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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 5 of 5. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Alecto on December 19, 2004, at 19:29:01
Here I am, in all my glory:
I've been dealing with various mental illness symptoms for over a decade. I'm 29 now. I've been diagnosed with the following, at various points in time, and some in combination: unipolar depression, panic disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and dissociative disorder NOS. Bah @ all of that. The current consensus (between my therapist and psychiatrist) is unipolar depression and PTSD (as PTSD kinda covers the bits and pieces of the rest).
I'm taking 225 mg Effexor XR daily, 30 mg BuSpar twice daily, and 1250 mg Depakote ER daily. I've been on Effexor (first the regular kind and then XR) for probably 7 years now. BuSpar, for 3 years. Depakote for about a year and a half -- was started on it last year when the Effexor seemed to have pooped out. It's being used as both a mood stabilizer (despite my not having bi-polar) and as a migraine preventive. This year, my anxiety wasn't being controlled very well so my BuSpar dosage was doubled (had been on 15 mg twice daily).
I'm at the point where I know the Effexor has got to go. I'm not looking forward to weaning off it, but from a couple of previous trials with Paxil, I know to do the short-term Prozac trick with it. I *hate* being on so much damned medication. I hate the fatigue and brain fog (near constant) and feelings of wanting to just give up on everything (every once in a while).
I was diagnosed earlier this year with diabetes and with sleep apnea. I'm doing the appropriate therapies for each. This has not cut down on my fatigue or memory problems or brain fog much at all. One endocrinologist had me on thyroid medication, another took me off it. I've been evaluated for just about every endocrine disorder known to man. I've even had a blood test done for hemochromatosis.
I'm sick and tired of being sick and tired. In the end of 1993, I went on hormonal birth control. In early 1996, I went on my first antidepressant. I weigh 150 lbs more now than I did in 1993. Whether it was the birth control or antidepressants, I don't know. But prior to being treated for diabetes, it was *impossible* for me to lose weight. Diet, exercise, etc. Not a pound. Now I'm losing, slowly.
I have an appointment with my psychiatrist in January, and hopefully I will convince her that it's time to switch the Effexor to something else. In the meantime, I feel so overwhelmed, and lost.
Thanks for reading this, and thanks for any advice you are able to give.
Posted by vwoolf on December 19, 2004, at 20:13:10
In reply to First post ... tired of hurting., posted by Alecto on December 19, 2004, at 19:29:01
Hi Alecto, welcome to Babble. I am sorry to hear that things have been so rough for you. I don't have any words of wisdom, but hope that here you will at least find some help and comfort. I know I have.
A warm hug.
Vwoolf
Posted by partlycloudy on December 19, 2004, at 21:26:23
In reply to First post ... tired of hurting., posted by Alecto on December 19, 2004, at 19:29:01
Hello, Alecto. We sound rather similar, I think. 14 months ago I sought treatment for my depression, anxiety and panic. I was on Effexor XR for a year. It really seemed to lift the depression and work on the anxiety very well. Side effects were always an annoyance (OK, a problem, I am a whiner). I tried to take BuSpar as an adjunct but couldn't tolerate the headaches. I switched to Wellbutrin and did really well, felt pretty OK.
During this time, I was also trying to stabilize my hormonal period as perimenopause has been lurking for quite a while. My big crash, in all terms, was this August when I stopped all hormonal treatments on my own due to 5 day migraine headaches. My depression took a deep quick descent, and I ended up taking a leave from work to get sorted out.
Short story: the Effexor stopped working. My hormones got all discombobulated. One doctor at a time, I went through assessing and correcting my medication. I am now on Cymbalta 60mg/day, having tapered successfully off Effexor. Wellbutrin was tougher for me to stop taking- don't know why.
I switched to a birth control pill regime and patch system that I responded well to. I keep careful track of my daily symptoms.I'm feeling loads better now, but it took a lot of work to get here.
Posted by Alecto on December 20, 2004, at 21:08:13
In reply to Re: First post ... tired of hurting., posted by partlycloudy on December 19, 2004, at 21:26:23
Thanks for the support. (:
I've had a pretty rough couple of days ... feeling totally worthless, helpless, hopeless, and useless. I looked at my cat and was able to say that he was the only reason I felt life was worth living. I wanted to stay under the covers and cry for days ... but I can't let myself cry more than a few tears at a time. I'm afraid that if I start, it will never stop. Intellectually, I know this isn't true ... but I'm terrified of being swept away by a flood of pain.
I'm going on vacation starting tomorrow, and won't be back until January 3rd. I have my appt. with my psychiatrist a couple days after that, so I'll let you know what happens there. I think I made the wise choice in not trying to change my meds before spending concentrated time with family ... even though I'm in pain, I know what's going on.
*sigh*Hope to be feeling better in the new year.
Posted by beppe on December 22, 2004, at 5:03:42
In reply to First post ... tired of hurting., posted by Alecto on December 19, 2004, at 19:29:01
you are not alone i know how u feel i was on every medication you were and now the effexor is the only one left, the withdraw is horrible , see if you doctor would consider taking u off something else for starters
This is the end of the thread.
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