Posted by psychosage on May 11, 2004, at 22:19:08
In reply to Question about provigil, posted by Mandybella on May 11, 2004, at 14:37:38
> My psych dr recently started me on provigil because of fatigue and difficulty getting going in the morning plus I have sleep apnea and am on CPAP. I am also on mood stabilizers and antidepressants for bipolar. So much medicine!! My question is does provigil work right away and does it work the same each day?
it works in two hours and peaks about four hours after taking it.
Side effects take a couple weeks to go away, and it will appear strongest as far as stimulation in the beginning until you tolerate it a little.
It seemed to help in the beginning but not lately?It should work in the background. You should not be constantly self-conscious of being revved up all the time. It's not supposed to feel that way. So, you should have less "subjective" effects and less of the initial supercharge that came in the beginning when your body was niave to it, naturally.
So can I stop and start this med or is it like AD's that take time to get working in the body? I hate taking another medication if it is not really helping and I am just not sure if this helps or not. Thanks for any input
You can take as needed, and there is little withdrawal, but going on and off may subtley make you cranky. It depends on the person.
I find it to be a powerful and positive drug that helps me tolerate my antidepressant and mood stabilizer. It's far more manageable than ritalin or amphetamines which are more powerful in overall physical stimulation, but have harsher come downs and are more prone to cause depression in some people due to the bumpy ride. As far as building tolerance, provigil is not worse than any other stimulant.
My suggestion is to go slow and to build up on the dose until you reach something high then take holidays. I imagine a lot of people will end up having to increase the dosage overtime to get more oomph.
It's like coffee or cigarettes. They can be nice and can work, but they are not as potent as they were when you first tried them or first had them again after a long layoff.
poster:psychosage
thread:345791
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20040510/msgs/345964.html