Posted by tom2228 on June 5, 2015, at 9:45:56
In reply to Re: Medications that don't touch the 5HT1 receptor? » tom2228, posted by SLS on June 4, 2015, at 6:53:31
> > In the end it's trial and error, which is difficult to sit with. Just don't give up. You'll find something that works for you. It's taken me 10 years and 52 medications but I'm at last responding to treatment, very very well! Good luck
>
> That is quite a few medications that you have tried.
>
> If I may ask, what is your current treatment regime? I am desperate for ideas.
>
> Thanks!
>
>
> - ScottHey Scott,
my latest and here-to-stay medication regimen looks like:
lithium carbonate 900mg
Lamictal ER 100mg
Abilify 4mg
Zyprexa 2.5mg
Marplan 40mg
desipramine 125mg
Mirapex ER 0.375mg
Deplin 30mg
Desoxyn (methamphetamine HCl) 20mg
betahistine 48mg -- finding dose
Synthroid (levothyroxine -- T4) 50mcg
Cytomel (liyothyronine -- T3) 12.5mcg
metformin 2000mg
Truvada 200/300mg
The recent changes of switching back to Desoxyn and adding the betahistine have solidified the upward trajectory I have been in for the past 5 months. I am taking the betahistine to counteract the sedation and weight gain from Zyprexa and the other antihistaminergics I am taking. I feel lighter, less depressed, more able to think and talk clearly, and do my job.The Desoxyn has really made a positive difference in my ADHD, depression, and anxiety. It is qualitatively different from the other stimulants, and I have zero side-effects except a little dry mouth. I feel calm, confident, steadily and evenly focused, and more in control of myself. I feel like myself, just functional. You say you are desperate for ideas... try the Desoxyn Scott!!! I find it hard to understand that you are considering DBS but won't try Desoxyn.
And now back to your question, which asked what is my original *treatment* regimen, which brings me to the point that I was trying to convey in my last post on this thread. Yes depression and anxiety are biological illnesses, but they do not exist in a vacuum. Everything biological going on between our ears has a psychogenic correlate. To defend one's depression with the idea that solely direct chemical or physical intervention can make a difference is to distance oneself from the message that our depression and anxiety are trying to tell us -- that we need to change -- and to relieve oneself from the responsibility to make these difficult changes to address the causes and core beliefs that keep us in depression. As they say in Alcoholics Anonymous, we are not responsible for our disease, but we *are* responsible for our *recovery*. The medications can help get us going -- they put gas in our car -- but they will not continue to work if we do not work with them.
The other components of my treatment include efforts to better understand myself, my illnesses, and learn what situations trigger feelings that combine with my biological diathesis to convert setbacks and uncomfortability into episodes of depression/ mania and incalculable anxiety. I strongly believe that one can only discover his vulnerabilities -- and strengths and capabilities -- by exposing himself to the uncomfortable situations that depression and anxiety keep us guarded from. The more I attempt to connect to life, talk to life, and experience new things, the more learn more about myself and what my liabilities are.
To accomplish this I attended two months of inpatient dual-diagnosis rehab earlier this year, attending a chemical dependency outpatient program, and I am current in a psychiatric outpatient program that is proving very helpful to me. I have been living in sober living for the past 3 months and attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings every single day to meet new people who understand me, listen to my fears, and show me the evidence that recovery is highly, highly possible. I see a psychiatrist whom I trust and who trusts me, as well as a therapist with whom I am working on dealing with the traumas that have historically kept my psyche in the paralytic stagnation of fear.
After 5 years of not working, and not much experience working with other people at all, I have faced my fear and found work. After 2 months in I was promoted yesterday to a career-level-paying position. To be a commission-only salesmen after 23 years of social anxiety disorder and avoidant personality disorder, this is an insanely rewarding challenge for me. I am continually amazed at what is possible now that I have stepped my foot out the door. The results have been at or near full remission. I can honestly say that I am happy and highly satisfied with my life... Step back to 2014, I was acutely suicidality every day for a year or more with no end in sight. Don't short-change yourself. Your case and medication histoey is complex but not unique. There are other out there with TRD like yours who have gotten better. You can too, Scott.
I cannot stress more the importance of taking action -- getting out of your head and into the world. I really would recommend considering the Desoxyn. I find it to be very helpful and easy to tolerate. It takes 1-2 weeks to properly adjust.
poster:tom2228
thread:1079343
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20150520/msgs/1079475.html