Posted by utopizen on December 7, 2005, at 10:19:19
In reply to does anyone know of competition between ACh-m n?, posted by iforgotmypassword on December 6, 2005, at 10:38:44
Okay, I take Psychopharmacology, and, have to do a presentation on the novel clinical applications (and by novel I also mean obscure) for the "Cognitive Enhancers" (Aricept, etc.)
All I have to say is...
I think you're over-thinking. And if I am saying that, that's... over-thinking.
So you're probably like me, and have obsessive thoughts. Aricept just makes things worse that way. If I was not on Klonopin 1mg 3/day, I wouldn't touch Aricept.
Aricept makes me more agitated, a bit manic in my thoughts racing and even made me so manic once at 10mg after a couple of weeks of that dose I had paranoia. It subsidied after a few days of wash-out, and I then returned to just 5mg/day.
Keep in mind the agitation is a combination of Aricept and Desoxyn both acting up.
As for Evoxac, there is a study on PubMed claiming it does act as a "neuroprotective." It seems to make sense, theoretically anyhow. Klonopin would certainly be a "neuroprotective," given it inhibits action potentials from over-firing. But don't sweat nonsense like that.
Nicotinic receptors are really not known for what the heck they do.
If we did know what nicotonic receptors do, Straterra might actually work. Biederman once was quoted in the press when he was experimenting with this drug, and claimed "We are finding that AD/HD appears to be affected by the nicotonic receptors."
Well, maybe for some, but I tried nicorette gum and all it did was make me nervous. I've smoked only to impress a hot girl a few times, and don't notice any effect whatsoever. I haven't tried Strattera, but my doctor smirks about it and said, "It's like Buspar for anxiety."
(That's like saying, anyone who thinks it works is getting a placebo effect).
We know that schitzophrenics like cigerettes a lot, but it's likely a combination of the cognitive impairment from the antipsychotics AND their schitzophrenia.
As for enlarged prostate, I have no idea what you mean. All I know is, when I haven't take Desoxyn, for like, 15 hours or so, I will notice my prostate is quite exagerrated, until I take Desoxyn again, which shrinks it quite a bit. Klonopin for some reason seems to help control the incontinence I've begun to experience, but the urinary retention is still there. All I know is, this is a long-term side effect of amphetamines for me. I did not get such drastic enlargement and shrinkage back when I started @ 18, yet I'm only 22 and this started a year ago.
I'll check into the book you're talking about, but keep in mind neuroscientists are wack jobs for the most part when they try to take their empirical findings and apply it to clinical implications.
M.D.'s don't actually listen to them, because they never seem to shut-up about "neurotoxicity" and are convinced one drug = one receptor. Atypical antipsychotics, for instance, affect about 12-15 different receptor sites. So, things aren't that simple. Ignore the stuff they talk about.
As for expression, I believe you need to also concern yourself with anxiety. No one types as pedantically as you or I without a bit of anxiety.
Writing prose and poetry has helped me ground myself, but whenever I type on this board, I find myself so anxious it's terrible. I tried to avoid this board often for that reason.
I advise starting a blog, and just free-writing what comes to mind: poetry, prose, news, whatever. It will get you into the habit of writing, so it kills writer's block.
Also, read books. It helps my writing style immensely, my articulation too.
I'm reading right now Paul Auster: Collected Prose. I think you'd find it fascinating. He's bound to win a Nobel Prize one day, I bet my cat on it.
> hi, i meant to message you sooner, because of your account of aricept helping you with expression, as that is a huge deficit of mine. :( but one thing that may be wierd thing that i read about aricept is that it may actually prevent acetylcholine binding to nicotinic receptors. i don't have much documentation of it, i just read it in "Tuning the Brain" by Jay. A. Goldstein, so it may be a piece of puzzling theoretical knowlege that doesn't translate into practice i am not sure, but it may be something worth looking into. i'm not even 100% sure what nicotinic receptors actually do, but i wonder if perhaps maybe the two ACh receptors can compete and make imbalance and alienate the other if one is stimulated too much? (i really have no idea.) but perhaps if maybe your current regimen of a very potent catecholaminergic amphetamine, an AChE inhibitor, and a muscarinc agonist could be leaving your nictonic receptors starved. (again i have no idea.)
>
> i stopped taking aricept. i think it may have been making me feel worse initially (but again i could have been having a few of my bad nights), and after reading in jay a. goldsteins book i started to worry. (but really manily because of the 70 day half life that could screw things up if i wanted to get a brain scan likely needing weeks upon weeks of washout.)
>
> sorry i wish i could think of something more helpful. i had urinary blocking due to desipramine once, and incontinece a few times that may have been tied to drugs (which could have been zoloft, mirapex, or just withdrawl effects from the desipramine, as i sure had other of those, i.e. massive overeating, and somlenence)...
>
> about the prostate issue, if it is enlarged aren't you supposed to be able to feel it? like when you sit down and stuff and when their is pressure around the perineal area? or is that only in obvious cases, or something else entirely?
poster:utopizen
thread:585851
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20051203/msgs/586455.html