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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 10 of 10. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by SunniBunni on June 29, 2008, at 2:16:13
I am currently taking these meds:
Geodon - 40mg every night
Lamictal - 25mg every night
Seroquel - 200mg every night
Benzotropine - 2mg morning and night
Vistril - 50mg morning and nightIt may be just me, but it seems like my doctor has me on a lot of medication. These are all to treat my bipolar disorder. Lately I've been having scary thoughts, and haven't been feeling like myself. I've felt very paranoid at night, and have lots of nightmares. Sometimes I get to the point where I'm so depressed I can't get out of the bed. My worst fear is that I'm not in control in my mind. All the medications seem to be in control. I'm on my first week of the Lamactal, and it seems like when my doctor adds another medication, it makes my Geodon out of whack. Does anyone else experience anything like this with any of the medications I listed above?
Also, I have been having some physical side effects too. Dizziness, chest pain, low blood pressure, swollen glands (lymph nodes), shortness of breath, high anxiety, and lots of panic attacks. My doctor doesn't seem to understand that I get side effects from medicines easily. I can't seem to find another doctor, considering I live in a small town, so I thought I would try this. Hopefully it may help to know that I'm not the only person having to deal with all this.
Thanks for any responses.
Posted by llurpsienoodle on June 29, 2008, at 7:04:37
In reply to Please Help..., posted by SunniBunni on June 29, 2008, at 2:16:13
Hi Sunni,
Welcome to babble, there are a lot of very smart and interesting folks here.I have some variant of bipolar myself and take lamictal (and some other stuff too). I noticed some side effects when starting it, like more vivid dreams and such. Once you get up to the therapeutic dose and stay there for a week or so, things should level off. Patience, as this drug requires a slow titration (due to the rash side effect).
As far as the drugs "controlling" your mind... that may be your perception, but I'd say that the drugs may be turning up the volume here and turning down the volume there. What I'm trying to say is that the drugs act on the personality and habits that are already in place. Now, the eventual goal (for me at least) is to get in a space where I can establish my own healthy habits and strengthen them with therapy and such until I am ready to get off some of my medication. Probably not all of it, but some of it. I may very well need an antidepressant for a very long time. My worst relapses have been when AD's were changed or withdrawn.
Enough about me. I hope you find some relief. Please talk to your doctor if you have thoughts of suicide that are getting worse. There may be something you can take on a short term basis to help you over this speed bump.
-Ll
Posted by Phillipa on June 29, 2008, at 11:04:14
In reply to Re: Please Help... » SunniBunni, posted by llurpsienoodle on June 29, 2008, at 7:04:37
I'm assuming you don't tolerate ad's as none are listed. Lamictal is a mood stabalizer and yes important to titrate slowly. Geodon is an atypical antipsychotic so are you using it for some psychotic feature or anxiety. Vistaril weak but for anxiety, bentropine is cogentin to keep you from getting any EPS symtoms from the geodon. Oh and the seroquel as that also is an atypical antipsychtoic? Is there a reason for two antipsychotics? Love Phillip oh and welcome to babble.
Posted by jana73 on June 29, 2008, at 16:04:23
In reply to Please Help..., posted by SunniBunni on June 29, 2008, at 2:16:13
Hi, I was on Seroquel for 6 weeks. I 've been depressed all my life, but those 6 weeks were the only ones where I felt homicidal/ suicidal. I have always had positive dreams, but on 250mg of Seroquel, I would literally wake up punching & kicking. I had the dizziness & huge anxiety also. I would feel intense doom almost out of nowhere. It took a trip to emergency before my psychiartist would believe me that I wasn't well. I live in a big city & he is supposedly one of the best. So just stick up for yourself, but do it pleasently. Some of them have egos & will make your life worse. The day I went off Seroquel & replaced it with risperidone, I felt way better. Take care.
Posted by bleauberry on June 30, 2008, at 19:52:04
In reply to Please Help..., posted by SunniBunni on June 29, 2008, at 2:16:13
Too many meds.
Sorry, just personal opinion, but when I see two antipsychotics together, I see yellow flags. More often than others, anecdotally I see a lot more problems with geodon at this board than any other antipsychotic, with complaints similar to what you are experiencing. Hey, if bipolar is the issue, how about lamictal+depakote, lamictal+lithium, lithium alone, lithium+depakote, klonopin with any of the above, abilify or zyprexa instead of seroquel and geodon? I don't know you, your history, your doctor, or your symptoms. But my gut instinct says ditch the geodon completely, replace seroquel with zyprexa first choice, abilify second choice. Too many meds, and the wrong ones to boot. Just opinion.> I am currently taking these meds:
>
> Geodon - 40mg every night
> Lamictal - 25mg every night
> Seroquel - 200mg every night
> Benzotropine - 2mg morning and night
> Vistril - 50mg morning and night
>
> It may be just me, but it seems like my doctor has me on a lot of medication. These are all to treat my bipolar disorder. Lately I've been having scary thoughts, and haven't been feeling like myself. I've felt very paranoid at night, and have lots of nightmares. Sometimes I get to the point where I'm so depressed I can't get out of the bed. My worst fear is that I'm not in control in my mind. All the medications seem to be in control. I'm on my first week of the Lamactal, and it seems like when my doctor adds another medication, it makes my Geodon out of whack. Does anyone else experience anything like this with any of the medications I listed above?
>
> Also, I have been having some physical side effects too. Dizziness, chest pain, low blood pressure, swollen glands (lymph nodes), shortness of breath, high anxiety, and lots of panic attacks. My doctor doesn't seem to understand that I get side effects from medicines easily. I can't seem to find another doctor, considering I live in a small town, so I thought I would try this. Hopefully it may help to know that I'm not the only person having to deal with all this.
>
> Thanks for any responses.
Posted by B2chica on July 1, 2008, at 12:44:54
In reply to Re: Please Help..., posted by bleauberry on June 30, 2008, at 19:52:04
i agree with bleauberry about the two AP's and trying zyprexa or abilify instead
but the geodon isn't really at theraputic dose though i guess it may work for some but it typically starts at 80, 40 is just to get you going up to 80??
how long have you been on this mix? curious.trust bleauberry here, words are spot on.
Posted by SunniBunni on July 6, 2008, at 22:58:15
In reply to Re: Please Help... » bleauberry, posted by B2chica on July 1, 2008, at 12:44:54
Sorry it has taken me so long to reply. I am new with this site. I appreciate all of the advise given. I am just so overwhelmed with my med situation. When I try to talk with my Dr. she makes comments like if I need to talk more I should just get a therapist. Also, saying that I am one of her only patients that she gets so frustrated with. I cant help it that I get the worst side effects of the meds. Than when she puts me on all these meds. I cant figure out which med is messing with me. I live in a little town here in Ky. I lose hope at times because there are not many psychiatrist at all. I was diagnosed with Bipolar disorder in middle school I have been on so many different medications it would blow your mind. This mix has been like 2 to 3 years, I am practically medicating myself. Keeping tons of journals of my milligrams and weighing pros and cons. The Seroquil is to help me sleep rid the racing thoughts. She said it is for depression as well. The geodon for mood swings and OCD. Lamactial for depression as well. Binzotropine to keep me stable because one of the medications make me shake so bad it looks as if I am going to go into convulsion's. Vistaral for panic attacks and to make sure that I don't become manic. She says that I have to be on an antidepressant and a mood stabilizer so I don't become manic or too depressed to get out of bed. Couple of questions 1.) Does depakote make you gain weight? 2.) Can two anti psychotics make you feel psychotic? 3.) Can Geodon mess with your head? 4.) Reasons to have hope that I will finally find something that works for me. 5.) Am I the only one having this many issues. Again, Thanks so much for your feedback. Hope I didn't bore you with my rant.
Posted by Tomatheus on July 7, 2008, at 0:51:01
In reply to Re: Please Help..., posted by SunniBunni on July 6, 2008, at 22:58:15
> ... 2.) Can two anti psychotics make you feel psychotic? 3.) Can Geodon mess with your head? ...
SunniBunni,
As far as I know, antipsychotic medications are not known to induce or worsen psychotic symptoms when taken either as monotherapy or in combination with one another. It is actually not unheard of for schizophrenic patients to be placed on two or more antipsychotics after antipsychotic monotherapy has failed to sufficiently relieve psychotic symptoms.
Having said this, I've had two antipsychotics actually increase my psychotic symptoms when taken separately, and, ironically enough, those antipsychotics were Seroquel (which I was taking with Ativan) and Geodon. Seroquel increased the intensity of my thought insertions, ideas of reference, and certain types of visual hallucinations. And when I took Geodon, objects and people looked increasingly distorted (for example, one other person's eyes actually appeared to swirl as he was saying something to me). So, I am one anecdotal example of a patient who's become more psychotic on certain antipsychotics.
I wouldn't rule out the possibility that one or more of the medications that you're taking could be contributing to increased feelings of psychosis. Atypical responses to medications do occur, and when such responses are adverse, they need to be dealt with accordingly.
I hope my responses help some.
Tomatheus
Posted by SunniBunni on July 7, 2008, at 2:28:01
In reply to Re: Please Help... » SunniBunni, posted by Tomatheus on July 7, 2008, at 0:51:01
Thank you so very much for your responce. I know I may end up sounding like a nut. However, sounds like you are very intelligant as to my current issues. So, I am going to go out on a limb here and describe to you the exact mindset that troubles me. If I could figure out how to do away with some of these occasionsl somewhat disturbing thoughts than I believe I could gain from some of the positive aspects with these meds. I used to be a big scary movie fanatic. I Cant watch any show now with gore. The reason being that I have these scary thoughts about my loved ones getting hurt or even dying in a way that I have seen in a movie or heard about. I have never really had a problem like this I have the depression, mood swings, and even some OCD. I am not skitsophrenic and actually consider my self as somewhat strong coming out of some very tough past experiences. I am only nineteen years old, and have a lot of oppurtunties ahead for me. So, it is bound to be just a sideeffct. Right? I know that it is hard to say because we dont know one anothers personal life or whatever. I am just asking for your insight according to my past posts What med would you think between the (Seroquil-200mg., Geodon 40mg, Lamactil 50mg so far,Binzotropine 2mg, and my vistarals) could be dropped and still give me a poitive result without the creepy effects? I mean it does seem to be an awful lot of meds. especilly for my age?
Posted by Tomatheus on July 7, 2008, at 3:23:44
In reply to Re: Please Help..., posted by SunniBunni on July 7, 2008, at 2:28:01
SunniBunni,
See below for my responses to your post...
> Thank you so very much for your responce.
You're welcome.
> I used to be a big scary movie fanatic. I Cant watch any show now with gore. The reason being that I have these scary thoughts about my loved ones getting hurt or even dying in a way that I have seen in a movie or heard about. I have never really had a problem like this I have the depression, mood swings, and even some OCD. I am not skitsophrenic and actually consider my self as somewhat strong coming out of some very tough past experiences. I am only nineteen years old, and have a lot of oppurtunties ahead for me. So, it is bound to be just a sideeffct. Right?
It sounds like the scary thoughts that you described may essentially be a side effect of one or more of the meds that you're taking, especially considering that you said you never had this problem in the past. It does make sense that eliminating the culprit could allow you to enjoy the benefits of your meds without having to endure the scary thoughts, assuming that the culprit isn't also having therapeutic effects.
> What med would you think between the (Seroquil-200mg., Geodon 40mg, Lamactil 50mg so far,Binzotropine 2mg, and my vistarals) could be dropped and still give me a poitive result without the creepy effects?
I'm not an expert on the matter (in other words, not a psychiatrist), but my inclination would be to try dropping either the Seroquel or the Geodon under the guidance of your doctor. I think that it would be best to discontinue the meds one at a time (assuming that you discontinue both antipsychotics) so that you'll have some idea as to which medication was bringing on the scary thoughts if and when you stop experiencing them. As far as alternatives to Seroquel and/or Geodon go, I would take heed of some of the suggestions that Bleauberry made in his post.
> I mean it does seem to be an awful lot of meds. especilly for my age?
Yes, it does sound like a lot, especially with the two antipsychotics that you're taking.
Tomatheus
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