Posted by dove on January 8, 2002, at 15:05:11
In reply to DOVE .... question please » dove, posted by spike4848 on January 5, 2002, at 9:36:12
Dear Spike,
>
> Are you the same dove that wrote,
>Yessirr! I did indeed write that a while back.
>
> The reason I ask is I have panic disorder, depression and family history of bipolar disorder. I really have only responded to Nardil, but have difficulties with the side effects. I am really desperate now. I was considering Verapamil .... it seems to have some effect on panic and bipolar.
>
> Is there a reason you did not return to verapamil if it worked wonders for you? Thanks you.
>I was having some side-effects which my Doc didn't like and for the life of me, I can't remember what they were! I have a very long family history (more than 5 generations) of heart disease and every male dying before the age of 54 from multiple heart-attacks. And I vaguely remember that perhaps I was having weird heart palpitations and that scared the doc???
I strongly recommend Verapamil because it may do nothing for a lot of people (that's what most of my doc's say) or, it may do something very amazing. My anxiety level dropped like a rock, moodiness was nearly flatlined, and my depression was greatly lessened, at least in the beginning, unfortunately, my depression returned at some point later on.
When they were weaning me off Verapamil the depression increased so greatly that I went into the "Urgent Care" unit of the local hospital. So, I know it can alleviate depression, maybe not completely (at least for me), but it really was an eye-opening and life-giving experience.
I strongly recommend verapamil, especially if you're getting desperate! It really did do a job on the bipolar cycling spectrum and the anxiety, and gave me a ton of energy. For the first time I was able to maintain an exercise routine, although I did gain 5-8 pounds while on it. I hope this helps! Verapamil is a very special med in my opinion, and should be tried more often, rather than going to much harsher meds first.
Keep us updated and best of luck!
dove
poster:dove
thread:88552
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20020103/msgs/89334.html