Posted by Chloe on November 14, 2001, at 6:08:08
In reply to Re: Need help-Lithium troubles » Chloe, posted by Mitch on November 14, 2001, at 0:07:32
Mitch,
I think your memory serves you well. I am finding I have a bloated, gastritis feeling on Eskalith, as well as nausea and heartburn! It really seems alot more like "traditional" lithium, in that it causes more polyuria and heat intolerance. Eskalith seems more like a "salt" (dah!) while the lithobid seems more like a "drug." The only side effects I have with the lithobid is a nasty taste in my mouth and of course hair and scalp pain that is making me want to scream.I tried the miserable dermasmoothe fs last night. It actually still is the night, my head continues to burn with the oil on my head so I can't sleep. In fact, it's nearly impossible to sleep with a crinkling shower cap on my head. Sleeping is hard enough. Add a wet, oily BURNING head, and I am in total despair.
After much deliberation throughout the wakeful night, I have realized, and my pdoc hinted at this, that the only way to resolve this problem is to d/c the lithium. I have been trying to d/c the neurontin, but med notes tell me that it doesn't give me hair "pain", just dry hair. So maybe it's back to the rather ineffective neurontin and less derm side effects.
I can't believe that I need to d/c another med. Perhaps I will stay at 300 mgs lithobid for a while and see if my burning skin and scalp lessens. But from my experience with Trileptal and Topomax, I had to be completeley OFF the med to get remission of symptoms.
So I will get remission of skin probs and exacerbation of emotional problems. Hooray, just in time for Thanksgiving!Have you ever heard of a person who can only stay on a decent med for just a few months, then they have to get off due to side effects? Why can't I find a helpful regime and stick with it for a while? The is just no stability in my life...And few treatment options left...
Thanks for your insight on the two Li's.
I hope your stretch lasts well into december!
Chloe
> I think you ought to use that oil stuff the dermatologist recommended and see what happens. I doubt if it could hurt!
> The difference between the two lithium preparations sounds really bizarro! It *could* be a dye that is in one and not the other that you might be allergic to (might be worth checking out).
> You know I just thought about this-but the Eskalith CR are the 450mg tabs right? Well, I used to be on Lithobid back in the early 80's (up to 1800mg/day-six tabs a day) and I had a *little* diarrhea, but I was on the Eskalith 450mg tabs in the early 90's and I had a *lot* of gastrointestinal problems with it. Also-I think the Lithobid tabs actually contain some sodium to help offset some of the unhealthy ion "competition" of Lithium while it is absorbed (just stretching deep into long-term memory space here!).
> Hey, I would just ask your pdoc to switch you back to Lithobid (IMO).
>
> Do you really think the Neurontin is hurting your skin? No doubt about it-it seems to *increase* oil and collagen in my skin.
>
> As far as my next phase goes-it hasn't happened just yet. It has been unusually sunny here in the midwest-maybe that's it. I can start getting *fatigued* as early as the first week of November, but usually I don't really notice it until just after Thanksgiving. I am no doubt about it DEPRESSED by the first week of December. The 2nd and 3rd week it deepens rapidly until I am sleeping about 12 hrs a day and am completely unfocused, inattentive, and lethargic. FOOD-gobble gobble yum yum. CLOTHES-let's see if I can get into those jeans. WORK-don't care if I have a job, what's the point? I must say that when I was on Adderall during this time it was the most miraculously positive response I have ever had for seasonal depression (5mg/day). Wellbutrin worked for summertime seasonal depressive episode. I am going to plug for the WB for this one (winter).
>
> Mitch
poster:Chloe
thread:84008
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20011113/msgs/84190.html