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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 4 of 4. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by djr55409 on September 21, 2000, at 16:55:44
I will try to keep this short enough so that you can get through it without NODOZ... I am a 45 year old man, who was first diagnosed with dysthymia about 5 years ago and then had a second diagnosis of cyclothymia about three years ago (different therapist). I have tried a number of medications - Lithium, Wellbutrin, Paxil, Zoloft) - but am not now taking any because the meds did not really help and the cycles seem to be manageable (I am not suicidally depressed or manic). I am also not currently in therapy because my last therapist closed her practice and I just don't have the energy to seek out and break in a new one. I think that I have probably been cyclothymic since my late teens - I have kept a diary since then and the cycles are quite clear once one knows what to look for. So, I don't really know what "normal" feels like. I am struggling with social isolation, have not been able to hold a job for a while and can't face the thought of working 8 hours a day, every day - my moods just are too unstable for that. What I would like more than anything is to have contact with other people with this disorder to find out what your experience(s) have been and what has worked for you. Thanks for any responses!!!
Posted by Ella Iverson on September 21, 2000, at 19:28:14
In reply to Cyclothymia - Anybody else out there with this???, posted by djr55409 on September 21, 2000, at 16:55:44
i was recently diagnosed with cyclothymia (possibly tetering towards bipolar II because my depressions are a little intense) my psychiatrist REALLY wants to put me on lithium and i am scared to death to take them. i am new like you, so i can't really be much help, i guess. but i have read just about everything on the subject. what has hepled me a little is keeping a mood chart with a diary of al my quirky feelings for the day. it has helped me deal with what to expect and since i cycle pretty frequently i can se how long i have left. you also might realize (as i did) that you actually HAVE periods of "normality" which i didn't notice before. i would say more than anything though: read, read, read! let me know if you need some titles :)
ella> I will try to keep this short enough so that you can get through it without NODOZ... I am a 45 year old man, who was first diagnosed with dysthymia about 5 years ago and then had a second diagnosis of cyclothymia about three years ago (different therapist). I have tried a number of medications - Lithium, Wellbutrin, Paxil, Zoloft) - but am not now taking any because the meds did not really help and the cycles seem to be manageable (I am not suicidally depressed or manic). I am also not currently in therapy because my last therapist closed her practice and I just don't have the energy to seek out and break in a new one. I think that I have probably been cyclothymic since my late teens - I have kept a diary since then and the cycles are quite clear once one knows what to look for. So, I don't really know what "normal" feels like. I am struggling with social isolation, have not been able to hold a job for a while and can't face the thought of working 8 hours a day, every day - my moods just are too unstable for that. What I would like more than anything is to have contact with other people with this disorder to find out what your experience(s) have been and what has worked for you. Thanks for any responses!!!
Posted by djr55409 on September 21, 2000, at 20:09:29
In reply to Re: Cyclothymia - Anybody else out there with this???, posted by Ella Iverson on September 21, 2000, at 19:28:14
> i was recently diagnosed with cyclothymia (possibly tetering towards bipolar II because my depressions are a little intense) my psychiatrist REALLY wants to put me on lithium and i am scared to death to take them.
Ella - thanks for the response. Why are you reluctant to take lithium? I took it in small doses and the only side effect I could notice was that I felt a little slower mentally at times...
I will also say that my highs are not all that high, while my lows can be pretty intense, and I did not really find that lithium helped - but that was my experience and yours may be different.>i am new like you, so i can't really be much help, i guess. but i have read just about everything on the subject. what has hepled me a little is keeping a mood chart with a diary of al my quirky feelings for the day. it has helped me deal with what to expect and since i cycle pretty frequently i can se how long i have left. you also might realize (as i did) that you actually HAVE periods of "normality" which i didn't notice before. i would say more than anything though: read, read, read! let me know if you need some titles :)
> ellaWhat have you read? Most of what I have found deals with Bipolar Disorder and I don't really relate to it - my experiences and symptoms are rather different. There really does not seem to be much on the net either. And I am mostly interested in corresponding with others to find out how cyclothymia manifests itself in their lives and how they experience it and cope with it.
As for the charting and diary - I have about a year's worth of charts that I kept on myself - 4 times per day when I was able to. I looked for factors like the weather, amount of sleep I had, when I went to bed and when I got up, how well I slept, etc. and then charted how much energy I had and what my mood was. It convinced me that my mood was cycling, but did not tie it to anything that I could identify, nor did it allow me to predict my moods and energy levels in advance - my cycles appear to have a rather random appearance and length... although they rarely last more than a few days and sometimes less than a day.
Posted by Ella Iverson on October 3, 2000, at 14:44:08
In reply to Re: Cyclothymia - Anybody else out there with this??? » Ella Iverson, posted by djr55409 on September 21, 2000, at 20:09:29
i was reluctant to take it because i felt like i would be giving up control, and that's he last thing i needed. i felt scared that i would lose myself in it. that it would drown me out. and i was scared of the side effects. i deal with clients all day and i was afraid of being too spacey or not being able to pour coffee or something because my hands were shaking. i was also afraid that it wouldn't help me with my depression and i would be dealing with this for nothing.
i gave in though :) i am on my second day. no real side effects. i do feel spacey though. i'm a pretty spacey girl anyway so people really haven't noticed :) does it get worse the longer you are on it?
i had already snapped out of my depression on thursday, so i can't really tell whether it's helping yet or not, but it HAS only been two days :) i'll keep you updates.
things i have found on the net vary. what i would recommend is going to infoseek.com because you can do a search within a search (so if you want to know specifics) or the best search engine for things like this is really northernlight.com
the one book that my psychiatrist recommended was "mood swings". i have just picked it up, but haven't read it yet. i'll let you know when i flip through it this week. hope that you are well!
ella
> > i was recently diagnosed with cyclothymia (possibly tetering towards bipolar II because my depressions are a little intense) my psychiatrist REALLY wants to put me on lithium and i am scared to death to take them.
>
> Ella - thanks for the response. Why are you reluctant to take lithium? I took it in small doses and the only side effect I could notice was that I felt a little slower mentally at times...
> I will also say that my highs are not all that high, while my lows can be pretty intense, and I did not really find that lithium helped - but that was my experience and yours may be different.
>
> >i am new like you, so i can't really be much help, i guess. but i have read just about everything on the subject. what has hepled me a little is keeping a mood chart with a diary of al my quirky feelings for the day. it has helped me deal with what to expect and since i cycle pretty frequently i can se how long i have left. you also might realize (as i did) that you actually HAVE periods of "normality" which i didn't notice before. i would say more than anything though: read, read, read! let me know if you need some titles :)
> > ella
>
> What have you read? Most of what I have found deals with Bipolar Disorder and I don't really relate to it - my experiences and symptoms are rather different. There really does not seem to be much on the net either. And I am mostly interested in corresponding with others to find out how cyclothymia manifests itself in their lives and how they experience it and cope with it.
>
> As for the charting and diary - I have about a year's worth of charts that I kept on myself - 4 times per day when I was able to. I looked for factors like the weather, amount of sleep I had, when I went to bed and when I got up, how well I slept, etc. and then charted how much energy I had and what my mood was. It convinced me that my mood was cycling, but did not tie it to anything that I could identify, nor did it allow me to predict my moods and energy levels in advance - my cycles appear to have a rather random appearance and length... although they rarely last more than a few days and sometimes less than a day.
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