consecutive days did you try it?
It is my impression that the nausea is caused by the actions of the drug in the brain as opposed to it upsetting the stomach directly like Depakote can. Within the first 10 minutes of my first dose, I had explosive dry-heaves the likes of which I’d never known. They dissipated within 15 – 20 minutes, and I never had trouble again. Most people who experience nausea initially see it disappear within the first week. It sounds like yours might be different, though. What do you think?
For most people, 300mg is absolutely the minimum dosage at which one can determine efficacy of Effexor. In addition, I would say that at least 4 weeks at that dosage is required to evaluate whether there is a trend towards improvement. The greater the severity or chronicity of the depressive illness, the longer it takes to respond to antidepressants. Anyone who thinks otherwise is sabotaging his or her chances of getting well.
> And when I read this board, I think it's such a horrible drug; two of my friends also have very hard times getting off. I'm so tired of this. I'm tired of trying.
I know, babe. That’s why I’m trying to help you make sure that you are leaving no stone unturned. I do appreciate that it is a risk to your business that you try drugs that might make things worse. I’m not sure how I would approach things were I in your position. I can no longer tolerate being made to feel worse for even a fraction of a day, and I can “afford” to. It’s sort of like someone forcing you to hold your hand over a flame.
> If I knew my pdoc was right about reaching a steady state of oxy, I have no side effects from that. But I don't know whether to believe him (how can he really know?) and then be stuck having on a huge dose and with no effectiveness.I mentioned a drug called memantine in another thread. This drug is reported to prevent the phenomenon of tolerance to opioids. I would have to research it in more depth to determine if this is limited to their analgesic effects or if it applies to their psychotropic effects as well. Memantine is in clinical phase III trials for the indication of Alzheimer’s Dementia, but it is reported to be effective for treating a variety of psychiatric and neurological conditions. Like Provigil, it will probably sell more prescriptions for off-label use than that for which it will be approved.
> Yes, the choices are awful. Be depressed or be obese and non-sexual.Remeron can offset the sexual side effects (decreased libido and dysorgasmia) of Effexor or SSRIs. I don’t know how consistently it acts as a remedy, though.
> Life is grand.No comment.
I’m sorry I write such long posts.
- Scott
poster:SLS
thread:67742
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20011007/msgs/80655.html