Posted by med_empowered on September 23, 2005, at 17:32:02
In reply to Going to see my doc Monday re: SEVERE FATIGUE, posted by wildcard on September 23, 2005, at 16:53:45
hey! First off, ask for some basic blood tests--liver function, thyroid, that kind of thing. On my insurance, its best if the doc asks for it; much, much cheaper than you suggest it. Soo...maybe your doc will request it, or perhaps you should make him/her feel like its "their" idea. Either way. Then, you might want to do some screening--the various hepatitis viruses, hiv, other stds. As for treatment...a lot of times, severe fatigue is a good indicator of intense depression; unfortunately, its also a symptom that seems to linger after antidepressant treatment. You might want a stimulating antidepressant (ex: Wellbutrin, Pamelor, higher-dose Effexor). A stimulant might also be useful; docs these days aren't keen on giving out dexedrine and adderall unless you're an ADD middle-schooler, so Provigil might be the drug of choice for this situation (its also a schedule IV drug, so you'll be able to get refills, which is super-convenient). Try to get some exercise when you feel able to. If your doc dabbles in alternative treatments, accupuncture and a visit to a nutritionist or herbalist/naturopath might be worthwhile. Avoid adding sedating medications, and try to reduce any that might be making the situation worse (grab a PDR or checkout a place like rxlist.com to check up on the common and not-so-common side effects of any meds you're on). Sometimes, though, I find that my own fatigue gets worse when my sleep is weird (sleeping at odd hours, too much/too little, or erratically). If that's the case, as-needed Ambien or something might be useful in combo with any more stimulating drugs...you should probably avoid long-term, daily use though, since consistent use of *any* sedating medication can cause or worsen depression and fatigue. Good luck!
poster:med_empowered
thread:558607
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20050921/msgs/558622.html