![[dr. bob]](/dr-bob-sm.gif)
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 9 of 9. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by SheilaC on October 20, 2010, at 9:47:51
Ok - I have gone 4 days without Adderall and I just can't stand it. Today I had to take 1/4 of a pill (not much), but I have been so exhausted and have had not energy. The 60mg of Geodon is knocking me out pretty hard at night and I am sleeping great, but I am struggling during the day.
Is it possible that I may need a small amount of a mood stabilizer during the day to take WITH the Adderall? Maybe something that will keep my mood stable and still allow me to get the energy, focus, motivation with my Adderall?
I'm afraid with Geodon alone, I may sleep all day and get nothing done.
Plus, the Adderall dose help with my depression.
Ugh!
Posted by Phillipa on October 20, 2010, at 10:38:16
In reply to Can't stand it!, posted by SheilaC on October 20, 2010, at 9:47:51
Do you have to continue the geodon? Sounds like that's the problem. Phillipa
Posted by herpills on October 20, 2010, at 10:45:27
In reply to Can't stand it!, posted by SheilaC on October 20, 2010, at 9:47:51
Do you take the Geodon right before bed? I used to take it 3 hours before I wanted to fall asleep. Try experimenting with when you take it and maybe you can eliminate the morning drowsiness.
herpills
Posted by morgan miller on October 20, 2010, at 12:49:44
In reply to Can't stand it!, posted by SheilaC on October 20, 2010, at 9:47:51
Have you ever tried a superior brand of st. john's wort? I'm thinking something like Perika could be a better alternative to taking Adderal. It won't give you the same feeling, but the half life is longer and it could improve alertness and cognition. If you do Perika(or Serofin or Kira), you might want to take Metafolin(l methylfolate) as it upregulates production of serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine and can improve the efficacy of antidepressants, or anything that works on increasing the amount of these neurotransmitters. I'm taking Serofin and Metafolin and, while I'm not yet at a point where I'm receiving full therapeutic benefit, I think they are really helping. I was able to quit Prozac cold turkey and start Serofin and Metafolin a few days later without any serious problems. It's been about 2 weeks now.
Do you think your doctor would be willing to reduce the Geodon dose some? Have you already tried a lower dose?
Why again are you taking Geodon? Bipolar? Schizo-affective/schizophrenia?
Posted by floatingbridge on October 25, 2010, at 2:02:29
In reply to Can't stand it!, posted by SheilaC on October 20, 2010, at 9:47:51
Hi Sheila,
It's been awhile. Sorry your having to adjust your meds again.
So geodon alone? Anything else on board? (I thought geodon was a mood stabilizer?)
Adderall prove destabilizing or cause irritability?
Have you taken the geodon w/adderall before?
Lots of questions and no answers--. I do recall that some mood stabilizers have intolerable side-effects for you.
Could you post some more info? Thanks.
Posted by SheilaC on October 25, 2010, at 11:17:56
In reply to Re: Can't stand it! » SheilaC, posted by floatingbridge on October 25, 2010, at 2:02:29
> Hi Sheila,
>
> It's been awhile. Sorry your having to adjust your meds again.
>
> So geodon alone? Anything else on board? (I thought geodon was a mood stabilizer?)
>
> Adderall prove destabilizing or cause irritability?
>
> Have you taken the geodon w/adderall before?
>
> Lots of questions and no answers--. I do recall that some mood stabilizers have intolerable side-effects for you.
>
> Could you post some more info? Thanks.
>Right now I have dropped the Adderall. Even at a tiny dose, it was causing mood instability. So, right now I am just taking Geodon. I still feel like I am missing that nice, calm, happy feeling I used to get from serotonin meds. I see my doc today and I am going to discuss meds with her. I like Geodon, but I still feel like I am missing a little something.
Posted by floatingbridge on October 25, 2010, at 13:45:11
In reply to Floatingbrige - Re: Can't stand it!, posted by SheilaC on October 25, 2010, at 11:17:56
Good Luck Sheila with your doc.
So geodon is alright except for fatigue?(take it earlier someone suggested)
The happy piece. Did you only get it from a stimulant? Or a certain AD?
Keep us posted what you doc says. Sounds great that you can identify exactly what you want. Best to you.
Posted by SheilaC on October 26, 2010, at 10:09:50
In reply to Re: Floatingbrige - Re: Can't stand it! » SheilaC, posted by floatingbridge on October 25, 2010, at 13:45:11
> Good Luck Sheila with your doc.
>
> So geodon is alright except for fatigue?(take it earlier someone suggested)
>
> The happy piece. Did you only get it from a stimulant? Or a certain AD?
>
> Keep us posted what you doc says. Sounds great that you can identify exactly what you want. Best to you.
I got the "up" feeling for sure from the Adderall. It really took care of the depression, but made my mood way unstable. Bummer! Geodon helps a little with depression, but not much.I take 60mg of Geodon right now in the evening and my doc says that we have lots of room to play with that dosage for use as my main mood stabilizer. The weird thing, is that sometimes Geodon makes me sleepy and sometimes it doesn't. I still take 1mg of Klonopin in the evening. Sometimes 1mg - 1.5mg helps me relax and fall asleep.
My doc gave me a couple of options at this point to help with the slight depression. She suggested Silenor (Doxepin) for sleep and depression. Or taking Pristiq during the day (since I have taken it in the past - but it wasn't a real strong AD for me), or possible a tiny dose of Prozac, maybe even in a liquid form since I am so med sensitive. The only thing with the Prozac or Pristiq is that I may have to in time raise my Geodon dose so that my mood doesn't become unstable from the antidepressant effects.
For now she suggested I try the Silenor (which is Doexpin or Sinequin) which is only 3mg - 6mg at night.
I thought that was a weird option, but since Silenor is new, she had a ton of samples to give me to try.
Who knows. My focus now is to stay stable on Geodon and get some depression relief without bouncing off the walls.
Posted by floatingbridge on October 26, 2010, at 11:03:11
In reply to Floatingbrige - Update, posted by SheilaC on October 26, 2010, at 10:09:50
Sheila, have you searched the babble site for silenor? I know there's been discussion, but I haven't followed.
Klonopin at night. I'm thinking of my own experience. It worked for deeper anxiety, but was very fatiguing and ultimately a depressant (for me). It's long acting. Just recently I had a mood backslide and dug up my old bottle of
klonopin. I was amazed by how tired and heavy it made me feel. My pdoc has switched me to Xanax cr --a sustained release. Some people say it's not very good, but it works for me.Didn't you have some s/e's with pristiq? I can't remember. (I sound like Ronald Regan :( ).
Btw, sounds like you have a great doc. Thanks for updating. I'm curious about your silenor experience. Good luck!
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.