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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 14 of 14. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Kath on December 31, 2006, at 16:35:53
My son (22) is across the country form me in BC. I'm in Ontario, Canada. He has a long history of substance abuse...since he was 14. More recently cocaine & E use got out of hand & he & GF moved to BC to have a 'new start'. They successfully stopped using chems.
Over the past few weeks he's been having a terrible time.
He's in the hospital - went in Friday nite for his own safety - wanted a place were he could be safe & get help.
He was hearing voices re: harm & self-harm
Was paranoid - afraid for himself & for his girlfriend.
And was afraid he'd hurt himself.The initially put him on Atavan & Loxipine (sp?)
The doctor phoned me today. They're keeping him there; have certified him, so he can't leave even if he wants to; have started him on Paxil & Risperdone.
His GF got all upset when I told her about Paxil.
She said she'd taken it & also his friend had & it "changes who you are - changes your personality"
Any input from anyone who has taken it?
Jeez it's hard being a Mom. If I knew what I know now, I think I would have decided that I couldn't do it!
How incredibly painful & scarey to see a beloved child in pain, pain, pain & making harmful choices etc, etc.
I'm hoping that now he's had this happen, that it's his "hitting bottom" & he is talking of rehab, but right now it's a case of regaining some mental health.
Any input welcome, Kath
Posted by UgottaHaveHope on December 31, 2006, at 17:35:46
In reply to PAXIL - does it change who you are ?????????, posted by Kath on December 31, 2006, at 16:35:53
Kath: I am so sorry to hear about your family's situation. But you have come to the right place, spill out your guts and there are people who can give you great insights on here.
If I were you, my first priority would be getting your son to see a capable pdoc to clarify exactly what is going on. Then when you learn that, you can begin finding meds and therapy which will help.
On another note, I took Paxil for about two years. All it did for me was make me hungry. Of course, every med affects everyone differently.
Posted by laima on December 31, 2006, at 17:47:31
In reply to Re: PAXIL - does it change who you are ????????, posted by UgottaHaveHope on December 31, 2006, at 17:35:46
I can't imagine Paxil would change who a person is any more than any other antidepressent would.
Posted by dreamboat_annie on December 31, 2006, at 18:02:56
In reply to PAXIL - does it change who you are ?????????, posted by Kath on December 31, 2006, at 16:35:53
I'm sorry for your family's struggles at this time. I'm glad your son is in a safe place and is getting help, although it can't be easy being a mom and seeing your child suffer. My heart goes out to you.
With respect to Paxil, I took it for about 6 or 7 years with great results! It did not change my personality at all. I was the same old weird and silly me, minus the anxiety that had gotten so out of hand that I became very depressed and even a bit paranoid. I still cared about things and was still able to experience a normal range of emotions. For me, Paxil was a Godsend. My cousin and a friend of mine were also on Paxil for a number of years and it certainly didn't change their personalities either.
My thoughts are with you. Take good care of yourself.
> My son (22) is across the country form me in BC. I'm in Ontario, Canada. He has a long history of substance abuse...since he was 14. More recently cocaine & E use got out of hand & he & GF moved to BC to have a 'new start'. They successfully stopped using chems.
>
> Over the past few weeks he's been having a terrible time.
>
> He's in the hospital - went in Friday nite for his own safety - wanted a place were he could be safe & get help.
>
> He was hearing voices re: harm & self-harm
> Was paranoid - afraid for himself & for his girlfriend.
> And was afraid he'd hurt himself.
>
> The initially put him on Atavan & Loxipine (sp?)
>
> The doctor phoned me today. They're keeping him there; have certified him, so he can't leave even if he wants to; have started him on Paxil & Risperdone.
>
> His GF got all upset when I told her about Paxil.
>
> She said she'd taken it & also his friend had & it "changes who you are - changes your personality"
>
> Any input from anyone who has taken it?
>
> Jeez it's hard being a Mom. If I knew what I know now, I think I would have decided that I couldn't do it!
>
> How incredibly painful & scarey to see a beloved child in pain, pain, pain & making harmful choices etc, etc.
>
> I'm hoping that now he's had this happen, that it's his "hitting bottom" & he is talking of rehab, but right now it's a case of regaining some mental health.
>
> Any input welcome, Kath
Posted by Tomatheus on December 31, 2006, at 18:16:57
In reply to PAXIL - does it change who you are ?????????, posted by Kath on December 31, 2006, at 16:35:53
Kath,
It is my understanding that the effects of Paxil can vary considerably from one person to the next.
I personally did not get a consistent response from Paxil when I took it for my depressive disorder. I basically ended up cycling between euthymia (feeling free of depression, but not manic or hypomanic) and depression while I was taking 40 mg/day or Paxil or less. So, in other words, I ended up feeling noticeably depression-free for a few days, abruptly started feeling depressed again and stayed that way for a few days, went back to feeling depression-free again for a few days, and the cycle just continued. At 60 mg/day, I started cycling between hypomania and depression, instead of between euthymia and depression as I was at the lower doses. The hypomania that I experienced was relatively mild: I didn't feel particularly impulsive or want to go on shopping sprees or anything like that, I just felt a little bit better than what I would consider to be "normal." Once it became obvious that raising my dose of Paxil would strengthen its antidepressant effects only on the days when I could feel them (instead of producing a more consistent antidepressant response), I stopped taking it.
Based on everything that I've read about Paxil, I would say that my response to the medication was fairly atypical. Paxil does seem to be an effective antidepressant for some, but it also seems like it may have the ability to worsen depression in certain individuals. And then there are probably a few others like me, who can't get a consistent response out of it one way or another.
So, my point is that Paxil's effects can vary significantly from one individual to the next. Your son's response to the medication may end up being very different from his girlfriend's response, but it's hard to say whether or not that will end up being the case. It's also likely that your son will respond to the Paxil-risperidone combo that the hospital personnel are giving him differently than he would have responded to Paxil alone. So, there are a lot of factors that need to be taken into account.
As far as Paxil's ability to change one's personality is concerned, I can't think of a single psycho-active substance that completely lacks this ability. At the moment, there is a cup of coffee on my table next to my computer. Will drinking the coffee inside the cup change my personality? My guess is that it probably will, at least to an extent. But I wouldn't say that it will completely change me as a person. In my experience, Paxil didn't seem to be particularly strong in terms of its ability to affect various aspects of my personality in comparison to other psychoactive meds that I've taken. However, I'm willing to consider the possibility that Paxil could have strong personality-altering effects in a few individuals because I know that everybody does not respond to the medication in the same way.
Well, I hope that you find my response to be of at least some help. I'm sorry to hear that you son is having so much difficulty right now, and I wish you and him the best.
Tomatheus
> My son (22) is across the country form me in BC. I'm in Ontario, Canada. He has a long history of substance abuse...since he was 14. More recently cocaine & E use got out of hand & he & GF moved to BC to have a 'new start'. They successfully stopped using chems.
>
> Over the past few weeks he's been having a terrible time.
>
> He's in the hospital - went in Friday nite for his own safety - wanted a place were he could be safe & get help.
>
> He was hearing voices re: harm & self-harm
> Was paranoid - afraid for himself & for his girlfriend.
> And was afraid he'd hurt himself.
>
> The initially put him on Atavan & Loxipine (sp?)
>
> The doctor phoned me today. They're keeping him there; have certified him, so he can't leave even if he wants to; have started him on Paxil & Risperdone.
>
> His GF got all upset when I told her about Paxil.
>
> She said she'd taken it & also his friend had & it "changes who you are - changes your personality"
>
> Any input from anyone who has taken it?
>
> Jeez it's hard being a Mom. If I knew what I know now, I think I would have decided that I couldn't do it!
>
> How incredibly painful & scarey to see a beloved child in pain, pain, pain & making harmful choices etc, etc.
>
> I'm hoping that now he's had this happen, that it's his "hitting bottom" & he is talking of rehab, but right now it's a case of regaining some mental health.
>
> Any input welcome, Kath
Posted by madeline on December 31, 2006, at 19:18:50
In reply to PAXIL - does it change who you are ?????????, posted by Kath on December 31, 2006, at 16:35:53
I would be way more worried about the loxapine changing who he is than the paxil.
I'm sorry to hear that you are going through this, but for the symptoms you describe an antipsychotic/antidepressant combo appears to be the standard of care.
How long will his committment be do you know?
Posted by Kath on December 31, 2006, at 21:40:30
In reply to Re: PAXIL - does it change who you are ????????, posted by laima on December 31, 2006, at 17:47:31
Thx both of you.
He's in Vancouver, B.C. Canada, so the link, which looked very good, doesn't apply but I just heard tonight that St. Pauls Hospital where he is, has some of the world's best pscy doctors, so that was good to hear. Even if it's not totally true, there must be something to it & it's sure better than hearing "oh, he's in St. Pauls - that's too bad" !!! :-)
thx for your support, Kath
Posted by Kath on December 31, 2006, at 21:41:38
In reply to Re: PAXIL - does it change who you are ????????? » Kath, posted by dreamboat_annie on December 31, 2006, at 18:02:56
Thanks for your details. I appreciate your telling me.
:-)) Kath
Posted by Kath on December 31, 2006, at 21:43:39
In reply to Re: PAXIL - does it change who you are ???????? » Kath, posted by Tomatheus on December 31, 2006, at 18:16:57
Thx for telling me all this. I really appreciate the details & it IS helpful for me to read everyone's input.
:-) Kath
Posted by laima on December 31, 2006, at 21:49:33
In reply to Re: PAXIL - does - Ugotta laima......., posted by Kath on December 31, 2006, at 21:40:30
Good luck to you and your son, Kath.That part about paxil "changing personality"- I think that's a common misconception about a lot of antidepressents. I think a lot of people are suspicious of the entire idea of an antidepressent, even cynical, but the drugs can be lifesavers.
Posted by Kath on December 31, 2006, at 21:51:14
In reply to Re: PAXIL - does it change who you are ????????? » Kath, posted by madeline on December 31, 2006, at 19:18:50
thx - he's off loxapine now.
I don't know how long he's committed for. I got the impression from the doctor that he's there until they get him set up with meds that are helping him.
I am pretty upset about some info that his biological Dad, who lives near him out there, told me tonite. It came up after something I said. He told me that a week ago Monday, when my son had gone to emerg to try & get admitted (& they wouldn't because they are SO crowded & he didn't have a time & plan to do something bad)- anyway, on Friday when they were meeting with a doctor, the doctor mentioned that the urine test from that Monday showed he'd used cocaine.
I'm pretty upset, because I had understood he'd been pretty successful in not doing that. He'd had one 'slip' that he had been upset about, but that was months ago. Apparently his GF didn't know about this recent use...I have to verify with bio-Dad - I'm not sure if she knows now or not.
So this recent psychotic stuff might be cocaine-triggered.
I don't know if that makes me feel better or worse! He'd been hearing voices for a couple of weeks before that; whether he'd been doing cocaine during that time, or before it, I don't know. I'd like to ask him when I next talk with him on the phone, but I don't know if that's a good idea. Probably not.
I am quite sure that they won't 'uncertify' him until they feel confident that he's not suicidal.
thx so much for your support.
This is such a great pace for support, isn't it.
:-) Kath
Posted by Phillipa on December 31, 2006, at 22:24:06
In reply to Re: PAXIL - does it change who you are ????????? » madeline, posted by Kath on December 31, 2006, at 21:51:14
My first ad was l0mg of paxil with xanax and my pdoc had put me on 25mg of lopressor three weeks before the paxil as my anxiety level was so high he said it would prepare my body for the paxil. I laid in a hammock sick as a dog for three months. My only relief was the beer I drank at night. But three months later I felt fine but could never increase the dose and my doc didn't want to. I helped open a new psych unit and was charge for two years and then tried to stop the med. I got the withdrawal brain dizzyness so had to bite off a small piece gradually till off it completly. But no it didn't change my personality. My sister took 40mg for quite a number of years and just gained weight from it as did a nurse I worked with who was on paxil. So no I don't think it changes your personality. Not in my case anyway. And I should have never stopped it. maybe the hasimotos would have stayed under control but who knows. I'm just glad your Son is in a safe place. Love Phillipa
Posted by blueberry1 on January 1, 2007, at 13:24:14
In reply to PAXIL - does it change who you are ?????????, posted by Kath on December 31, 2006, at 16:35:53
Paxil didn't change who I was. It didn't change my personality in any significant way.
But it did have some effects. For example, I was overall kind of emotionally numb...not depressed anymore, but not happy either, less interest in previous hobbies. The weirdest thing was that at a funeral, even though it was very sad and I should have been crying like everyone else, I was just not able to cry at all.
Posted by Kath on January 1, 2007, at 16:10:20
In reply to Re: PAXIL - does it change who you are ????????? » Kath, posted by Phillipa on December 31, 2006, at 22:24:06
Thanks Blueberry & Phillipa
I shared the input that I got here with my son's girlfriend & I think it helped her feel a bit more settled & we talked about how any drug can affect different people differently. It was nice to be able to tell her the input that I got because none of it was negative!!!!!
:-) hope everyone had an OK NYEve & day.
luv, Kath
This is the end of the thread.
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