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UPDATE: The whole Story (Valdoxan experience)

Posted by hansi555 on January 29, 2011, at 8:35:56

In reply to Re: UPDATE: Re: Valdoxan experience » hansi555, posted by SLS on January 29, 2011, at 6:09:29

Okay, I can see I am not being very clear. So here is my story:

After 2,5 years treatment where of the last year was w. 110 mg Nort, 10 mg Lexapro and 12 mg Mirtazapin, I found my self in state of okay but still w ups and downs. The effect and my general mood was not in balance with the costs of the SEs, so I decided to try and taper off over a half year period.
As my first episode was due to stress released unipolar depression, I thought it fair to give a non-medication period a fair chance.

I prepared myself, my family, friends and workplace for the worst but actually it went very well the first 18 weeks and even with some minor down periods, I could say for sure that those 18 weeks were far better than the 18 weeks before starting the taper. At week 18 into the taper I was on 70 mg Nort and 7,5 mg Mirt, the Lexapro was the first I removed.
And because it all went so well my level of activities got higher on work and in my spare time and eventually some stress symptoms like dizziness showed. I ask my psycologist if one could get depressed of doing too many things and she said "no" and together we agreed that it could be the taper causing these symptoms. Big mistake. As the taper continued, the stress symptoms came and went but being the person I am, I just wanted to finish the taper as I thought the dizziness etc. would dissapear.

At the very end of the taper (week 26, at the end of November), I began having trouble to sleep and eventually I broke down and had to leave my work place on the 10th of December.

At the beginning I hoped to stay off the drugs - or at a minimum - and be well on a cocktail of alternative methods such as running every day, relaxing, more therapy. At this point in time it was not clear if it was "only" stress or also depression but along December it came creeping and I have been home from work since then.


My psycologist threw the towel 4 weeks ago and I started on the cocktail that had worked during the taper, hoping this was going to work.

As I dont really like way Lexapro made me feel and since I have heard a lot good too about Valdoxan I decided to add this. Also I have been on 1/2 sleeping pill (of one Imozop 7,5 mg) which I hoped too get rid of soon.

I know from earlier that I can increase the level of Nort by taking Lexapro and Mirtz without having too many SE from the Nort, my blood levels were something like 70 ng/mL (or approx. 300 nmol/L.

I am going to my pdoc for the first time during this new episode next wednesday. I have talked w him over the phone a couple of times and he is not too keen on going upp in dosages, he wants to take samples along the way.

Back to your question: No, I am not against more drugs at the same time but I do think that it is possible to later go off the meds or at least to a lower dosage IF I can manged to live my life in another way.

I am SO disapointed that the taper ended in stress and a new depressive episode, troublesome for my wife and kids, away from job again, feeling like sh*t most of the time (you know the drill). Mostly I am disapointed with myself but also that my psycologist didnt council me better. The stress symptoms were evident for many of the last 10 weeks before the break down.
I should have stopped the taper at that point and listened to the stress signals - instead I sort of copied my first episode 3 years ago and blaimed the lack of medicine in my body, soo foolish...

> > (75 mg Nort is maybe to little)
>
> There is an easy way to find out. Get a simple blood test, and raise the dosage until the drug blood concentration falls no lower than 1/2 of the recommended concentration range: 50 to 150 ng/ml. I don't think you should stop titrating until you at least reach 100 ng/ml. If taking both Valdoxan and nortriptyline is being tolerated, I don't understand why you would want to make a monotherapeutic switch instead of developing a polypharmaceutical approach.
>
>
> - Scott


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