Posted by fluffy on July 13, 2003, at 18:04:15
In reply to depakote predosing before lexapro, posted by joebob on July 9, 2003, at 23:36:58
Joebob--
Depakote does have a rather sketchy side effect profile. The most bothersome one being weight gain. But some people do very well on it. I have not personally tried it.
I would NOT do Lexapro as an antidepressant without a potent moodstabilizer trial first. I had the most horrible manic/mixed state in my life after 3 weeks of the stuff. I thought about ending my life, and wanted to bang my head into a wall. It is a VERY strong AD--and has a reputation for causing swings into mania (like Celexa).
Neurontin is NOT a potent moodstabilizer. It works OK as an add-on for some people. And it seems to work well for anxiety, but it is WELL documented that it is a weak stabilizer.
I would discuss with your pdoc either Lithium, Depakote, or Tegretol as your main stabilizer before getting the AD on board. They are the gold standards.
As far as an AD goes...Wellbutrin is the least likely to switch someone into mania. And Lamictal is fast becoming the darling AD for BP folks. (What is your formal diagnosis?)
Check some other sites about this stuff. Let me know if you'd like some good links. I don't have them now, but I can post them later.
Good luck with your meds---I hope it goes smoothly for you. (sorry if you already know all of this!)
Take care,
Katy
poster:fluffy
thread:56289
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030708/msgs/241543.html