Posted by King Vultan on August 6, 2004, at 7:50:13
In reply to Which meds increase dopamine/energy?, posted by craig getty on August 5, 2004, at 23:04:03
The only drugs in the antidepressant class that are truly dopaminergic are Wellbutrin and Parnate. Beyond those two, you would have to go to the stimulant class, where most of the drugs there, such as Ritalin and the amphetamines, are also dopaminergic.
Your experience with the Effexor sounds very much like mine. I found this stuff generally to make me tired during the day, with insomnia at night; although, these problems are probably interconnected to some extent. If I had to do it over again, I definitely would have used some kind of sleep aid with the Effexor, as I had the same problem as you with waking up and not being able to get back to sleep, even after taking the drug for a year or more.
The stimulant Provigil might be worth a try for you, as this is especially effective for daytime sleepiness and fatigue. It is expensive but is not as problematic as the amphetamines are, being only a Schedule IV controlled substance (the amphetamines and Ritalin are Schedule II). This drug has a highly favorable rating by users of it compared to most antidepressants.
The other one which would seem to be indicated for you is the MAOI Parnate, which has an amphetamine-like structure with a direct stimulant effect. However, it is also an MAO inhibitor, with all of the dietary and OTC drug restrictions. This is actually the next drug I am going to be trying, and I really feel it's going to do the job for me--or at least be more effective than most of the ten or so drugs I have already tried. I have dysthymia/depression, anhedonia, and some fatigue and ADD symptoms.
Todd
poster:King Vultan
thread:374543
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20040805/msgs/374618.html