Posted by Ritch on May 22, 2002, at 23:26:30
In reply to more on these mood/energy shifts... » Ritch, posted by krazy kat on May 22, 2002, at 22:22:29
> Mitch:
>
> >> Not needing any after early afternoon in order to get to sleep (much later) sounds mighty suspicious to me, IMO.
>
> -- Sounds suspicious to me, too. It's as if it builds up during the day. I take all my Depakote at night so maybe that does affect it. Thanks for the good observation. I'm also a "night person" which may contribute to it.
Aha! That Ritalin isn't building up--I'll bet you are getting a Depakote *withdrawal* in the late afternoon-evenings. You take 2G of Depakote all at nite? No wonder you get that weird stuff in the evening! I would strongly suggest pulling out 500mg of that 2G hs dose and take that midday. I have withdrawn from Depakote before and it can be fairly nasty (agitation/anxiety/insomnia) withdrawing from just 500mg/day. Keep in mind it just has a half-life of 14-18 hrs.....
>
> >> I wonder if you did break up your daily dosage into eight same-sized nuggets and took a nugget every two hours all daylong-could you still sleep OK, *and* would you feel less anxious *and* not feel a weepy "crash"??
>
> -- I am going to try this starting tomorrow. Thanks for the advice. Getting those leetle tablets into even smaller pieces is going to be tough though.
Let us know what happens? I guess we are becoming real-time guinea pigs.>
>
> >> I had to break down and take 37.5 mg of Wellbutrin today. I am just starting to get soooo fatigued and tired. It is starting early this year I am afraid.
>
> -- I recall that you have seen a seasonal relationship to your disorder.Yes, most definitely.
>
> >> I wasn't taking any Depakote with Wellbutrin during my wintertime SAD episode, so...maybe I won't get grouchy.
>
> -- I reacted Horribly to Wellbutrin. Interesting, isn't it? I'm a 31 year old female, and similar reactions. But if you survived it w/o Dep. last winter...
>
> >> I need to find out if the Depakote is the *one* that is keeping my temper under control.
>
> -- Stressful test, Mitch. Good luck! Have you ever taken Lithium? That will be my next trial (should have been my first :)).
Oh yeah, I was on that for many, many years. It works good for grouchiness, too. But, I must say that Dep. is a little better in that department. Lithium clearly has better antidepressant properties for me, however.
>
> > I think I am going to tinker with some imipramine, or possibly some
>
> -- I'm not certain what this is...
Imipramine (Tofranil)-the first tricyclic antidepressant developed (TCA). It is the most serotonergic TCA of the bunch except for clomipramine. Have't tried it yet. Tried its metabolite-desipramine and it made me too nervous, but worked as good as Adderall for inattentiveness/focus problems. So..I am wondering if it will be as good for focus/attentiveness as desipramine, but also actually *reduce* anxiety rather than aggravate it.
>
> -- I have problems with anger and irritable moods, too, though it's different since I am a woman (or at least it's perceived differently).
>
> Has Depakote helped me? I don't know! When manic on AD's, I'm sweet and interesting as can be. What did my husband say? Oh, "unusually pleasant". ;) The way spouses can stick their foots in their mouths sometimes...
>
> Depakote is definitely a "life-saver" for me - stops the up's and down's - but the in-between ain't so very great. ;)
>
> - kk
I seem to have this "two-fold" problem with explosiveness (like an intermittent explosive disorder) that Depakote really helps, and really bad fatigue, excessive daytime drowsiness, inattentive probs., that stimulants or stimulating AD's seem to work on. Who knows, maybe Depakote+stimulant might be the perfect combo? I have never actually done that one, just yet.Mitch
poster:Ritch
thread:104737
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20020517/msgs/107366.html