Posted by BarbaraCat on August 25, 2003, at 17:46:25
In reply to Re: Lamictal side effects, posted by Dalilah on August 25, 2003, at 14:05:26
Oh, Dalilah, I'm so sorry you're going through this! I know the cry cry cry, death death death thing so well and nothing seems to soothe it. You get so attuned to the suffering of the world in this state. Sounds like you added lithium - good. That will potentiate the lamictal. After my Mom's death in December I went through an awful downturn even though I was doing pretty well on lithium and lam. Nothing I did helped the panic and utter despair. My pdoc said that the TCA's helped with this particular kind of depression and put me on nortriptyline. It helped greatly. Although I didn't like the side effects, I was willing to live with them for the relief I got. Once I stabilized with an increase of lamictal to 150mg I slowly weaned myself off nortriptyline and my stable mood has remained and I am doing very well.
There's also another very heated thread on this board about ECT and it's effectiveness in stopping a depression like you are having dead in it's tracks. Apparently, the current Scientific American is devoted to the many treatments for depression/bipolar and ECT is reported in a very positive light. I'm going to definitely get it. I was pleading my pdoc for ECT when I was feeling so bad and he convinced me to try the nortrip first and if it didn't work, ECT was the next step. Hang in there, sweetie, and don't give up. Bummer chemicals are the pits but they're just confused molecules that time will make right. - Barbara
> I am up to 150mg of Lamictal now. It seemed like it may have been helping to curb some of the depression. My lithium has removed my hypomania (sadly I feel sometimes.) Anyhow, the last 3 days I have sunk back into the deep hell depression that I know so well. Cry Cry Cry death death death. When will this lamictal work? Will it send me back to the hospital? Is it all a cruel joke? Do I have to live like this forever? Do I just have to accept that I'm down most of the time?
>
> Help. Any thoughts? Words of wisdom? Suicide plans? OK, I know that's not funny.
>
> -Dalilah
poster:BarbaraCat
thread:238206
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030823/msgs/254002.html