Posted by MJC on October 17, 2002, at 18:28:45
In reply to Re: Questions about Depakote (Epival) » MJC, posted by judy1 on October 17, 2002, at 18:12:30
Hey, this is my first day on the medication. My starting dose is 125mg at nighttime. It's for treatment of Bi-Polar II. I just found that I felt really groggy and sleepy most of the day. I've also been having mad mood swings, like one minute I feel like I'm going to cry, about 15 minutes later I'm ready to knock somebody out. I'm really just kind of a bit worried since I'm probably going to wind up being on this drug, or a drug similar to this, for a good portion of my life and I don't know what to really expect out of it.I know just about any drug causes sedation the first week or so that it's in your system, but what is my mind going to be like after that? Being able to think clearly is a very important thing for me.
Are these mood swings that I'm going through today a normal start up side effect of the medication? I thought it was to make me less irritable and to "stabilize" my mood, not make me into a bouncing ball of emotions.
Lastly, what about this weight gain? How much can I expect to gain on this medication? I've seen some posts on here where people claim to have gained about 100lbs. That would take me to about 300lbs and I sure as Hell don't want to be in that range. Is there anything that I can do, or that you suggest that I start doing, in order to fight off this weight gain or at least minimize it?
I'm 24 years old, I weigh about 200lbs and I'm about 5'8.
I'm also currently taking Effexor XR at 36-hour intervals and Clonazepam at about 1.5mg per day (usually less).
poster:MJC
thread:124012
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20021012/msgs/124054.html