Posted by bark2323 on March 7, 2004, at 14:28:37
In reply to Bipolar success stories? « Kira, posted by Dr. Bob on April 23, 2003, at 17:59:24
Although it MIGHT have stopped working recently, trileptal was excellent for me for a long time. Didnt need antidepressants anymore (which Im sure youve read can worsen things in the long run, and is true for me), wasnt dulling, didnt gain weight, actually helped motivation, only side effect was initial nausea.
Zyprexa has been a godsend for me many times in both sides of the illness. Would stay on it, but it does have its share of side effects, weight gain being common (although wasnt a big deal for me), and some sleepiness for some people. Also, my doc would rather use it sparingly.
There are others that have helped me or that were easy to tolerate, but those are the 2 that come to mind. There are a lot of possibilities out there, and once you find something effective but the side effects are to much, there are a million ways of dealing with this, the obvious one being careful dosing.
As far as non-medicinal stuff goes, I think getting the right amount of sleep is the most important thing, and being involved with things like work, friends, school, or anything else that keeps you from focusing to much on yourself (not that self reflection is a bad thing, but if it becomes too much it can be a vicious cycle; at least Ive found that to be true). Dont spread yourself to thin though. And as other people have said, people are much more likely to post negatively about meds, so dont let those posts scare you or let yourself get into a mind frame of expecting a ton of side effects or failures, as this can be a self-fullfilling prophecy.
matt
poster:bark2323
thread:221828
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20040304/msgs/321660.html