![[dr. bob]](/dr-bob-sm.gif)
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 12 of 12. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by krazybirdlady on November 14, 2003, at 14:50:21
doesn't that sound like a good name for a song? have been painfully shy all my life, but was determined not to take the road my parents did. never did really. just avoided people like the plague. in mid life i realized that this was maybe something to deal with along with the bouts of depression. went on Paxil and BAM! i was talking to everyone about everything. Childhood, depression, father's bi-polar, etc. trouble is now it's even easier with a little wine...OK, A LOT of wine. don't even need the AD's anymore, just the wine. who could have thought that i could go most of my adult life shunning narcotics and then suddenly embracing them? parents were both alcoholic, along with some bi-polarism thrown in. i'm 45 for god sakes..what is wrong with me? sorry for rambling but does anyone out there relate? just wondering...
Posted by katia on November 15, 2003, at 14:43:57
In reply to Social anxiety disorder and a bottle of wine..., posted by krazybirdlady on November 14, 2003, at 14:50:21
> doesn't that sound like a good name for a song? have been painfully shy all my life, but was determined not to take the road my parents did. never did really. just avoided people like the plague. in mid life i realized that this was maybe something to deal with along with the bouts of depression. went on Paxil and BAM! i was talking to everyone about everything. Childhood, depression, father's bi-polar, etc. trouble is now it's even easier with a little wine...OK, A LOT of wine. don't even need the AD's anymore, just the wine. who could have thought that i could go most of my adult life shunning narcotics and then suddenly embracing them? parents were both alcoholic, along with some bi-polarism thrown in. i'm 45 for god sakes..what is wrong with me? sorry for rambling but does anyone out there relate? just wondering...Wow. that's kind of a reversal. I've been drinking a lot most of my adult life to ease the bipolar stuff, not knowing that I was bipolar. finally now that i've found medication, I'm trying to ease off the alcohol b/c now I have proper meds. And it's not easy.
So it's odd that you found meds, got better AND THEN DRANK! Sometimes, when I'm hypomanic (most times) I want to socialize and drink, drink, drink. Do you think possibly you're bipolar and then paxil not only helped with your social anxiety, but threw you into a hypomanic state that "made" you drink?
just a thought.
katia
Posted by justyourlaugh on November 15, 2003, at 14:54:07
In reply to Re: Social anxiety disorder and a bottle of wine... » krazybirdlady, posted by katia on November 15, 2003, at 14:43:57
i very much understand about the drinking and social function...
self medication will lead to alcoholism and dependence..
or..
the "plague" will surface and you will be alone..
try another ssri
when i drink my medication becomes totally uneffective for days..
please becareful..
j
Posted by katia on November 15, 2003, at 15:04:15
In reply to botte of red ..bottle of white, posted by justyourlaugh on November 15, 2003, at 14:54:07
> i very much understand about the drinking and social function...
> self medication will lead to alcoholism and dependence..
> or..
> the "plague" will surface and you will be alone..
> try another ssri
> when i drink my medication becomes totally uneffective for days..
> please becareful..
> j
Self-medication exactly. which is why it's strange that birdlady didn't drink prior to receiving meds!? very odd...
please take the meds and not the wine. you don't want to be like me and suffer thru' trying to step off this crazy thing called alcoholism.
Posted by krazybirdlady on November 15, 2003, at 15:08:41
In reply to botte of red ..bottle of white, posted by justyourlaugh on November 15, 2003, at 14:54:07
thank you katia and justyourlaugh...it is very nice to talk about this. i do think that the ssri removed my inibitions and fears enough to do just what i might have years ago if not for the "perfect person" persona i tried to keep. Won't go there though. as far as bi-polar (shudder)..i'm afraid to go there although there have been times when i seem vaguely reminiscent of my father. shudder again...as for another ssri, if the first one (which i don't take anymore) did this, then what will the next one do? Heroin abuse?? LOL. i have to admit that the ssri made me feel unafraid for the first time in my life and that was a wonderful feeling, but the cost...still got to work on the "perfect girl" syndrome, i guess. sorry for the ramble, but i am at an impasse and not sure which way to turn at this point. thank you for listening and no wine today....
Posted by katia on November 15, 2003, at 15:23:50
In reply to Re: botte of red ..bottle of white, posted by krazybirdlady on November 15, 2003, at 15:08:41
> thank you katia and justyourlaugh...it is very nice to talk about this. i do think that the ssri removed my inibitions and fears enough to do just what i might have years ago if not for the "perfect person" persona i tried to keep. Won't go there though. as far as bi-polar (shudder)..i'm afraid to go there although there have been times when i seem vaguely reminiscent of my father. shudder again...as for another ssri, if the first one (which i don't take anymore) did this, then what will the next one do? Heroin abuse?? LOL. i have to admit that the ssri made me feel unafraid for the first time in my life and that was a wonderful feeling, but the cost...still got to work on the "perfect girl" syndrome, i guess. sorry for the ramble, but i am at an impasse and not sure which way to turn at this point. thank you for listening and no wine today....
If you had that reaction to an antidpressant and bipolar is in your family, you may just keep that in the back of your mind thru'out your treatment. I was on antidepressants for a year (5 different ones) and they just made me either hypomanic or a zombie. didn't do anything for depression. I just spun out of control. Finally after a year, I was diagnosed as Bipolar II/Mixed. it's not manic depression (BPI). if you want to know more, there are posts in the archives or go to www.psycheducation.com and read more about it.
I just found it odd that you didn't drink when you were unmedicated and fully in your "disorder", but when given meds you drank. it just sounded familiar to me as hypomanic.
just something to chew on.
katia
Posted by krazybirdlady on November 15, 2003, at 15:44:28
In reply to Re: botte of red ..bottle of white » krazybirdlady, posted by katia on November 15, 2003, at 15:23:50
thank you again, and believe me i have researched them both fully. maybe even starting to have a little sympathy for my father now. looking back, his life was hell. back then it was called manic-depression and he never even got that diagnosis until he had a major meltdown in his 50's. i realize that perhaps a mood stabilizer? (lithium)? might be more to order for me, and maybe even a confirmed diagnosis so i can stop playing DR. on myself. (it is getting very tiring). as good as the paxil made me feel, i do realize that they also made me a bit reckless (VERY unusual for me). my mother has always commented ever since i was a teen that i suffer nasty mood swings. considering my childhood, that's a gimme. but loosing touch with reality and attempted suicide (father)were and never will be part of my repartoire. thank you for the advice (or perhaps confirmation), and for the ear...you don't know how much you have helped...
Posted by justyourlaugh on November 15, 2003, at 16:34:28
In reply to Re: botte of red ..bottle of white » katia, posted by krazybirdlady on November 15, 2003, at 15:44:28
love the sn..
i love that movie"birdy" with nic cage..
anyhow ...i feel you are very advantaged(is that the right word?)to have your mom at an earily age to notice that you have "swings"..
you appear to have alot of knowledge about mental health..
trust yourself..
be true to yourself..
you are far ahead of the "game"
be safe
stay smart
jyl
Posted by katia on November 15, 2003, at 17:25:21
In reply to Re: botte of red ..bottle of white » katia, posted by krazybirdlady on November 15, 2003, at 15:44:28
Good I'm glad I've helped.
I know how tiring it is to play doctor even when you're paying one to do it for you!
I know all about mood swings. I hate them, but wonder if I'm addicted to them. Would I even LIKE stability after years of roller coaster rides? It's going to take some getting used to. I still have hope that I'll find the right med combo for me. Right now I'm titrating up on Lamictal (100mg). I need to go higher and more than likely we'll add lithium.
I can't say it enough. If you don't have a problem with alcohol, please don't acquire one! it's soooooo hard to stop. I stopped for five weeks and last night I crumbled due to my mood. I HAD to feel better and i drank. now I feel worse. It has a tight grip on me. It's been my medication for years. Now that I have a dx and know what's going on with me and have meds, I really don't need the alcohol anymore. but it's an addiction with me and a hard damn one to break. it's hard every single day.
k.
Posted by krazybirdlady on November 15, 2003, at 22:08:00
In reply to Re: botte of red ..bottle of white » krazybirdlady, posted by katia on November 15, 2003, at 17:25:21
wishing to avoid the alchol demon at all costs. know how hard it is to beat. watched my parents grow deeper and deeper into that hole. perhaps it is not a symptom at all, but just a good old fashioned addiction. we tend to find what makes us feel better, whether good or bad. have to make a difficult distinction here..what is good and what is bad. think the doc is the best one to make this...have all the tests frompsycheducation to back me up...think i'm up to making a stand...ssri's have put me into hypomania..what's next from here? either nothing or maybe mood stabilizers...why not, they're worth a shot...thx guys..i would be lost without you....
Posted by katia on November 15, 2003, at 23:27:21
In reply to Re: botte of red ..bottle of white, posted by krazybirdlady on November 15, 2003, at 22:08:00
a great book to get "Why Your Depression Isn't Getting Better". It explains a lot about bipolar spectrum disorders.
Posted by shar on November 16, 2003, at 23:13:38
In reply to botte of red ..bottle of white, posted by justyourlaugh on November 15, 2003, at 14:54:07
I self-medicated for a long time.
But, mainly, I wanted to say that the title of your post is one of my favorite Billy Joel tunes.
:)
Shar
This is the end of the thread.
Psycho-Babble Substance Use | 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.