Posted by Fuscia on July 18, 2002, at 12:11:36
In reply to Re: Geezer -Prozac or Generic Fluoxetine?, posted by Geezer on July 17, 2002, at 18:39:48
Thanks, I'll keep that in mind. I am in the states. I'll find their address and inform them of my experience.
I'm one of those that fiddles with her medicine dosage, and have actually done the research first, then asked my doctor if I could be prescribed a certain med., instead of the one he would have liked for me to try. I'm a rebel with a cause ; ) I cringed when one doctor I went to for one visit (boy was he expensive and his style was not for me-too serious.) suggested I try Effexor. No thanks, read too many bad experiences about it.
Anyway, I read on Dr. Bob's tips that there are those that take Prozac twice weekly and even once a week, and I'm not talking about the Weekly Prozac, but regular 20mg capsule here. From what I've asked a pharmacist, he said that the major metabolite in Prozac lasts 100 hours, and its secondary metabolite can last roughly 5 weeks in the body. That is a l o n g half-life. So, I started taking Prozac originally daily, then after a month plus, I started taking it every other day, then a month later twice weekly and it is working great. I may have either borderline personality disorder or bi-polar, but I seem to lean more toward the BPD. I have six older brothers, the third from oldest has schizophrenia disorder and most of my other brothers have problems with anger control, drug addiction problems, and three should never drink alcohol, but do so when life gets frustrating for them, and they stops eating, and becomes hypoglycemic due to a diet of alcohol. My dad had anger control problem big time, but as for any relative having bi-polar illness, I can't really say that they did - just anger problems. My father's mother may have been bi-polar, from what I've heard of her personality, but I don't know. My mother's father had drinking and anger problems. That's another reason I don't think I am bi-polar for I do not think any of my close relatives have had this illness. I also need my 9 hours of sleep!
I buy my prescriptions from a Canadian pharmacy and their price is even less expensive if not the same as what I can buy the generic for from my local pharmacist. But, I have to wait 2 - 4 weeks for it to arrive, which is only a problem if I forget to get it refilled in time. I buy in volume to get the savings - can hit your wallet if you end up discontinuing the drug due to side effects or it not working, but that is why I wait to order from them after I've been on the drug for a month at least before I buy in bulk. But, the Canadian pharmacy I order from also sells fluoxetine, besides Prozac, but I think it is from another lab and not Geneva. I'll have to inquire from them about this.
Yes, the twice weekly is working so far so great that I am going to stick with this for at least 3 months before I start fiddling again. I'm a doctor's worst patient - I enjoy experimenting to see what works the best for me, and I tend to be skeptical for I know that even in the world of pharmacopiea that it can be a Barnum and Bailey world, and the consumer must beware for sometimes greed gets in the way of the hypocratic oath, that, "one - do no harm to the patient". After learning about fluoxetine's half-life characteristics, it only made sense to me to try skipping a day. This floats my boat. It works great for my anger outbursts, for I can get easily frustrated and lose my temper quickly - a chip off the old block. My dad tried to strangle my mother twice during their marriage from his temper problem, he was much like Archie Bunker and Scrooge rolled in one - so I am thankful for Prozac working on this problem for me. Some people choose to lower the dosage quite a bit and take that amount daily (such as 5 or 10 mg).
I think also what has helped me recently is to stop drinking any amount of alcohol. I was drinking a half pint or a glass of red or chardonnay wine in the evenings daily for that is the time of day that I am anxious or nervous. The alcohol did wonders for this and my psychiatrist said a glass or two shouldn't hurt as long as it isn't distilled alcohol. He probably would have had felt the need to prescribe me a benzo drug if he said no to the alcohol. But, recently I noticed I wasn't sleeping well, so I figured I better try stopping the alcohol. Beer and wine contain tyramine which is a precursor to nerepinephrine, which has stimulating effects. Sure, I'd fall asleep, but I would be wide awake in the middle of the night, not to mention experiencing false hunger pangs due to hypoglycemic reaction. So, for the past few days I've been drinking catnip tea in the evenings and this has a relaxing effect on me. I also have a combination herbal supplement hops/valerian that I take now and it worked great last night at making me relaxed and sleepy by bedtime. I slept all the way through, except for having to get up at 5 to let our pup out to go toilet. I went back to sleep easily. It can be tempting to join in when my husband pours himself a glass, but now I find that I prefer a good night's sleep instead.
I've tangeteted as usual. I hope the Prozac keeps working for you, as well as the other two drugs you are taking for Bi-polar. Keep in mind it can take some years to properly diagnose bi-polar disorder. Try eliminating as much as you can the following that can cause similar symptoms: sugar, white flour products (replace the spongy Wonderbread for a complex carb bread like Health Nut from Oroweat), white rice (eat brown rice instead), salty snacks like Fritos, Cheetos, and potato chips. Instead eat almonds or peanuts, or homemade snacks made with whole grain cereals that you season and bake in the oven. Add oat bran to waffle batter-the fiber slows down the breakdown of the simple carbs in the white flour and syrup), limit or avoid caffeine, especially none after lunchtime. Eat WASA crackers (you can buy them from most grocery stores in the condiment or health food section). These whole grain crackers have little or no salt and are full of complex carbohydrates. I like the Fiber Rye best which contains toasted sesame seeds. Eat one of these spread with peanut or other nut butter or cottage cheese in between meals to keep your insulin levels even. Also good as a mid-evening snack to help release serotonin for a good night's sleep. Another good choice for this is a handful of shredded wheat cereal, or homemade popcorn made in olive oil with minimal salt. Eating a carbohydrate snack in the evening will help release serotonin that can be calming and help you get a good night's sleep.
Take care Geezer, Fuscia
poster:Fuscia
thread:112254
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20020718/msgs/112784.html