![[dr. bob]](/dr-bob-sm.gif)
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 13 of 13. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by psychobot5000 on June 19, 2007, at 0:50:52
Question: is trying some form of levidopa for treatment-resistant dopamine deficient depression a bad idea? I'd be curious to know how people feel about this. Anyone know how likely it would be for the l-dopa to cause that notorious down-regulation that makes dose-escalation necessary in Parkinson's patients? Would trying it cautiously, at a low dose, say, from an herbal source, be a reasonable thing to do? It seems reasonable, if the disadvantages aren't too great. There are only so many dopamine-friendly therapies out there.
Thanks in advance for any thoughts people might have!
'Psychbot5000'
Posted by Sigismund on June 19, 2007, at 2:58:50
In reply to L-dopa for anhedonic, drive-deficient depression?, posted by psychobot5000 on June 19, 2007, at 0:50:52
I took mucana pruriens for a bit, and figure low doses of that are OK, though I would feel yet more cautious about straight l-Dopa in any doseage.
Deprenyl no good for you, psychobot? I forget.
Posted by linkadge on June 19, 2007, at 6:35:53
In reply to Re: L-dopa for anhedonic, drive-deficient depressi, posted by Sigismund on June 19, 2007, at 2:58:50
Yeah, I wouldn't take l-dopa. There is the down regulation stuff, and some recent evidence suggests that it is even toxic to dopaminergic cells.
Linkadge
Posted by shasling on June 19, 2007, at 12:42:34
In reply to L-dopa for anhedonic, drive-deficient depression?, posted by psychobot5000 on June 19, 2007, at 0:50:52
My doc wanted to try dopamine therapy for my depression, same type as you describe;, but would not use L-dopa, sinemet or comtan for that reason. We tried requip (eh), deprenyl (eh), pergolide (ugh!) parlodel (no appreciable effect), and abilify (works absolute wonders for me.)
Posted by psychobot5000 on June 19, 2007, at 13:21:52
In reply to Re: L-dopa for anhedonic, drive-deficient depression?, posted by shasling on June 19, 2007, at 12:42:34
> My doc wanted to try dopamine therapy for my depression, same type as you describe;, but would not use L-dopa, sinemet or comtan for that reason. We tried requip (eh), deprenyl (eh), pergolide (ugh!) parlodel (no appreciable effect), and abilify (works absolute wonders for me.)
>
>Appreciate the info--seems like l-dopa may be a bad idea. Can I ask how long it took abilify to be helpful to you? I wimped out after just a week or less, because of the side-effects--it made me feel slow, almost stoned. But I've heard that can go away, so I was curious about others' experiences.
Best,
P-bot
Posted by steel on June 19, 2007, at 15:31:01
In reply to Re: L-dopa for anhedonic, drive-deficient depressi » shasling, posted by psychobot5000 on June 19, 2007, at 13:21:52
> > My doc wanted to try dopamine therapy for my depression, same type as you describe;, but would not use L-dopa, sinemet or comtan for that reason. We tried requip (eh), deprenyl (eh), pergolide (ugh!) parlodel (no appreciable effect), and abilify (works absolute wonders for me.)
> >
> >
>
> Appreciate the info--seems like l-dopa may be a bad idea. Can I ask how long it took abilify to be helpful to you? I wimped out after just a week or less, because of the side-effects--it made me feel slow, almost stoned. But I've heard that can go away, so I was curious about others' experiences.
>
> Best,
> P-botJust keep in mind dopamine is both inhibatory as well as exciatory.Not to mention the different sub types of receptors.
Also as u know using amino acids as mecicine can always be tricky.
The ablifiy is crucial to being dose correct for the specific person as it can be both engerzing as well as what it is which is a anti psych.
Lot of info on the different doses and how they react as far as ablifiy.You mentioned it made you feel stone,however if im not mistaken shasling gets a energy boost effect from it,so appearently id suggest you might have tried a different dose.
Posted by psychobot5000 on June 19, 2007, at 20:04:55
In reply to Re: L-dopa for anhedonic, drive-deficient depressi, posted by Sigismund on June 19, 2007, at 2:58:50
>
> Deprenyl no good for you, psychobot? I forget.I do like Deprenyl, actually. Gave me some side-effects that made it impractical, but I still have good feelings about it. Good thought.
It occurs to me, that if one did try l-dopa, maybe one could reduce the toxicity be supplementing with deprenyl, as it reduces the effective dose of levidopa, in additon to its own beneficial effects. So maybe that would help reduce toxicity for some patients.
Best,
Psychbot
Posted by shasling on June 19, 2007, at 20:28:08
In reply to Re: L-dopa for anhedonic, drive-deficient depressi » shasling, posted by psychobot5000 on June 19, 2007, at 13:21:52
> Appreciate the info--seems like l-dopa may be a bad idea. Can I ask how long it took abilify to be helpful to you? I wimped out after just a week or less, because of the side-effects--it made me feel slow, almost stoned. But I've heard that can go away, so I was curious about others' experiences.
>
> Best,
> P-botI had to titrate on it verrryyy slowly. At first I started on 10 mg a day right off the bat and got the crazies. Real, waiting to hear voices paranoid yucky crazies. Stopped taking it of course. Then for some reason about a month later I tried it again and started slow. Took like 2.5 mg twice a day for a week or two if I remember correctly, then eventually increased to 5 mg am and 5 mg after lunch. It was then that it became energizing, motivating and i just felt great. As Steel noted, who know what receptors I needed hit in what areas, etc, vs. what you may need, but it has been wondferful for me. I took all classes of ADs for 20 years to absolutely no avail, and this was the first med that gave me any relief. My best advice, based on my experience is to respect it and go slow, if you are going to try it.
Good luck, I know well what you are dealing with, and it can be an absolute bitch.
Suzie
Posted by Sigismund on June 19, 2007, at 23:44:36
In reply to Re: (deprenyl mention) » Sigismund, posted by psychobot5000 on June 19, 2007, at 20:04:55
Ever tried it psychobot?
Bit like deprenyl.
Posted by shasling on June 20, 2007, at 5:47:04
In reply to Hydergine » psychobot5000, posted by Sigismund on June 19, 2007, at 23:44:36
Yes, i forgot hydergine. I liked that, stopped it (and everything else) in preparation for a sleep study and never started it again, forgot about it; I was taking so many different things... I think it also improves blood flow to the brain, seemed like it helped other meds be more stable. Gonna have to get that one back, I did like it.
Posted by djmmm on June 20, 2007, at 7:00:13
In reply to L-dopa for anhedonic, drive-deficient depression?, posted by psychobot5000 on June 19, 2007, at 0:50:52
> Question: is trying some form of levidopa for treatment-resistant dopamine deficient depression a bad idea? I'd be curious to know how people feel about this. Anyone know how likely it would be for the l-dopa to cause that notorious down-regulation that makes dose-escalation necessary in Parkinson's patients? Would trying it cautiously, at a low dose, say, from an herbal source, be a reasonable thing to do? It seems reasonable, if the disadvantages aren't too great. There are only so many dopamine-friendly therapies out there.
>
> Thanks in advance for any thoughts people might have!
> 'Psychbot5000'I would suggest the herb Mucuna pruriens, which is a natural source of L-Dopa-- without the nasty side-effects.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Velvet_bean
supporting material:
Mucuna pruriens in Parkinson's disease: a double blind clinical and pharmacological study.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=15548480
Posted by steel on June 20, 2007, at 15:54:42
In reply to L-dopa for anhedonic, drive-deficient depression?, posted by psychobot5000 on June 19, 2007, at 0:50:52
Just FYI to all people in this thread,im glad to see the mentioning of these drugs which arent common.
Just to let people know who dident,were in the realm of a popular grouping called SMART DRUGS.
SMART DRUGS are usualy UNCONVENTIONAL and usualy multi purposed from help with agiging cognitive ability to depression to anxiety to etc.
I suggest as i have before to try and goog in google groups the term SMART DRUGS NUTRIENTS and search any of these mentioned drugs......liquid deprenyl,hydregine,ginko,ghk3, and many more.
Lot of these might be valuable as augments to ssris etc helping either boost the effectivness or possably helping with side effects.
Posted by Franz on July 21, 2007, at 18:35:52
In reply to Hydergine » psychobot5000, posted by Sigismund on June 19, 2007, at 23:44:36
> Ever tried it psychobot?
>
> Bit like deprenyl.I am trying hydergine and I think it has a good effect on me but it is too early to tell.
For me it is quite different from deprenyl.
This is the end of the thread.
Psycho-Babble Medication | Extras | FAQ
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.org
Script revised: February 4, 2008
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/cgi-bin/pb/mget.pl
Copyright 2006-17 Robert Hsiung.
Owned and operated by Dr. Bob LLC and not the University of Chicago.