Shown: posts 1 to 6 of 6. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by ShelliR on July 31, 2002, at 16:14:54
For years and years Nardil was almost completely
successful in controlling my depression. About three years ago, the nardil stopped working and nothing else seems to work.I have just started to get irregular periods (I'm 48) and wonder if this is the reason why the nardil
stopped working and nothing else seems to either.Anyone who has had antidepressants poop out while
premenstural? Any other suggestons? Any reliable
ways to see if this is the problem?My gyn said that tesing estrogen is unreliable since it flucuates all day. She gave me a low dose birth control pill, and that didn't help at all.
Anyone's gyn feel differently?
Thanks in advance,
Shelli
Posted by judy1 on July 31, 2002, at 22:29:52
In reply to Perimenopausal Symptoms And Depression, posted by ShelliR on July 31, 2002, at 16:14:54
Actually you can be tested to see if you're going through perimenopause- I think it's your FSH levels (I had mine tested when going through IVF). There's a wonderful book called Screaming to be Heard by Elizabeth Vliet, M.D.- I highly recommend it. As for birth control pills- she recommends a higher estrogen/progesterone pill, not low dose pills for depression. Take care, judy
Posted by ShelliR on July 31, 2002, at 22:47:23
In reply to Re: Perimenopausal Symptoms And Depression » ShelliR, posted by judy1 on July 31, 2002, at 22:29:52
> Actually you can be tested to see if you're going through perimenopause- I think it's your FSH levels (I had mine tested when going through IVF). There's a wonderful book called Screaming to be Heard by Elizabeth Vliet, M.D.- I highly recommend it. As for birth control pills- she recommends a higher estrogen/progesterone pill, not low dose pills for depression. Take care, judy
Hi Judy,
I think I'm going to make an appointment with a
endocrinologist.I wonder if anything besides opiates are ever going to help me. I tried ms contin but I think I took too low a dose because it didn't help at all. You seem to be able to stay on one dose and not need to go up. (at least that's the impression I have.) Now I am trying methadone, but I think again that I'm going to need a large amount if it's going to help me.
The pain doc said it's hard to dose methadone; I'm not sure why or even what that means.
Anyway, thanks Judy.
Shelli
Posted by angel1 on August 1, 2002, at 6:50:08
In reply to Perimenopausal Symptoms And Depression, posted by ShelliR on July 31, 2002, at 16:14:54
Dear Shelli,
How much if any weight gain did you have with Nardil. It seems a lot of people lately on this
board have been using Nardil with success. I would have tried it long ago, but I don't want to
deal with weight gain. I'm sorry I have no info on perimenopausal symptoms. But, seems to me around age 37 is when my depression hit hard and I thought it was due to perimenopausal symptoms and I had hormones tested, but they were normal. Good Luck to you.
Posted by katekite on August 1, 2002, at 10:17:10
In reply to Re: Perimenopausal Symptoms And Depression, posted by angel1 on August 1, 2002, at 6:50:08
Hormones do fluctuate and estrogen, progesterone and testosterone and FSH may come back in the normal range until after periods stop altogether. FSH slowly increases before periods stop but it certainly fluctuates enough to get normal readings.
I agree about seeing an endocrinologist.
If they want to do testing you will need to be off the birth control pill for at least a month to get good results.
The first birth control pill one tries may not be the best. A higher dose of estrogen or a progesterone only pill help some women most. Also if your mood was stable on the Pill you tried but you were still tired with low libido and not much get up and go (drive) you may be someone who feels better with testosterone also added back. The ovaries produce estrogen, progesterone and testosterone. When we take a birth control pill it suppresses all of our ovarian hormone production. This means we are artificially creating a deficit of testosterone, which often leads to mildly low drive and energy. Having said that, tons of women are on Pills with no testosterone and do fine, so its probably a fine tuning type of thing and wouldn't necessarily make a dramatic difference. Have no idea how big a deal it is or isn't, just that the idea to let women have their testosterone back has just become conventional in the last 5-10 years or so (since before that women were not really thought to get much benefit from it). A gynecologist or endocrinologist would be able to tailor a Pill (or who knows, maybe other hormone therapy) to your specific needs.
Take care,
Kate
Posted by LLL on August 1, 2002, at 17:15:28
In reply to Re: Perimenopausal Symptoms And Depression, posted by katekite on August 1, 2002, at 10:17:10
I agree with the advice of the earlier post to get the book "Screaming to Be Heard". It is an excellent book and helped me get the appropriate HRT out of my doc. She addresses depression and anxiety as well as which hormones have the best results and least side effects for those with mood disorders.
Good Luck
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