Posted by Noa on April 3, 2000, at 17:14:46
In reply to Re: Need For Mood Stabilizer?, posted by lizzie on April 3, 2000, at 14:31:26
I am at the point that I have to begrudgingly admit that the lithium (that I am now down to 600 mg of) might have been working *somewhat*, because I am in a funk you wouldn't wish on your worst enemy. As some of you know, I started lithium in December, felt gradual improvement until mid-February, then started to feel worse, with a lot of physical symptoms, like exhaustion and fatigue, and cognitive symptoms like feeling my brain was stuffed with cotton. It turned out the lithium was worsening my hypothyroid, so we increased my thyroid meds. After that, I felt some intermittent improvements in the physical symptoms, and occasionally even in the mood symptoms. Then, I felt I had had enough of the frustrating side effects of the lithium, and felt that it was undermining my thyroid treatment, which is crucial for my depression treatment, so I decided to taper off of it. My doc oked it (eventually, see archives for my complaints about not being able to reach him) and I have been lowering it by 300 mg per week. I am at 600 mg now and geez, I hate to acknowledge that there might be a connection between going off of the lithium and getting even more depressed. I spent the whole weekend cooped up in my godawfully filthy and gross apartment, totally withdrawn from people. I feel like I don't know how I will go on, going to work every day, like I am just about depleted. I am considering hospitalization. Anyway, as for the mood stabilizer, which is the subject here, I think it is a fair conclusion to draw that a mood stabilizer is the way to go with me (in addition to my ADs), but I HATE lithium. HATE it. Get that? HATE it. And I am starting to HATE the effexor, because I think the two are the reason for these nasty urinary problems. The lithium makes me go ALL THE TIME, and the effexor makes it HARD TO HOLD IT IN. What a combo, wouldn't you say?
So what is next? What mood stabilizers do you all like? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each? What you y'all think about me switching to Wellbutrin SR instead of Effexor XR? My only experience with wellbutrin was that I started on it(regular) in combo with effexor (regular) a few years back and developed tinnitus. Do you think I would develop tinnitus on wellbutrin without the effexor?
BTW, I am meeting with another pdoc this Friday, for a consult, or possibly to switch. We'll see.
poster:Noa
thread:28748
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20000401/msgs/28762.html