Posted by Optimist on January 4, 2005, at 0:52:16
In reply to Re: I want to be a Parnate champion!, posted by Optimist on January 3, 2005, at 23:50:09
My main reason for thinking about switching from
Prozac 20mg
Wellbutrin SR 450mg
Adderall XR 15mgto Parnate is that I'm hoping on achieving a more sustainable dopamine improvement. I don't find this combo creates enough of a dopamine increase. It is also a bit on the agitating side of things as well than I'd like.
Based on my theory that since Vitex helped my social anxiety the most and it's a dopamine agonist, then something else that increases dopamine should be of similar value. The main noticable increases I get from Vitex is greatly increased confidence, sexual desire, mood stablization, reduced mental dialogue, and a more humourous and charasmatic personality. The Vitex blows away the Adderall and Wellbutrin in those respects. Too bad they didn't last indefinitely. :(
If my knowledge is accurate, dopamine agonists tend to usually down regulate dopamine receptors overtime resulting in less therapeutic action. Other dopamine drugs seem to have this effect as well. Amineptine which I've heard is a dopamine reuptake inhibitor has a tendency to poop out rather quickly as well.
Is it impossible to have a sustained increased dopamine response over time then? Will down regulation of receptors always happen? Or do some mechanisms have less chance of creating down regulation than others.
A breakdown of the different classes of dopamine drugs are(this is not an exhaustive list).
1. Dopamine releasers (Adderal, Dexedrine, Ritalin, methamphetamine)
2. Dopamine reuptake inhibitors (Wellbutrin, Amineptine, the amphetamines/stimulants)
3. Dopamine agonists (Cabergoline, Bromocriptine, Mirapex)
4. MAO(A and B) inhibitors (Nardil, Parnate, Selegiline, Marplan, Moclobemide)
5. Increased substrate (L-dopa, tyrosine, phenylalanine)
6. Low dose atypical antipsychotic (Risperidal, Zyprexa, Amilsulphiride)
7. COMT inhibitors (Not sure of any at this time)From what I know I'd think the dopamine agonists are the strongest dopaminergic drugs, but I don't see them as a long term solution.
Perhaps combining an MAOi with Wellbutrin, or an amphetamine would allow for even greater longterm dopaminergic action.
I was wondering as well if the initial Parnate euphoria was from the increased dopaminergic action it causes. Then after time the receptors down regulate somewhat and the euphoria ends. And further dose increases to recapture the euphoria result in more and more receptor down regulation. The same is true of amphetamines and other stimulants like cocaine so I've heard.
I was also wondering if the reduced dopaminergic response may be due to the substrate being exhausted and supplementation with tyrosine or phenylalanine may halt this process.
Or perhaps it's a combination of both down regulated dopamine receptors and exhausted substrate?
Any thoughts, or studies to comment on?
poster:Optimist
thread:437362
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20050103/msgs/437502.html