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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 Ruby2 on November 2, 2013, at 11:02:19
Hi all:
It has been awhile since I've been here. Always good to know this group continues.
I've been through chemical hell the past month or more. Was on trazodone, klonopin and prazosin for sleep. Day meds were zoloft, synthroid, and abilify. My pdoc did a genome profile on me around May-ish which indicated zoloft and abilify weren't the best meds for me. Easy coming off zoloft, easy switch to pristiq. Torture coming off abilify but over 4 months got it down to 1mg. Then the craziness began--had some mania when I've never had it before, not any happy mania just crazy mania. Pdoc suggested adding beta blockers to block the extra norepenephrine (sp?) in my body, it helped for a bit but then didn't help. Crazy dreams, agitated during the day, creepy crawly feelings on my skin. Sooooo, pdoc took me off Pristiq and put me on Viibryd. That turned out not to be a good move--severe GI distress on Viibryd that got more severe each day. Only stayed on it for 4 days actually. Two days after going off it (which was this past Sunday) I was SLAMMED by severe, suicidal depression. Out of the blue (almost). I've had ECT for severe depression and this was worse than that depression. I've had TMS (which I highly recommend if you can work the financials of it) for severe depression and this was worse. Depression and agitation to the extreme.
Sooo...sister came to stay with me to keep me safe and so I wouldn't have to go into hospital. Put the abilify back up to 2mg. Started right and left-sided TMS this past Monday. Left-sided was too stimulating and so we switched to just right-sided theta burst. Still didn't get sleep, plus the right-sided didn't seem to work for me like the left side does. Last night, my pdoc increased by prazosin and had me take more when I woke in the middle of the night--praise God I finally got a good night sleep.
Now she (Pdoc) wants me to start Latuda and I see it has same weight gain/blood sugar issues as Abilify--though she says they aren't as bad as with Abilify. I'm so nervous about going on yet another new med as I think my body chemistry is totally mixed up by all of this.
I am feeling some better--some benefit from TMS, some benefit from a good night sleep. I'm not in that dangerous place anymore, thankfully, and I'm hoping I'll be able to go back to work next week. I'm a college professor and it is very hard to miss more than a week of work during the semester.
So what I'm wondering is whether folks can speak to their experiences with Latuda. Has it helped? Did you gain weight on it?
Current meds (besides Latuda which I am to start this afternoon at 20mg): Synthroid 125mcg; Abilify 2mg; Prazosin 7-8mg; Klonopin 1mg; Trazodone 150mgs.
FInally, I do have a great pdoc and therapist, thankfully.
Ruby
Posted by Ruby2 on November 4, 2013, at 7:25:12
In reply to Chemical Craziness then Latuda, posted by Ruby2 on November 2, 2013, at 11:02:19
So my long message got no response, so here is the quick and dirty--has Latuda helped anyone with depression? Alone or with other meds? I'm on day 2 at 20 mg--have headache and diarrhea, maybe a sinking of mood. Also doing a second round of TMS (first round was 2 years ago and was very successful). My other current meds are
Synthroid, 125 mcg
Abilify, 2 mg
Nuvigil, 75 mg
Trazodone, 150-200 mg
Prazosin, 5 mg
Clonazapam, 1 mgHoping for some response!
Thanks in advance.
Ruby
Posted by SLS on November 4, 2013, at 16:25:28
In reply to Re: Latuda--anyone?, posted by Ruby2 on November 4, 2013, at 7:25:12
> So my long message got no response, so here is the quick and dirty--has Latuda helped anyone with depression? Alone or with other meds? I'm on day 2 at 20 mg--have headache and diarrhea, maybe a sinking of mood. Also doing a second round of TMS (first round was 2 years ago and was very successful). My other current meds are
>
> Synthroid, 125 mcg
> Abilify, 2 mgTry going higher 5 - 10 mg/day
> Nuvigil, 75 mg
> Trazodone, 150-200 mg
> Prazosin, 5 mgTry going higher - 12 mg/day
> Clonazapam, 1 mg
>
> Hoping for some response!
> Thanks in advance.
> RubyI tried Latuda at 40 mg/day. It made me feel like a zombie. I discontinued it after a week. If I go back to it, I would try 20 mg/day.
I hope you get more replies.
- Scott
Posted by baseball55 on November 4, 2013, at 18:57:13
In reply to Re: Latuda--anyone?, posted by SLS on November 4, 2013, at 16:25:28
I've never used latuda. But I do wonder why your p-doc took you off zoloft and abilify if they were working. Were they working? Was it just on the basis of some experimental genetic theory?
Posted by Ruby2 on November 4, 2013, at 19:15:50
In reply to Re: Latuda--anyone?, posted by SLS on November 4, 2013, at 16:25:28
Hi Scott: Had a long, good appt. with my pdoc today, going over all my meds and why I'm taking them and what they do. See my comments below in caps. Thanks for taking the time to put in your thoughts.
> >
> > Synthroid, 125 mcg
> > Abilify, 2 mg
>
> Try going higher 5 - 10 mg/day ACTUALLY WE'RE WEANING ME OFF ABILIFY B/C OF METABOLIC SYNDROME--WEIGHT GAIN AND MY BLOOD SUGAR IS TOO HIGHT.
>
> > Nuvigil, 75 mg
> > Trazodone, 150-200 mg
> > Prazosin, 5 mg
>
> Try going higher - 12 mg/day WE TRIED HIGHER ON THIS TOO AND I GOT DIZZY, SO WE BROUGHT IT DOWN TO 5MG AND I SEEM TO BE ABLE TO TOLERATE IT. WE'RE UPPING THE TRAZODONE TO 200MG AND THE CLONAZAPAM TO 1.5MG.
>
> > Clonazapam, 1 mg
> >
> > Hoping for some response!
> > Thanks in advance.
> > Ruby
>
> I tried Latuda at 40 mg/day. It made me feel like a zombie. I discontinued it after a week. If I go back to it, I would try 20 mg/day. THAT DOESN'T SOUND LIKE FUN, THE ZOMBIE THING--UGH. MY PDOC IS KEEPING ME AT 20MG, AS SHE SAID IT CAN CAUSE DISSOCIATIVE FEELINGS AND THAT IS NOT GOOD FOR ANYONE AND ESPECIALLY NOT FOR THOSE WITH PTSD.
>
> I hope you get more replies.
>
>
> - ScottTHANKS SCOTT.
Posted by Ruby2 on November 4, 2013, at 19:17:31
In reply to Re: Latuda--anyone?, posted by baseball55 on November 4, 2013, at 18:57:13
Yes, it was based on genomind results. Plus the abilify created metabolic syndrome in me, gained a good amount of weight on it and my blood sugar is too high.
Posted by baseball55 on November 5, 2013, at 1:03:33
In reply to Re: Latuda--anyone?, posted by Ruby2 on November 4, 2013, at 19:17:31
> Yes, it was based on genomind results. Plus the abilify created metabolic syndrome in me, gained a good amount of weight on it and my blood sugar is too high.
Yeah. Abilify can do that. My p-doc said the holy grail of psychiatry is to find an effective drug that doesn't have intolerable side effects.
When I stopped AAPs because of weight gain,I think latuda was mentioned. Also invega. Never took them though.
Posted by porkpiehat on November 5, 2013, at 13:19:05
In reply to Re: Latuda--anyone?, posted by baseball55 on November 5, 2013, at 1:03:33
I took it for about a month with my Celexa (15mgs), Lamictal (200mg), and tiny dose of klonopin (.25 mgs)
It helped almost immediately with my depression and social anxiety. I did get the zombie/sedation effect especially in the morning that nothing would cut through.
I had been using abilify 2.5 mgs as an augmenter. No sedation but some weight gain, but I felt disconnected to the people I knew that I loved.
Coming off it created one of the worst depressions I had ever experienced.
RUBY what was this profile your pdoc did that established you are not compatible with Zoloft and abilify? My first two weeks of Zoloft were great before the worsened irritability and depression took root. They say it means I'm probably bipolar II.
Posted by Ruby2 on November 5, 2013, at 19:44:56
In reply to Re: Latuda--anyone?, posted by porkpiehat on November 5, 2013, at 13:19:05
RUBY what was this profile your pdoc did that established you are not compatible with Zoloft and abilify? My first two weeks of Zoloft were great before the worsened irritability and depression took root. They say it means I'm probably bipolar II.
My pdoc does genetic profiles with genomind and also we just did 23&me, which will get analyzed by Sterling Hill. Genomind was very good in revealing what meds I metabolize well. It also showed I have a healthy amount of norepenephrine so don't need meds that would add that in. It was a simple saliva test. Genomind.com.
This is the end of the thread.
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