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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 15 of 15. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by DJ on July 30, 1999, at 10:16:32
Lots of horror stories on here about the negative impacts of psychopharmaceuticals... How about posting some success stories here -- particularly about moving beyond these chemical cocktails or at least making some positive progress once stabilized. Please post some positive stories of progress -- chemically induced or even better yet, not ... here to provide some hope for this guy and other folks who peruse this site far too much...
Posted by Racer on July 30, 1999, at 11:30:59
In reply to Success stories????, posted by DJ on July 30, 1999, at 10:16:32
I'm still in the middle of my drama, but I'm feeling much better now. The drugs are taking away the horrors of the depression, and allowing me to be the person I can admire and respect again.
This week has been full to overflowing with drama: I almost had to fire an employee, but managed to do all the right things in terms of writing up his behavior, talking to him about it, having him sign off on the written warning, etc. Unfortunately, rather than fixing his behavior, which is what I hoped for, he then missed two days of work without calling and then came in and quit. Still, I did the things I needed to in order to face myself in the mirror each day. So, I feel good.
My auxilliary father had a major stroke, and needs constant care which he isn't getting. I'm stressed by it, but I'm hanging in there and doing what I can, when I can, and it's realistic, rather than trying to fix the world.
This week, an old friend was in town. For years, I was in love with him, and would have done anything to make him want me. We had dinner Wednesday night, and we had a nice time, nice talk, better companionship than we'd ever had. No tension at all. These days, I'm almost desperate, wanting someone to hold me and love me and comfort me. Well, after dinner, a walk around town, and a few drinks, we got into his car, and he pounced on me. I pushed him away. He pounced again. I pushed him away and pulled his hand out of my shirt. I told him why I was pushing him away, that I was too vulnerable to play, and he was only offering play - with nothing in it for me. That's a major improvement in my life, being able to resist him. And I'm happy to say that I wasn't tempted at all. I couldn't forsee any pleasure with him. (Mind you, my libido is just fine now. That wasn't depression)
I've gotten up every day this week, gotten dressed, left the house. I've carried on much of a normal day's work. I haven't cried. I haven't made plans for any future beyond the end of the week, but it's still a major improvement.
So, there's your first success story.
(And in the past, a period of anti-depressants has always been followed for me by a few years of not needing anything at all. Usually about a five year hiatus each time, but long enough to learn new things about coping without drugs.)
Posted by JohnL on July 30, 1999, at 11:41:54
In reply to Success stories????, posted by DJ on July 30, 1999, at 10:16:32
I think most folks who do real well with treatment have no further need to be here and may not want to be reminded of the troubles they went through. If all went well, they probably had no need to find this site in the first place. In a complete success story, I think most people would be out enjoying life, not hanging out here. Yeah? Thus it SEEMS like there aren't many success stories. There are plenty, but this site is more frequented by those who haven't yet achieved remission of symptoms.
On close examination of posts from past months there are success stories here. Check out WayneR, for one. Someone else said, "Wellbutrin...I LOVE it!". "Celexa...best ever!" There is plenty of hope. Right? Unfortunately those who have success stories to share have moved on. They're probably out having fun. Maybe they'll check in though just to see how we're doing. I do agree it would be cool to hear some of their successes. Have faith, though, don't you think you and I too will be success stories? I do. JohnL.
Posted by Roo on July 30, 1999, at 12:33:04
In reply to Re: Success stories????, posted by JohnL on July 30, 1999, at 11:41:54
I feel really happy lately. I'm working on a
painting I love, reading, exercising a lot, sending
out resumes for more fulfilling work...I'm totally
enjoying my boyfriend's company, laughing alot,
playing a lot with my dog and kitties...
looking forward to a vacation to the grand canyon
soon....
I feel incredibly happy and blessed lately, and I
know I owe it to my AD. My main complaint is the
sexual side effect, but I feel hopeful there too.
Everything will work out. Life's good :-)
Learning how to BE happy has been an adjustment for
me after years of depression, but I'm starting to
get the hang of it :-)
Posted by Morc on July 30, 1999, at 17:04:28
In reply to Re: Success stories????, posted by Roo on July 30, 1999, at 12:33:04
I'm wondering, Roo: Which med is it that's working so well for you?
Posted by DJ on July 30, 1999, at 21:40:47
In reply to Re: Success stories????, posted by JohnL on July 30, 1999, at 11:41:54
Well hopefully some more folks will stop by and post some GOOD NEWs stories for us all to savour. And if you know where WayneR and the other ones you noted are perhaps you could copy and repast them here so we can have some concentrated positive examples to focus on!!!
>
> On close examination of posts from past months there are success stories here... Have faith, though, don't you think you and I too will be success stories? I do. JohnL.
Posted by Elizabeth on July 30, 1999, at 22:48:59
In reply to Success stories????, posted by DJ on July 30, 1999, at 10:16:32
> Lots of horror stories on here about the negative impacts of psychopharmaceuticals... How about posting some success stories here -- particularly about moving beyond these chemical cocktails or at least making some positive progress once stabilized. Please post some positive stories of progress -- chemically induced or even better yet, not ... here to provide some hope for this guy and other folks who peruse this site far too much...
Sure, I have a success story. It's not all black and white, of course (and it's not a "story" in the sense of having a clear beginning and ending).
I've had debilitating depressions since I was 14 years old - nearly a decade. I had a difficult medication search - SSRI antidepressants don't work very well for me (though Prozac was okay at first, it didn't work when I tried it again a few years later), I had a bad reaction to Effexor, tricyclics were difficult to tolerate even at low doses. I settled on an MAOI, but even then I was having some residual symptoms, in particular a lack of interest and relative inability to experience pleasure (two of the most intense and painful aspects of depression for me). I did not enjoy eating, music, sex, or the company of other people very much. I immersed myself in schoolwork and the internet, for the most part.
After some experimenting and brainstorming, my psychopharmacologist and I decided to try lithium augmentation because it was something I hadn't really tried before (I had used lithium with an ineffective antidepressant, but never with a partially effective one) and because it has the most supporting evidence of any of the augmentation strategies. To my amazement, within a week after I started taking 600mg of lithium, I found myself eating more (not overeating, but just eating normally), going out and doing things, getting back in touch with old friends, and listening to CDs (I hadn't touched my stereo in months). It was remarkable. At first I was worried that it was only a temporary improvement, unrelated to the lithium, but when I saw that it was not going away, everything started looking brighter.
So that's my story. I still have problems concentrating, and my sleep is abysmal. But I have motivation, a life that feels like it's worth living (even a desirable life), and I can respond to things and experience a range of emotions rather than just feeling dead. For me, this is success. Am I going to try to "move beyond" using drugs to prevent depression? Been there, done that, got the t-shirt. No thanks, I'll stick with what works.
Posted by DJ on July 31, 1999, at 0:39:24
In reply to Re: Success stories????, posted by Elizabeth on July 30, 1999, at 22:48:59
Good ones Elizabeth, Race & Roo -- anyone else care to contribute some uplifting thoughts and scenarios???
>
> Sure, I have a success story.
>....
> So that's my story. I still have problems concentrating, and my sleep is abysmal. But I have motivation, a life that feels like it's worth living (even a desirable life), and I can respond to things and experience a range of emotions rather than just feeling dead. For me, this is success. ...
Posted by Brenn on July 31, 1999, at 14:14:52
In reply to Success stories????, posted by DJ on July 30, 1999, at 10:16:32
> Lots of horror stories on here about the negative impacts of psychopharmaceuticals... How about posting some success stories here -- particularly about moving beyond these chemical cocktails or at least making some positive progress once stabilized. Please post some positive stories of progress -- chemically induced or even better yet, not ... here to provide some hope for this guy and other folks who peruse this site far too much...
My success story would have to be that I finally quit fighting the doctor and accepted the fact that I am bipolar. I even got brave enough to ask which form they had written in my record.
Don't know but something about quitting your mood stabilizer because you think the doc is wrong, becoming manic, being taken home by the police three times in one night and then begging for help sort of makes one sit up and take notice.
Posted by Steve on August 1, 1999, at 12:00:15
In reply to Re: Success stories????, posted by Brenn on July 31, 1999, at 14:14:52
Well here's my story. I had depression since I was 13 or 14. I never sought treatment until college. At my lowest point I was in the hospital and the gears were in motion for a move to the state hospital for long term care. I was then put on 80 mgs of prozac. After feeling somewhat better I has put into "day treatment" and began seeing a psychologist as well. I then went back to college, finished my degree. Now I am 6 months away from finishing my law degree and I was just accepted into a Ph.D. program in psychology. It took a lo of time, therapy and minor set backs, but I finally at the point where I take meds mostly as "maintance". Over the years I did try other meds (yo uname 'em, I've tried them). But the SSRI's seem to work best for me and Eli Lilly gave me Prozac for free (struggling college student) so I mostly took that. Now I'm on Celexa, which worked great at first but seems to be fading. I, like many of you, wish that there was a AD that had no side-effects. But I guess we just have to live with the fact that they do. Just rememeber that prior to Prozac, all that was available was the Tricylics (and boy do those suck!). So, in many ways, we are fortunate.
Posted by Elizabeth on August 1, 1999, at 20:54:32
In reply to Re: Success stories????, posted by Steve on August 1, 1999, at 12:00:15
> Just rememeber that prior to Prozac, all that was available was the Tricylics (and boy do those suck!).
That's not true. MAOIs have been available since the late 1950s - they were in use before the tricyclics, actually.
Different tricyclics have very different side effect profiles. Some are easier to tolerate than others. Desipramine and nortriptyline are the most popular ones these days because they generally have milder side effects than other ones such as amitriptyline (Elavil) and imipramine (Tofranil).
We are fortunate to be living in a time when we have more options, though.
Posted by Roo on August 2, 1999, at 7:03:24
In reply to Re: Success stories????, posted by Morc on July 30, 1999, at 17:04:28
Well Prozac works great for my depression with
very few side effects except one biggie (for me
anyway), and that's the fact that it's a real
sexual number. I still have plenty 0 drive, I
just feel rather anesthesized. Today I see the
pharmocologist though, and boy am I excited!Another part of my success story--I feel like
I've come a long way this year in accepting that
I have a clinical depression that's not going
away without drug treatment. That's been a bitter
pill for me to swallow. 4 years ago when I first
sought medical treatment for my lifelong depression,
I thought I'd take AD's for a year or so, and then
be "cured". It didn't work that way. I've gone
off and on AD's many, many times only to have my
depression return with a vengeance. It's been
really hard to accept that I might have to take
drugs for the rest of my life, especially when
they affect parts of my life that are dear to my
heart (sex). But I'm finally starting to get
to a point of acceptance and move on. That's been
very good, and not at all easy. Even though
it seems like it should be easy intellectually
(the "you'd treat it medicinally if it were
diabetes wouldn't you?" thing--which I agree
with) it hasn't been easy on an emotional level
getting to a point where I don't beat myself up
for having depression, considering myself "damaged
goods", I "should be stronger" should be able
to fight it by myself without drugs, and so on.ps. someone said something about the side effects
of the SSRI's suck, but just think when it was
just MAO's and TCA's. I think that's an excellent
point, but I also think people shouldn't think that
SSRI's are the end all and be all. I think that
sometimes, because brain chemistry is such an
individual thing, people shouldn't be so easily
scared off from trying these other options--they
might be BETTER than the ssri's for some folks.
In fact, I'm thinking of trying a TCA, disipramine.
Sometimes the TCA's don't effect sex as much as the
SSRI's. Contrary to rumors, some people have even experienced an
increase in sex drive on TCA's...
Posted by Wayne R. on August 2, 1999, at 7:03:25
In reply to Re: Success stories????, posted by Elizabeth on August 1, 1999, at 20:54:32
DJ, I owe my success largly to this site. After 34 years of depression, I discovered that augmenting an SSRI with Naltrexone was the magic bullet for me. (My postings start in Feb). The problem is that one man's miracle is another man's agony! I desparately want to share the relief I have experienced but only a small % that try it seem to tolerate it. Until we understand more, it is mostly hit and miss. But, mine is a success story! Wayne
Posted by Ruth on August 2, 1999, at 20:52:24
In reply to Re: Success stories????, posted by Roo on August 2, 1999, at 7:03:24
I went on vacation last week and enjoyed myself. To some that might not seem like an exciting statement. But given the nightmare of the past three years it is quite remarkable to me.
For the first part of the depression I was just so deep in a shell that I had little awareness of what was going on around me. Although I can't remember it now I'm told that I was barely talking at that point. I "earned" the title of treatment resistant depression when I failed to respond to multiple (I stopped counting at 20) meds and med combos, as well at ECT. My psychopharmacologist said he was committed to my recovery and reminded me that he always had "something up his sleeve" to try if something didn't work.I borrowed his determination much of the time because I felt so hopeless. Well we continued to try different combos of meds and finally was gradually improving. 4 months we added celexa to the mix and the combo is working.
What I"m most aware of is that I am not so completely focused on myself. I'm enjoying my garden, I've started playing piano again, when I go places I can enjoy myself....I'm aware of the world and the people in it.
I realize that what I"m describing isn't a cure (as Roo said too), but it is a time when the beast is under control and my life is freer than it has been in so long. To me that is a success story (or at least a success chapter).
> Well Prozac works great for my depression with
> very few side effects except one biggie (for me
> anyway), and that's the fact that it's a real
> sexual number. I still have plenty 0 drive, I
> just feel rather anesthesized. Today I see the
> pharmocologist though, and boy am I excited!
>
> Another part of my success story--I feel like
> I've come a long way this year in accepting that
> I have a clinical depression that's not going
> away without drug treatment. That's been a bitter
> pill for me to swallow. 4 years ago when I first
> sought medical treatment for my lifelong depression,
> I thought I'd take AD's for a year or so, and then
> be "cured". It didn't work that way. I've gone
> off and on AD's many, many times only to have my
> depression return with a vengeance. It's been
> really hard to accept that I might have to take
> drugs for the rest of my life, especially when
> they affect parts of my life that are dear to my
> heart (sex). But I'm finally starting to get
> to a point of acceptance and move on. That's been
> very good, and not at all easy. Even though
> it seems like it should be easy intellectually
> (the "you'd treat it medicinally if it were
> diabetes wouldn't you?" thing--which I agree
> with) it hasn't been easy on an emotional level
> getting to a point where I don't beat myself up
> for having depression, considering myself "damaged
> goods", I "should be stronger" should be able
> to fight it by myself without drugs, and so on.
>
> ps. someone said something about the side effects
> of the SSRI's suck, but just think when it was
> just MAO's and TCA's. I think that's an excellent
> point, but I also think people shouldn't think that
> SSRI's are the end all and be all. I think that
> sometimes, because brain chemistry is such an
> individual thing, people shouldn't be so easily
> scared off from trying these other options--they
> might be BETTER than the ssri's for some folks.
> In fact, I'm thinking of trying a TCA, disipramine.
> Sometimes the TCA's don't effect sex as much as the
> SSRI's. Contrary to rumors, some people have even experienced an
> increase in sex drive on TCA's...
Posted by Riley on August 11, 1999, at 20:36:20
In reply to Re: Success stories????, posted by Ruth on August 2, 1999, at 20:52:24
> This website has been so helpful for me also. Because of what I have learned about Wayne's success with Revia (Naltrexone), I am on day four of trying 25 mg with my 50 mg of pooped-out paxil that I have tried augmenting with just about everything else, most recently 200 mg of topamax. Today, I am beginning to feel better than I have in the last six to eighteen months. (I've been on AD's for 8 years since the birth of my fourth child - PPD). The paxil/depakote combo worked great for a while, added 70 pounds, but it worked. But when in quit working, I tried and tried the merry-go-round mix, until I found this website. I am hopeful that Revia will work for me. If not, well, today I'm not even going to go there I feel so good. Thank you to all who send such supportive messages.
This is the end of the thread.
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