Psycho-Babble Medication Thread 7226

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Amantadine For Depression?

Posted by JohnB on June 9, 1999, at 22:47:47

I've been on a combination of 2 AD's for over a year with ok results. My doctor recently added methylphenidate which really reached the deepest pits of depression. The problem, though, is that it only lasts about an hour at a time, then falls off, then peaks, etc. This has been very frustrating. The sustained release version was no better. I'd like to try a longer lasting, smoother acting dopamine enhancing med that might end the peaks and valleys. I've heard spme amazing things about amantadine, an anti-viral that enhances dopamine consistently. Has anyone tried amantadine out there? Any other suggestions?

 

Re: Amantadine For Depression?

Posted by Chris A. on June 10, 1999, at 1:38:09

In reply to Amantadine For Depression?, posted by JohnB on June 9, 1999, at 22:47:47

Amantadine may be promising for bipolar and major depression. One bug hurdlie in its use is that it is lethal in relatively small overdoses. No pDoc in their right mind would send a depressed patient home with an Rx for it if they even so much as glanced at the PDR entry. I took a few doses when the rest of my family had influenza A and retrospectively noticed an improvement in my mood (I didn't get the flu, either).

I've been on a combination of 2 AD's for over a year with ok results. My doctor recently added methylphenidate which really reached the deepest pits of depression. The problem, though, is that it only lasts about an hour at a time, then falls off, then peaks, etc. This has been very frustrating. The sustained release version was no better. I'd like to try a longer lasting, smoother acting dopamine enhancing med that might end the peaks and valleys. I've heard spme amazing things about amantadine, an anti-viral that enhances dopamine consistently. Has anyone tried amantadine out there? Any other suggestions?
Keep watching the research and working with your meds until you find the right cocktail.

Blessings,

Chris A.

 

Re: Amantadine For Depression?

Posted by JohnB on June 10, 1999, at 13:45:00

In reply to Re: Amantadine For Depression?, posted by Chris A. on June 10, 1999, at 1:38:09

> Amantadine may be promising for bipolar and major depression. One bug hurdlie in its use is that it is lethal in relatively small overdoses. No pDoc in their right mind would send a depressed patient home with an Rx for it if they even so much as glanced at the PDR entry. I took a few doses when the rest of my family had influenza A and
retrospectively noticed an improvement in my mood (I didn't get the flu, either).>

> Keep watching the research and working with your meds until you find the right cocktail.
>
> Blessings,
>
> Chris A.

Thanks for your response, Chris. I'm wondering, though, even given the potential overdose ramifications, is Amantadine effective as an anti-depressant (by itself or in combinations)? Remember that tricyclics are lethal in overdose (albeit in greater doses than Amantadine), yet MDs continue to dispense them. My point is that if a med works effectively, why should it not be used, especially if a patient is relatively "stable" in his depression by not obsessed with suicidal ideation? Trained MDs usually make good judgements about this stuff and do it all the time. But, there is always risk of suicide in depressed persons; it's always, in the end, a risk/benefit decision and trust in a patient's sense of responsibility, if it's there.
Any other Amantadine experiences out there?

 

Re: Amantadine For Depression?

Posted by saintjames on June 10, 1999, at 18:51:06

In reply to Amantadine For Depression?, posted by JohnB on June 9, 1999, at 22:47:47

> I've been on a combination of 2 AD's for over a year with ok results. My doctor recently added methylphenidate which really reached the deepest pits of depression. The problem, though, is that it only lasts about an hour at a time, then falls off, then peaks, etc. This has been very frustrating. The sustained release version was no better. I'd like to try a longer lasting, smoother acting dopamine enhancing med that might end the peaks and valleys. I've heard spme amazing things about amantadine, an anti-viral that enhances dopamine consistently. Has anyone tried amantadine out there? Any other suggestions?

James here...

Effexor works with dopamine. It is common for some to be rapid metabolizers of Ritalin, so if it worked for a short period Dexadrine or Adderal
would solve this problem and have the same effect.

james


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