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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 3 of 3. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by bookgurl99 on September 21, 2002, at 13:32:00
I've been taking zoloft for a few months. This has moved me from active despondence to apathy -- not motivated to really _do_ anything.
The only thing that helps is coffee, although then of course I get the negative side effects of coffee. Is it possible that a psychostim like Ritalin would help with the apathy/low motivation?
And, any advice on bringing this up with my pdoc? Thanks!
Posted by Phil on September 21, 2002, at 14:24:47
In reply to psychostim for SSRI apathy?, posted by bookgurl99 on September 21, 2002, at 13:32:00
Hi, Some days when I'm really depressed, I take my Adderall and it gets me out of the house and is one of the main drugs in my combo that makes me more interested in things.
Example: Haven't taken Adderall dose, go to the grocery store because I need ding dongs bread, bagels and Powerbars. Don't want to be there, get half the things I need, walk out.Take Adderall, go to the store, spend time looking around, interested in everything except the music. Talk to people and am curious about things. That's it! It gives me more of a childlike curiosity about things.
Make sense? BUT, I still have problems having fun, going out, exercising. It doesn't totally take the apathy away. In fact, I can stay home on the computer or whatever and kind of enjoy it but I know I need to get out more.
Hope this helps.
Posted by Rick on September 22, 2002, at 0:18:39
In reply to psychostim for SSRI apathy?, posted by bookgurl99 on September 21, 2002, at 13:32:00
> I've been taking zoloft for a few months. This has moved me from active despondence to apathy -- not motivated to really _do_ anything.
>
> The only thing that helps is coffee, although then of course I get the negative side effects of coffee. Is it possible that a psychostim like Ritalin would help with the apathy/low motivation?
>
Provigil 100-200mg can be very good for this, especially if you're prone to the anxiety and insomnia traditional stims are much more likely to cause. It's also in a less-restrictive drug class (IV) and easy to come off of at any time -- I've done it many times, cold turkey. In fact, it's hard to imagine why it's restricted at all. The downside is that Provigil is very expensive (although the 200 mg tabs are easy to snap in half by hand, leading to cost savings if you use 100 mg), and some people don't care for it. But I've had great success with Provigil as an adjunct to AD's and benzos. It really does reverse med-induced effects like fatigue and apathy, and is particularly suited for people who aren't accustomed to higher-powered stims. My only disappointment is that it's touted memory-enhancing effects didn't show up!Rick
This is the end of the thread.
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