Posted by AdamCanada2 on January 7, 2009, at 8:01:46
In reply to Re: Parnate one of the best meds I've tried.... » AdamCanada2, posted by JadeKelly on January 6, 2009, at 10:03:37
For me parnate works pretty much after the first dose. That is when I noticed a benificial effect. The week prior being on no meds except ativan (switched back to valium because my lousy pharmacist finally returned... they sure love their prolonged vacations) I felt horrendous. My baseline depression would be constant often burning head pains, anhedonia, lack of emotions, poor mood, inability to enjoy things, I would be a zombie basically. I would feel as if I was only a tiny fraction of my real self.
Then parnate I started taking again with my valium. 10mg at first divided twice a day for 3 days. The first day... my best friend called me and I was amazed how well I could talk on the phone again. Unbelievable. The day prior I would be scared out of my mind to talk to anyone. Social anxiety along with the fact that a zombie version of me would have nothing more to say besides... ''hey, hope you had a happy new year''. But now I was finally talking again. Also during the first day I found everything to be a bit more enjoyable/interesting AND my burning head pains would begin to deminish.
Now for 2 days I been on 15 mg divided by 10 + 5 and gee Sleeping is a pain in the rear end. I need a sleep aid badly. When I started on this higher dose I felt an initial boost in my mood and I could probably still feel it if it wasn't for sleep exhaustion. How can I tell how a medication is really effecting me if I cannot get normal hours of sleep? I had zero hours of sleep the first day of 15mg and today I had maybe 6 hours after waking up so many times and having to fall asleep again and again.
Here in Canada we dont have general practitioners but... family doctors. Last time I tried to get a real sleep aid such as ambien or lunesta prescribed the jerk told me I need to do that through my pdoc.
So whatever. If my pdoc refuses to help when I may be taking the best medication that I have tried over these past 6 darn years then I will take it into my own hands and order a sleep aid online because I am sick of this nonsense. Why does it seem every pdoc is less knowledgable and less competent than I am?
Maybe I should start printing out a bunch of pages of people giving their own experiences of how they NEEDED a sleep aid with Parnate to finally get it through my doctor's head. I'm just frustrated because this is my health on the line here.
Augmentations.... Ritalin for a week worked amazingly well but the insomnia issue would not improve and perhaps even get worse to the point where I began to give up on Parnate due to having seemingly ''normal'' half days and horrendous evenings.
Also coffee seemed to work well despite the so called contradiction but... at 10mg back then I guess it wasn't able to contradict Parnate much anyway but certian other foods such as protien shakes would make me dizzy.
So I can't take those P shakes that's for sure.
Lamictal you mentioned.... I should add that to the list of possible augmentations.
> > Oh I have no problem with pdoc bashing. I have gone through several and the first I had convinced my family I was making it up because this baffoon couldn't believe that Accutane could possibly cause depression. A simple google search would reveal it has even killed a Congressman's son!
> >
> > Parnate.... is one of the best medications I have tried for severe treatment resistant depression. The problem is severe insomnia and the reluctance of my current pdoc (ironically the best I have found) to prescribe me a proper sleep aid along with it.
> >
> > I am at a loss for words almost at the world of so called psychiatry. When I know more about specific medications than my own pdoc there is a serious problem with how this so called pdocs are educated.
> >
> > Who in their right mind would prescribe Parnate without a sleep aid??
> >
> Hi AdamCanada,
>
> I feel your pain believe me. I think we talked before cause I recently remember saying that, its absurd to think that patients on Parnate are not going to need help for sleep problems. Your Doc just flat out said no? Did he give you a reason? Any other meds that would interfere maybe? Cause if not, I'd show him examples of every other Doc in the world prescibing them! Maybe you GP will prescribe them, although they don't like to interfere. I'll tell you what worked for me, this might sound lame but it DOES work. Buy over the counter 3mg Melatonin (or Plus for stress relief, but check with Pharmacist for contriadications). I take one at bedtime and one if I wake up. They only last 3 hours or so, so taking 2 at once won't help you stay asleep.
>
> My PDoc didn't bother to check my BP. In retrospect, again, crazy! I wonder if anyone's does. I should be glad I geuss That I even got it but what happens when a patient comes in with unknown high BP? So how long after you took the med ACC. did you become depressed? Any ideas as to why? That really stinks. Sorry you have to deal with all that.
>
> I have the same as you TR/MDD. Can you tell me your Parnate history? When you felt "real" A/D effects and on what dose? Has A/D been constant or transient? Do you take augment ie lithium, lamictal, etc.? Another A/D with it? How long have you been on it? I'm asking for myself, I'm trying to decide what to add or maybe increase dose, which I hate to do cause I'm at 60mg. Any info about your experience would be really great. Btw- My next stop is to see a psychopharmocolgist, I understand they really know their s*it. Maybe a good place for you if your Doc doesn't wake up.
>
> Hope to hear from you, I'm running out of ideas! My effects at 60mg are transient at best, but had a ten day period of complete normalcy. Not that little "high" you get occasionally. So trying to figure out what caused that, and get back there!
>
> Good luck to both of us! Sounds like you are already in transmission? Let me know! Thanks.
>
> ~Jade
poster:AdamCanada2
thread:871986
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20090104/msgs/872562.html