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Re: Recognizing / Treating Cyclothymia » fluffy

Posted by KathyA on October 29, 2002, at 11:27:51

In reply to Recognizing / Treating Cyclothymia, posted by fluffy on October 26, 2002, at 15:16:11

> Wow.
>
> I just read a really long thread about Cyclothymia on this BB. And just finished a really, really tearful conversation with my father over lunch.
> For the past couple of months, I have been struggling with a really MAJOR bout of depression. To make a long story short...
> I have been put on Lexapro for this particular bout, and have gotten WORSE! I have been really, really agitated and crying all the time. I have been having a hard time understanding how I can be so depressed and brain-dead for two months, when only a few months before I was so active and creative--solving all kinds of problems.
> This morning, I read a description of Cyclothymia, and it made so much sense. After having a long discussion with my father, it turns out that he has also suffered from the same creative bursts and depressive jags.
> Not only that, but my father's mother was given shock treatment for some type of mental disorder in the fifties, and was never diagnosed, and never recovered.
>
> Suddenly, I'm realizing that I need to be really straight with my Psychiatrist...I never wanted to be called BP, because I never had DANGEROUS upswings. But the downswings have seemed increasingly more dangerous for me...thoughts of hurting myself and/or suicidal thoughts.
>
> I am an artist as well as many of the people who chimed in about cyclothymia on this BB. I'm a bit afraid about losing the creative side, but I'm also feeling afraid of my down moods.
>
> Has anyone else has similar experiences? I could use some support.
>

Hi,

I was diagnosed with cyclothymia about 15 years ago and can really relate to your experience. I was put on Lithium and tricyclics. The lithium helped and gave me relief for the first time in years, but eventually "flatlined" me. I dropped the tricyclics and switched to Tegretol which worked GREAT for me until I got married, moved across the country, took on two stepchildren, had 3 babies (for which I went off the Tegretol for 5 years, and really missed it), built a house and my husband and I own and run a small engineering firm (small businesses are VERY stressful) for which we remodelled an office building. Now the Tegretol isn't enough (surprise, surprise) and added AD's aren't doing the trick. However, I guess my point is that the Tegretol worked very well under previous circumstances and probably would've continued to do so if I hadn't taken on such a hectic lifestyle. The Tegretol really helped me feel "normal" without many side effects after the initial startup. As I was able to develop some coping techniques with my newfound stability I was able to decrease the amount I was taking and also decrease the "spaciness" it caused (although I did study for and pass my CPA exam while taking 400 mg a day). Also, no significant weight gain, and it did not interfere with losing weight via diet and exercise.

I would probably recommend the Tegretol, but I know there are some new mood stabilizers out there that may as good or better, such as Neurontin and Lamictal, that you might want to research , too.

Good Luck!

Kathy


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URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20021025/msgs/125668.html