Posted by SLS on February 1, 2016, at 22:54:38
In reply to Re: med help!, posted by soulsickness1 on February 1, 2016, at 19:39:55
I was hospitalized more than once due to severe manic reactions to MAOIs. Aside from these few episodes, I am chronically depressed. My diagnosis is Bipolar I depression. A diagnosis of bipolar disorder is warranted when treatment with an antidepressant induces a manic state that lasts beyond drug discontinuation. If the manic state is severe or psychotic, Bipolar I is diagnosed.
You may need an antipsychotic and/or mood stabilizer to prevent future manic and psychotic episodes. I have come to like Saphris (asenapine), an antipsychotic that can produce antidepressant effects. My response to it was brief, but significant. Saphris has given a friend of mine her life back. I currently use Abilify.
If you do need a standard antidepressant, and you are most concerned with SSRI apathy and amotivation, perhaps Effexor would be worth a try. From what I can see, those side effects are usually absent. Effexor is also approved for anxiety disorders, so I would hope that you would be able to treat depression and anxiety with one drug. Some people have good results when adding Wellbutrin to Effexor when mental energy and fatigue are problems. However, anxiety and anger sometimes arise from Wellbutrin treatment.
It is not surprising that your memory should be made better by a BZD. Anxiety can crush memory and drive depression.
Have you tried Lamictal (lamotrigine) yet? An interesting strategy for people who have bipolar depression is to combine Lamictal, Abilify, and Wellbutrin.
I currently take:
Parnate 80 mg/day
desipramine 300 mg/day
Lamictal 300 mg/day
lithium 300 mg/day
Abilify 10 mg/dayI am not in remission, but these drugs help enough to continue taking them.
- Scott
Some see things as they are and ask why.
I dream of things that never were and ask why not.- George Bernard Shaw
poster:SLS
thread:1085859
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20160131/msgs/1085879.html