Posted by Baba66 on July 20, 2010, at 7:15:30
In reply to Newbie with OCD, posted by Baba66 on July 13, 2010, at 16:34:48
Alright guys. Thanks for the responses. I know some of you guys may think my med combination is a little risky, but I am trying to be cautious. At the moment I take High Dose Citalopram (120mg) and Memantine (20mg). I also have been using Clonazepam on and off for a few years at doses up to 1mg per day. Sometimes I find that when my OCD and anxiety is really bad the clonazepam is the only way of meaningful relief. However I have started experimenting with Tramadol. I have been taking one or two capsules (50mg) daily instead of using clonazepam. I am wary of the serotonin syndrome. However, the tramadol has been a massive help this last week. Im not sure what an optimal dosage would be for me as Im using the citalopram. In terms of side effects I have noticed increased sweating. Normally about an hour after dosing. This is probably a combination of the ssri and tramadol like, but it seems tramadol has massively aggravated the sweating side effect. I have been doing a lot of reading up on tramadol, and notice that it's almost identical to venlafaxine. Apart from its effects on the opioid receptors, Its a Serotonin & Noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor. a serotonin releasing agent. MDNA receptor antagonist (like Memantine), and a 5ht2c receptor antagonist. It seems everything you want from an anti OCD medication. The 5ht2c blockade is very interesting, as it seems that Activation of this receptor by serotonin inhibits dopamine and norepinephrine release in certain areas of the brain. Possibly why SSRI's cause such a blunting of emotion? An overactivity of 5-HT2C receptors may contribute to depressive and anxiety symptoms in a certain population of patients. Activation of 5-HT2C by serotonin is responsible for many of the negative side effects of SSRI and SNRI medications, such as sertraline, paroxetine, venlafaxine, and others. Some of the initial anxiety caused by SSRIs is due to excessive signalling at 5-HT2C. Its all very interesting but most importantly the TRAMADOL seems to be helping me.
poster:Baba66
thread:954351
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20100720/msgs/955103.html