![[dr. bob]](/dr-bob-sm.gif)
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 4 of 4. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by banga on October 19, 2004, at 14:49:06
Hello,
For a little while I thought I'd found the formula--15mg Lexapro, 40 mg Geodon, 200mg amantadine. The Lexapro got the edge off the severe depression, the Geodon seemed to boost that and eradicate anxiety, the amantadine restored energy. Now the last 4 weeks have been spiralling down, with amotivation and anxiety back (more than depression).
I've tried a myriad of other ADs. What next? try the Cymbalta routine? Consensus seems to say it's sedating and doesn't work. Switch to a different dopaminergic than amantadine? For anxiety, I avoid the addictive ones due to hx of alcoholism. The two meds that helped in the past were clomipramine and paxil, but both led to weight gain....any ideas?
Posted by yznhymer on October 19, 2004, at 16:38:26
In reply to Another med poop-out story, posted by banga on October 19, 2004, at 14:49:06
> Hello,
> For a little while I thought I'd found the formula--15mg Lexapro, 40 mg Geodon, 200mg amantadine. The Lexapro got the edge off the severe depression, the Geodon seemed to boost that and eradicate anxiety, the amantadine restored energy. Now the last 4 weeks have been spiralling down, with amotivation and anxiety back (more than depression).
> I've tried a myriad of other ADs. What next? try the Cymbalta routine? Consensus seems to say it's sedating and doesn't work. Switch to a different dopaminergic than amantadine? For anxiety, I avoid the addictive ones due to hx of alcoholism. The two meds that helped in the past were clomipramine and paxil, but both led to weight gain....any ideas?I've been following the Cymbalta postings religiously and came away with a different impression. True, sedation does seems to be a common response, though that has improved for some over time. But it seems to me that as many people have had success with it as not. In fact, some absolutely love it while others have given up on it altogether after a trial. I wouldn't rule it out just because I doubted its efficacy without a trial of my own. I've also experienced some weight loss on Cymbalta, if that is something you're interested in. Good luck.
Mark
Posted by boomarang on October 19, 2004, at 17:40:57
In reply to Re: Another med poop-out story » banga, posted by yznhymer on October 19, 2004, at 16:38:26
hi there,
just up from my daily Cymbalta Nap. yawn. i've been on cymbalta for over a month and just upped to 60mg a few days ago. napping has not stopped yet.weight loss is still a side effect. I was worried that that had gone away but the scale says i'm holding onto the weight loss cymbalta helped me with intitially. Until I lose the weight that I had gained with other A/D's i'm going to stay with cymbalta. I'm waiting to see if i get more mood lifting at 60 mg.
Posted by jboud24 on October 19, 2004, at 22:49:13
In reply to Another med poop-out story, posted by banga on October 19, 2004, at 14:49:06
Stick with the lexapro since you have sustained an anti-depressant response and perhaps try another anti-psychotic or Remeron for the anxiety. I find that 15mgs of Remeron provides a good lasting anxiety reduction, although unless you're a marathon runner you will gain weight.
Perhaps you could also augment with a dopamine agonist such as Mirapex. Several people on psychobabble have reported both anxiety reduction and increased motivation when augmenting with Mirapex.Good luck.
Justin
This is the end of the thread.
Psycho-Babble Medication | Extras | FAQ
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.org
Script revised: February 4, 2008
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/cgi-bin/pb/mget.pl
Copyright 2006-17 Robert Hsiung.
Owned and operated by Dr. Bob LLC and not the University of Chicago.