Posted by Emme on August 1, 2004, at 5:31:10
In reply to Re: Neurontin success stories???? » Emme, posted by theo on July 31, 2004, at 17:39:34
> How is the Lamictal working for you? I'm at 75mg now and supposed to go to 100mg tonight but have been feeling more depressed the last few days then I ever have.
>
> I was taking Keppra by itself before and my doc added Lamictal for an antidepressant but am thinking about dropping one of the mood stabizers for an SSRI.Lamictal is probably the most useful component of mood control for me. I'm less erratic on it and my therapist has told me she notices a big overall improvement (sometimes these things are even more obvious to others). The AD effects is not complete, however, and I can still plunge down pretty low. I'd love monotherapy with it, and according to my pdoc some people do have that, but I'm not one of them. I take 250. When I backed down to 200 I got worse. It may take some trial and error to find the correct dosage.
I think there are some drugs that can rapidly help with depression, and some drugs that plunge people down into more depression quickly. I don't think Lamictal is one that frequently pushes people into a rapid worsening (though anything is possible). If you are feeling worse for a few days, it might be part of the normal up and down of a mood disorder. Much as we want and need relief as soon as possible, sometimes it pays to hang in as best you can for a little while. You may not have hit a therapeutic dose. My pdoc had told me that sometimes you have to be on Lamictal a while to get a decent response. Just keep communicating with your doctor.
Good luck if you try an SSRI.
poster:Emme
thread:372585
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20040730/msgs/372815.html