Posted by Squiggles on November 4, 2007, at 9:12:36
In reply to Lithium typically cause anxiety attacks?-Squiggles, posted by BetterDays on November 4, 2007, at 8:54:13
> Thanks for the feedback, Squiggles. I think you may have hit on something - I haven't yet had a Lithium / blood panel. I thought 600mg was a high dose. It very well could be that the levels aren't theraputic / high enough since I've only been on the Lithium for a couple of weeks. I will check that one out.
>
> As far as the Seroquel - I hope it isn't that either as it really helps me sleep through the night without benzos. I've heard of people taking Seroquel during the day, but have to work and don't want to be knocked out. Do you know - is 150mg at night very low dose as well?
>
> I hope to stay on (have a Pdoc appt week after next) the Lithium and Seroquel. There are a lot of benefits I'm seeing, which is a bit of a miracle after years of trying a lot of different meds. But the panic attacks have to be resolved. It is really unbearable to panic throughout the day, especially when the situations are not dangerous or threatening.
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> Thanks again for the insights. I really appreciate it.
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>
>I'll get to some seroquel reading later. May i
recommend Dr. Nemeroff's book if you have a chance to look at it: "Recognition and Treatment of Psychiatric Disorders: A Psychopharmacology Handbook for Primary Care".
Just a cursory glimpse on Seroquel--a new antipsychotic metabolized by CYP3A4 (maybe you don't have that enzyme- test?)usual starting dose at 25mg BID; no mention of panic, to the contrary somnolescence and related effects. And lithium is unlikely to bring on panic attacks.You say you are taking benzos-- i wonder if you stopped at some point, and what you are experiencing is withdrawals from them.
Lithium monotherapy starts at 600 or lower and then raised to as high as 1200mg;
To you, it is being given as an adjunct, that may be why it is still 600.I have not read about the superiourity of mixing
these two drugs rather than lithium monotherapy.
I guess it depends on your initial condition.
I am personally very cautious about mixing drugs, and would only let Dr. Sheldon Preskorn practice that on me, :-) just kidding. Seriously though,
polypharmacy is very tricky becaause the chemical factors are not just add this drug to that drug in this class, but variable and endless results can occur for some reason. I recall when I was taking Xanax and Clonazepam and lithium, i would get a very strange effect of having to arch my back in order to breathe-- i still don't why that happened, but when i quit Xanax, it stopped-- could have been timing, interaction between, one or two or three, or who knows.
Squiggles
poster:Squiggles
thread:793108
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20071104/msgs/793259.html