Posted by SLS on June 15, 2013, at 5:06:51
In reply to Re: Beat it » bleauberry, posted by Chris O on June 15, 2013, at 3:25:52
> Most of the SSRIs have failed me...
Which ones did you have success with? Paxil?
What happened? Poop-out? Discontinuation?
> and I just can't go on like this much longer.
Nardil is a good choice, but by itself, it is not a last resort. Polypharmacy often works miracles, and should not be excluded from consideration just because you are taking an MAOI. For me, adding nortriptyline and Lamictal to Nardil converted non-response to a partial, but significant response - perhaps 35%.
Today, I am significantly better than 35% improved on:
Parnate 80 mg/day
nortriptyline 150 mg/day
Lamictal 300 mg/day
lithium 450 mg/day
Abilify 10 mg/day
prazosin 20 mg/day
minocycline 200 mg/dayWhat kind of depression do you have? How old were you when your illness began? Family history?
I have a chronic bipolar depression for which several antidepressant drugs induced mania. Otherwise, mania does not occur spontaneously. My sister has a soft-bipolar presentation with GAD. Nardil worked wonders for her. I have a history of childhood trauma and neglect. I have been most responsive to tricyclics and MAOIs. However, prazosin now produces a robust antidepressant effect that has me thinking very seriously about returning to work. It has been 23 years since I worked last. Minocycline has neurological and psychotropic effects in addition to its antibiotic properties. It is being studied for depression, bipolar depression, and several neurological disorders. It produced an improvement in the first week. Each of the drugs I am on perform a function not duplicated by any of the others. The role for each drug has been tested by a trial discontinuation. I may try to eliminate Abilify because it produces weight gain and high triglycerides. I doubt that I will be able to maintain my improvement without it, but it is a logical move.
If you ever reach a point where you feel doomed such that suicide seems inevitable and you begin making plans, it is probably time to visit the hospital. Zyprexa is probably the most rapid acting emergency drug, although lithium can help, too.
"Natural" treatments with some scientific evidence for efficacy include fish oil EPA (OmegaBrite), NAC (N-acetylcysteine), vitamin D3, S-AMe, L-methylfolate (Deplin), St. John's wort, curcumin, and rhodiola rosea. I am not well-versed in the use of other herbal, vitamin, or food supplements.
Good luck.
- ScottSome see things as they are and ask why.
I dream of things that never were and ask why not.- George Bernard Shaw
poster:SLS
thread:1045186
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20130527/msgs/1045330.html