Posted by ronaldo on October 29, 2006, at 13:11:27
In reply to Meds for bipolar?, posted by TrishP on October 29, 2006, at 12:16:42
> My father was bipolar (suicide) and my sister is bipolar (won't take meds) and I am to a lesser extent slightly bipolar - mostly depression, irritable, anxious.
>
> Most SSRIs make me manic, but I have loved Lexapro and Celexa - but had to stop them due to severe bladder/urinary spasms and pain.
>
> I loved Lamectil, but it gave me mouth sores - almost blister like.
>
> Trileptal didn't seem to do much of anything. And Seroqual knocked me out for days!
>
> Are there any meds that can help someone like me?
>
> My poor husband has brought it to my attention that he feels I am sligtly bi-polar and could benefit from meds.
>
> Wellbutrin tends to make me fly off the handle and a little angry.
>
> What can I take to keep my moods even and me out of the depression gutter?
>
> I feel helpless!Hello Trish
My diagnosis is Bipolar. I live in the UK.
Have you ever tried Olanzapine (Zyprexa)? I took it for 4 years at 5 mg. It was originally prescribed to make me sleep. It does help some people. I am now taking 10 mg Olanzapine (so far without side effects) having failed to give it up in favour of Seroquel. Seroquel just wouldn't work for me.
In addition I take 900 mg of Lithium (Priadel). I have been taking Lithium for 25 years. I don't think it would be easy for me to come off it after this length of time.
There are lots of drugs out there for Bipolar Disorder. There are anti-convulsants. Various Lithium preparations. Anti-psychotics. Anti-depressants. I can't really advise on them as I have not taken them all. I did try Tegretol (Carbamazapine)for a while but gave it up due to a rash on my face. Epilem, I think that's valproic acid, also gave me a rash.
One thing I've learnt is that whatever you try give it a while to get into your system - upto a month. You might feel bad for a while but it does get better, or less bad which ever way you choose to look at it.
I also tried, without success, Trazodone, Prozac, and Amitryptaline for depression. I gave them each a four month long trial but none of them worked for me. I supect that my GP was not giving me a high enough dosage for fear of making me manic.
...Alan
poster:ronaldo
thread:698720
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20061028/msgs/698731.html