Posted by BGB on July 19, 2008, at 13:41:51
In reply to Want to stop meds ... should I?, posted by Maxime on July 16, 2008, at 20:48:26
First of all Maxie, congratulations to you on feeling better! Second of all, sorry to hijack your thread there...but that article was just too funny not to comment on. Getting back on topic, I think that it might be wise to get a second opinion before discontinuing anything. If you get the okay from two docs, why not try tapering down off of your meds, one at a time? You can always go back on them.
I once hit a horrible depressive episode and convinced myself that I'm not bipolar at all and just depressed. Thinking that it was making me worse, I tapered myself down off of Depakote (without my doctor's consent or knowledge) and had some really, really horrible consequences from it. It turns out that I am very, very bipolar and will probably have to stay on mood stabilizers for the rest of my life.
That's not to say I regret the decision; I did walk away with some knowledge...I promise you I'll never just decide to stop any drug all by myself again. However, if you have the support of a doctor, or even better, two doctors, I don't see the harm.
A suicide attempt (and being in a coma, for that matter) are very intense psychological events...who knows what that could have done to your brain??? We know so little. While it's very possible that this event caused true physiological changes in your brain chemistry, it's also possible that the changes are psychological in nature. That does not diminish their significance. This experience could have completely changed the way that you think. That might be exactly what you needed.
Whatever you decide, I just hope that you continue to feel well. It's great to hear a positive story here on PB!!!
Take care, Maxie!!!!
B =)
poster:BGB
thread:840049
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20080718/msgs/840787.html