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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 17 of 17. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by John Bower on August 17, 2001, at 15:46:01
Can aripiprazole + a medicene for insomnia be a two stop medication for bipolar 1.
I've taken aripiprazole for 10 days and the mania is gone, lithium is gone, anti-depressants are gone, and I'm quite active.
Posted by Anna P. on August 18, 2001, at 11:57:20
In reply to aripiprazole --- two stop medication for bipolar 1, posted by John Bower on August 17, 2001, at 15:46:01
> Can aripiprazole + a medicene for insomnia be a two stop medication for bipolar 1.
>
> I've taken aripiprazole for 10 days and the mania is gone, lithium is gone, anti-depressants are gone, and I'm quite active.Hi there,
John, where did you got the aripripazole?
Are you enrolled into the research study?
Anna P.
Posted by John Bower on August 19, 2001, at 18:04:14
In reply to Re: aripiprazole --where?, posted by Anna P. on August 18, 2001, at 11:57:20
I'm enrolled into the research study.
Look up aripiprazole on www.google.com to find out more
about its side-effects, etc.
It is supplied by Bristol-Myers Squibb in the US for the
research study and you'll have to call their
1-800 number (choose the one for prescriptions)
for information on the clinical trial.In 10 days time it has made my life quite ok, now
I have to see if I can return to work at full
productivity.> > Can aripiprazole + a medicene for insomnia be a two stop medication for bipolar 1.
> >
> > I've taken aripiprazole for 10 days and the mania is gone, lithium is gone, anti-depressants are gone, and I'm quite active.
>
> Hi there,
>
> John, where did you got the aripripazole?
>
> Are you enrolled into the research study?
>
> Anna P.
Posted by Anna P. on August 20, 2001, at 23:00:07
In reply to Re: aripiprazole --where?, posted by John Bower on August 19, 2001, at 18:04:14
> I'm enrolled into the research study.
> Look up aripiprazole on www.google.com to find out more
> about its side-effects, etc.
> It is supplied by Bristol-Myers Squibb in the US for the
> research study and you'll have to call their
> 1-800 number (choose the one for prescriptions)
> for information on the clinical trial.
>
> John, that's great that you feel better. Sounds like a miracle drug for you.
Do you mind sharing more information about the study?
What's the 1-800 number for Bristilol Myers?Anna P.
Posted by John Bower on August 21, 2001, at 21:49:03
In reply to Re: aripiprazole --where?, posted by Anna P. on August 20, 2001, at 23:00:07
Call 1-800-555-1212 and ask for Bristol Myers.
They will give you 2 1-800 numbers (choose the one for prescriptions) and see if they give information on the clinical trial.It is like a miracle drug. Life is better, but I wonder whether my concentration has returned to normal. or whether I still get hypo-manic.
Aripiprazole seems to prevent depression in Bipolar-1 by preventing mania.
The cliniccal trial has a 6-18 week open label study followed by randomization into placebo or aripiprazole.
I got into the trial through my doctor, not through the 1-800 nuimber route.
It is in clinical trials everywhere and the clinical trials for mania might be closing according to a post on the internet.
Posted by Zo on August 21, 2001, at 22:24:13
In reply to aripiprazole --- two stop medication for bipolar 1, posted by John Bower on August 17, 2001, at 15:46:01
How about Bipolar II. . it is *such* a stinker to medicate.
Thanks,
Zo
Posted by JahL on August 21, 2001, at 23:06:42
In reply to Re: aripiprazole --- two stop medication for bipol » John Bower, posted by Zo on August 21, 2001, at 22:24:13
> How about Bipolar II. . it is *such* a stinker to medicate.
Tell me about it. Whadda you take, if I may ask?
J.
Posted by John Bower on August 22, 2001, at 1:36:23
In reply to Re: one stop medication for bipolar II » Zo, posted by JahL on August 21, 2001, at 23:06:42
I am rapid cycling if you add anti-depressants, with dysthymia.
Aripiprazole helps a great deal. It cuts the mania, so ddepression is avoided. Plus it has pre-dopamine-receptors something.
I don't know what bipolar-II is.
Posted by Zo on August 22, 2001, at 1:43:51
In reply to Re: one stop medication for bipolar II, posted by John Bower on August 22, 2001, at 1:36:23
> I don't know what bipolar-II is.
AKA Soft Bipolar. The highs aren't totally manic. . .tho that can occur. . .and basically, hypomania can be identical to just feeling good. This makes it a real bitch to treat. There are indications it's a seperate disease, overlapping TLE and ADD, both of which, lucky me, I also have.
Zo
Posted by Zo on August 22, 2001, at 1:54:01
In reply to Re: one stop medication for bipolar II » Zo, posted by JahL on August 21, 2001, at 23:06:42
Why certainly. Except it's all in flux right this minute.
Just completed a month on the *special,* expensive Omega-3. Well, now I know what Flatliner means. A living flatliner. Talk about no ups and downs.
Had the best 6 months of my adult life on Zyprexa, from which I waddled away 50 lbs, heavier in June. While I was on it, I didn't care. Now I do. Especially after I read that Zyprexa can *induce* Type II Diabetes.
Am tapering off Neurontin, after several years, Desirous of getting off the sofa again.
Am reducing Effexor from 300 to 225. . because it felt like Too Much Drug: metallic- mouth. Yuck. Otherwise, E is most transparent AD I ever took.
Am honking on my pdoc for, I don't know, something new. Geodon did squat. I want to Feel Good, All The Time. After my recent appendectomy, I sure did. Courtesy of Vicodin. I think it's about time All the Pain was Gone, and I'll take opiates, I don't give a rat's behind.
Whatever works.I can't write the whole list, what 's worked, what hasn't. . .the board ain't that big.
Zo
Posted by JahL on August 22, 2001, at 11:08:34
In reply to Re: one stop medication for bipolar II » JahL, posted by Zo on August 22, 2001, at 1:54:01
> Just completed a month on the *special,* expensive Omega-3. Well, now I know what Flatliner means. A living flatliner. Talk about no ups and downs.
Yeah, the 'special formulation' O-3 didn't do much for me (or my bank balance).> Had the best 6 months of my adult life on Zyprexa, from which I waddled away 50 lbs, heavier in June. While I was on it, I didn't care. Now I do. Especially after I read that Zyprexa can *induce* Type II Diabetes.
Yeah that's made me kinda wary of it (it was mildly helpful in the past). I'm one of those lucky people who have trouble putting *on* weight, but I do remember eating a lot of sweet stuff.
> Am tapering off Neurontin, after several years, Desirous of getting off the sofa again.Not exactly activating, is it?
> Am reducing Effexor from 300 to 225. . because it felt like Too Much Drug: metallic- mouth. Yuck. Otherwise, E is most transparent AD I ever took.
By transparent you mean 'purest'? E stopped working for me years ago but it was the first thing to give me a taste of what 'normal' felt like. Had some good times...
> Am honking on my pdoc for, I don't know, something new. Geodon did squat. I want to Feel Good, All The Time. After my recent appendectomy, I sure did. Courtesy of Vicodin. I think it's about time All the Pain was Gone, and I'll take opiates, I don't give a rat's behind.
> Whatever works.My sentiments entirely.
> I can't write the whole list, what 's worked, what hasn't. . .the board ain't that big.
Same.
Ta,
J.
Posted by John Bower on August 22, 2001, at 13:25:52
In reply to aripiprazole --- two stop medication for bipolar 1, posted by John Bower on August 17, 2001, at 15:46:01
Aripiprazole, controls mania, which controls depression and controls rapid cycling and controls dysthymia.
That is my experience in last 15 days.
Whether that helps with bipolar-II , I don't know.
Posted by SalArmy4me on August 22, 2001, at 13:48:51
In reply to Aripiprazole controlling bipolar-II, posted by John Bower on August 22, 2001, at 13:25:52
Harvey, Philip D. Ph.D.. Keefe, Richard S.E. Ph.D.. Studies of Cognitive Change in Patients With Schizophrenia Following Novel Antipsychotic Treatment. American Journal of Psychiatry. 158(2):176-184, February 2001.
"Objective: Novel antipsychotic medications have been reported to have beneficial effects on cognitive functioning in patients with schizophrenia. However, these effects have been assessed in studies with considerable variation in methodology. A large number of investigator-initiated and industry-sponsored clinical trials are currently underway to determine the effect of various novel antipsychotics on cognitive deficits in patients with schizophrenia. The ability to discriminate between high- and low-quality studies will be required to understand the true implications of these studies and their relevance to clinical practice.
Method: This article addresses several aspects of research on cognitive enhancement in schizophrenia, emphasizing how the assessment of cognitive function in clinical trials requires certain standards of study design to lead to interpretable results.
Results: Novel antipsychotic medications appear to have preliminary promise for the enhancement of cognitive functioning. However, the methodology for assessing the treatment of cognitive deficits is still being developed.
Conclusions: Researchers and clinicians alike need to approach publications in this area with a watchful eye toward methodological weaknesses that limit the interpretability of findings.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The past 10 years have seen the introduction of several new antipsychotic medications (referred to as "novel" or "atypical" antipsychotics). While one of these medications, clozapine, has been in use for years in Europe, it was not introduced in the United States until 1990. Among the advantages of novel antipsychotics over "traditional" or "conventional" antipsychotics are reduced extrapyramidal side effect profiles (1, 2), reduced risk for tardive dyskinesia (3, 4), greater effects on the negative and positive symptoms of schizophrenia (5-7), and possible beneficial effects on cognitive functioning. A total of 24 published reports from 20 different studies that were not completely naturalistic have indicated that clozapine (8-21), risperidone (20-28), ziprasidone (29), aripiprazole (29), olanzapine (21, 30), and quetiapine (31) have beneficial effects on cognitive functioning compared to treatment with traditional antipsychotics. Furthermore, adjunctive treatments such as adrenergic, cholinergic, and glutamatergic agents are under investigation in patients with schizophrenia. These agents have the potential to enhance cognition independently of antipsychotic treatment."
Posted by SLS on August 23, 2001, at 6:57:01
In reply to Re: medication for bipolar II » Zo, posted by JahL on August 22, 2001, at 11:08:34
In Re: EffexorHi JahL.
> E stopped working for me years ago but it was the first thing to give me a taste of what 'normal' felt like.
How much were you taking when it stopped working? Did you try increasing and augmenting it after you relapsed? Were there any environmental stressors that may have caused your medication breakthrough?
> Had some good times...
I know the feeling. I try to cling tightly to those memories in order to have enough reason to continue suffering.
- Scott
Posted by SLS on August 23, 2001, at 7:02:28
In reply to Re: one stop medication for bipolar II » JahL, posted by Zo on August 22, 2001, at 1:54:01
Sorry - I meant to direct this post to Zo...
In Re: Effexor
> E stopped working for me years ago but it was the first thing to give me a taste of what 'normal' felt like.
How much were you taking when it stopped working? Did you try increasing and augmenting it after you relapsed? Were there any environmental stressors that may have caused your medication breakthrough?
> Had some good times...
I know the feeling. I try to cling tightly to those memories in order to have enough reason to continue suffering.
Thanks in advance.
- Scott
Posted by JahL on August 23, 2001, at 8:40:32
In reply to Re: medication for bipolar II » JahL, posted by SLS on August 23, 2001, at 6:57:01
>
> In Re: Effexor
>
> Hi JahL.
>
> > E stopped working for me years ago but it was the first thing to give me a taste of what 'normal' felt like.
>
> How much were you taking when it stopped working? Did you try increasing and augmenting it after you relapsed? Were there any environmental stressors that may have caused your medication breakthrough?Hi Scott. Right first time. These were my remarks. By E I actually meant 'Ecstasy' ('E' is a favoured UK term). I used to be a big-time self medicator, tho' I haven't done anything for a few years now. I can think of plenty of ways of augmenting E %^p.
For me E came before proper medical attn. Being a potent empathogen, it gave me a glimpse of what being human feels like. I'm like you; I never feel 'normal'.Re: Effexor. Despite going behind my pdoc's back & going to 425mg Effexor did nothing for me. Except bring on my first *major* depressive episode & generally wipe the floor with me. And I'm not talking withdrawal. I didn't get any of that which was fortunate since I *had* to get off the drug & fast. As well as the fogginess you describe elsewhere on this board I was becoming acutely suicidal (not helped by the fact that I *couldn't* fall asleep). I have a similar dx to you; unremitting BPII depression.
> > Had some good times...
>
> I know the feeling. I try to cling tightly to those memories in order to have enough reason to continue suffering.Me too. Recapturing 'that' feeling (which I actually experienced briefly on Paxil/Prozac) has become my Holy Grail. It's all that matters.
Thanks for the befloxatane post elsewhere. Looks a bit technical so I'll read it when I've woken up.Ta,
J.
Posted by john bower on September 26, 2001, at 18:45:24
In reply to Re: one stop medication for bipolar II, posted by John Bower on August 22, 2001, at 1:36:23
After about 6 weeks of aripiprazole these are my experiences.
Mania has stopped.
I am sleeping normally without any other meds. I wake up and go back to sleep.
I am situationally depressed but not bipolar depressed.
I've lost 3-5 pounds.
My pdoc is called once a week and is probably unhappy at me.Bristol-Myers supplies aripiprazole. Call them 800-555-1212 (for phone #) and ask where the clinical trials is. I go to Stanford Medical Center (ask for intake).
This is the end of the thread.
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