Posted by sl on July 20, 2001, at 5:05:01
In reply to Re: Tell me about Buspar? » sl, posted by Elizabeth on July 20, 2001, at 0:17:41
> 1 class = 4 credits? (My school had a different system; the average class was 12 credits.)
Yup. One class = 3-4 credits, depending on if it has a discussion section or not.
> > Hrm. She must have done more than I thought when she left the room. Cuz I suspect it's a government-funded type thing and couldn't afford to mess around. (might lose funding!)
> I think the government probably sanctions these cost-cutting measures.Oooh. So it's legal, you're just saying it's immoral? *heh* It wouldn't be the first time I've done something immoral and it probably won't be the last. :P
> > Since I wasn't dumb enuf to have babies [I
> Really. What state are you in?Wisconsin.
> > You gotta be disabled (on SSI, I don't qualify)
> Oof. Which one is SSI?Social Security.
>worthless in the US, for the most part. (Some states do have pretty good Medicaid programs, though.)
*sigh* Here it's all about "the children". Yes, I'm concerned about children...enough not to have them because they wouldn't have a good life. But does that get me assistance? Nope. Do they even pay for my birth control? Nope. *growl*
(Well, technically I guess they do since Planned Parenthood is gvt-funded, and my BCP comes free from PP.)
> That's good -- you have allies. < g >Yup. I just hope it doesn't get to be a war.
> I'm sorry to hear that. I hope they're not too problematic.*sigh* Yes, they are. There'll be NO more BuSpar until further notice (possibly tomorrow, definately by Tuesday, when I can get back to the clinic). There's nothing quite like getting up in the middle of the night with a full bladder and being completely unable to pee.
So here I am, answering your post at 4:20 am, hoping that sitting up will change blood-flow and hopefully make it easier. *SIGH*
> > klonopin, it's a schedule something-drug right? More controlled?
> It's Schedule IV. Buspar isn't a controlled substance, although you do need a prescription for it.Right. I guess I think of "controlled substance" as prescription. I'll have to try to change that, cuz it's wrong.
> safely. You know best (in your heart of hearts) whether you are in danger of becoming addicted.
Just be honest with yourself, and you'll be fine.Yes, you're probably right.
> Sure. I feel the same way (but I don't try to push my opinion on other people who don't feel the same way).Yes, I'm almost always like that. It's a pet-peeve of mine, people who can't accept that I feel differently. :/
> > She knows that I'm already on Wellbutrin and it works for me, so the depression isn't there, just the nagging worry and ruminations. (I avoid thinking about certain things so the things that DO get stuck are fairly benign, but it'd be nice to let my mind wander!)
> I do that too, but I'm confused as to how that would affect her choice of anxiolytic.Not the choice, but the urgency. You were saying Klonopin would be better cuz it's faster. I'm saying I don't have to have faster (granted, it'd be nice, but I'll live).
Let's talk about OTHER non-habitforming anxiolytics? Are there any? Right now it's looking like BuSpar is a no-go. Literally. :/
> > click, and they tried to insist I see her again to make sure. Bleh.
> Nope. They're working for you; they don't get to tell you that you can't fire them. I think that's pretty straightforward.*nod* And I was like that when I was paying cash, and had a good-paying job. But right now I take what I can get.
> > about it. I'm jobless and probably will be right til school starts and then I'll be a student. :/
> Which is even worse in some ways (you're actively spending money on school, or going into debt from loans).Both. I expect I'll keep getting my meds from the sliding-scale clinic or possibly go to County mental health.
> eventually it came time for anotehr appointment and I couldn't afford it. :(
> It sounds like it wasn't worth it anyway if you just went in to get samples.Well no. It isn't worth it. But they're required to do med-checks every so-many days, or they can't/won't renew a prescription.
> > *heh* I'm afraid the file is rather thick.
> It's probably thick with flat-out mistakes, too.You think? I wouldn't know, I've never looked through it.
> > diet. :P I hope she skims the most recent parts tho.
> Maybe it would be good to leave a message telling her that the recent parts are the most important, then.Yes, maybe when I call tomorrow morning.
> > I could take up to 60mgs.
> There's not a lot, but Buspar definitely is an antidepressant at higher doses (the effective range is around 45-90 mg).I won't get that high unless they can give me something to get rid of the problems with urination. I will stop it right away if they can't offer me hope of that. :/
> > And we still won't be at square one, we'll have ruled out ONE option.
> Not really. If you don't take it long enough to know whether it works for you, you haven't learned anything from that trial.I've learned that without treatment the side-effects are intolerable. :(
> At least. I would bet that people with severe anxiety need higher doses just like people with depression do.Mine isn't severe except when I'm off meds altogether. It's more the ugly ruminations that bother me, and the occasional nagging worry that won't go away even tho I've told it "stop that, you're not rational!". :/
> >long as the depression is treated successfully, it should be okay to let the anxiety slide a little.
> I hope so. For me, residual anxiety has been a major source of trouble.Well, I know that's what lead me to drink. But I don't go out [to bars] anymore, so that's not really an issue.
> >mild and now it's...bad. It takes me like 30 seconds and CONCENTRATION to pee, even if I need to badly!
> That's pretty weird, yeah. Opioids (like the buprenorphine that I take) cause that sort of thing, but I can't think of a reason why Buspar would. There's a drug called bethanechol (Urecholine) that could help. It also alleviates dry mouth.*grin* It'd be mighty weird. I was off meds for a wk to clear out, and it was like my mouth was really wET and slimy and I figured out it was because it'd been so many years since I was off Wellbutrin, I wasn't used to the normal feel anymore.
>til that gets better before I up the dosage, like I would with more standard side-effects? Will it get worse if I don't wait?
(ack, accidentally snipped your answer)I can't tolerate that, I need to be able to get up and urinate in the night. Needing to sit upright for an hour and a half to pee isn't acceptable. :/
> does stink that you can't have even a small amount of Klonopin to get you through the *long* wait until the Buspar works (if it works).*sigh* Well, I was doing okay until I had something to worry about. :P Now I'm afraid that every time I pee will be the last and I'll end up in the emergency room having to have a catheter. *shudder*
> > The other thing seems to be that I'm hungry all the time, and it takes a LOT of food to fill me up.
> That's something that can happen with a lot of antidepressants, although I've never heard of it being caused by Buspar. I'm sort of getting a bad feeling from your description of the side effects of this drug -- it sounds like it might not be worth it to try and stick it out with the Buspar.Well, the appetite could also be from my new Birth control, I switched brands to a brand new brand called EstroStep. It was supposed to help the PMS I've been having really badly. I've never heard of that, but anything messing with hormone-levels could make me hungry. :/
> > I ate a big pb&j for dinner 3 hours ago, and an hour later I could've eaten again.
> How big could a pb&j be???*grin* big enuf. A not-puny loaf of bread, and it was good heavy multigrain bread. That'd usually fill me up for a WHILE. But not today. And yesterday it worked when I followed it up with a Snickers. :P
> I've tried valerian and kava as well as a couple of mixtures that included valerian and some other stuff. It doesn't seem to do anything.
It could be that you're so used to stronger sedatives that the comparitively mild effects of herbs might not be noticed or effective anymore.
Or it could be that you just don't respond well to those. Just like psychiatric meds, herbs are very personalized as to what works for whom.> > before...OTC stuff that I have to pay for, or heavier prescription-stuff that I can get free. :/
> Go for the prescription stuff. < g >*heh* Perhaps.
> It's a partial agonist at mu opioid receptors. It has a lot of side effects, and although it is only a Schedule V controlled substance (less controlled than, for example, Klonopin), it's hard to get because it's an opioid and because it only comes in an injectible formulation in the US.
So you have to give yourself shots? Ick.
Are you a nurse or something?
> > But any doc worth his degree should know that you don't stop psychiatric meds cold turkey anyway, and give you at least enuf to taper off safely!
> Seriously. Some of them don't seem to understand that they aren't supposed to just make you fend for yourself in the way of medication!No kidding, been there, done that. :/
> > > I'll drink to that! (err)
> > *giggle* I'll have one for you. ;)
> Good, 'cause after an unpleasant experience with Fioricet a little while ago, I'm scared to drink on desipramine. (So make mine a Snapple.)*laugh* Add Effexor to the list of things that cause bad-stuff when you drink. It made me incredibly drunk, incredibly fast, at the most inopportune time (family wedding!). Very bad.
> > That's a nice thing about Wellbutrin. I can drink socially. :)
> That's true on most ADs, although there are some people who become very sensitive to alcohol when they're taking ADs. I think the tricyclics are the riskiest.Really? I didn't try while I was on Nortriptyline. I was afraid after the experience on Effexor.
> > crime of sending drugs thru the mail instead of the crime of dispensing without a license. :P
>
> Uhh...I'm not sure that distinction would be made!*heh* that was a joke. I am quite aware that sending drugs through the US postal service could land me a stay in a federal penitentiary. :)
> Wellbutrin is a good drug, even if you have to take other stuff with it. It can be combined with pretty much anything else safely, too (yes, even MAOIs). And of course, it alleviates some of the side effects that other ADs can cause.
*nod* I like it, it works really well for my depression. There's just the leftover symptoms, dry mouth and occasional shortness of breath and those can all be dealt with easily enuf.
> I'm not finding desipramine at all sedating or impairing (I'm up to 200 mg/day, with a target dose of 300). But obviously we have different responses to drugs.*nod* Nortriptyline ...within a wk of starting it I was having memory lapses like an old woman, spelling errors like a second-grader. It got better when we backed off the dose, but it was still noticeable.
> >side-effects questions ASAP so I know if I should still be titrating or stalled.... THANKS!
> I'm afraid I probably couldn't give you a satisfactory answer; I just don't know for sure. Can you call the clinic and tell them you're having trouble with a medication?Yeah. Sitting up helped, and now I can go back to bed for a couple hours and call in the morning. :/
Thanks for all your input, it's been invaluable so far!
sl
poster:sl
thread:70523
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010720/msgs/71037.html