Psycho-Babble Medication Thread 7519

Shown: posts 1 to 8 of 8. This is the beginning of the thread.

 

Dilantin for depression/anxiety

Posted by Deborah on June 18, 1999, at 16:16:56

I asked about this a couple of months ago but cannot seem to find my message anywhere here..have triple checked!! Has anyone heard of using Dilantin to treat depression and/or anxiety? I read an amzing book on this by Jack Dreyfus (founder of the Dreyfus Fund) recently, and am interested if anyone out there has heard of this or tried it?? Have been the Nardil, Paxil route..am getting ready to try Effexor..but this book keeps nagging at me..am very curious.

 

Re: Dilantin for depression/anxiety

Posted by Sean on June 18, 1999, at 18:23:33

In reply to Dilantin for depression/anxiety, posted by Deborah on June 18, 1999, at 16:16:56

> I asked about this a couple of months ago but cannot seem to find my message anywhere here..have triple checked!! Has anyone heard of using Dilantin to treat depression and/or anxiety? I read an amzing book on this by Jack Dreyfus (founder of the Dreyfus Fund) recently, and am interested if anyone out there has heard of this or tried it?? Have been the Nardil, Paxil route..am getting ready to try Effexor..but this book keeps nagging at me..am very curious.

Hi Deborah,

Dilantin is a classic anticonvulsant, so it is
in the same family (treatment-wise, not chemical-wise)
as valproate, carbamazepine, etc.., and other
drugs which were orginally used to treat epilepsy.

You've probably heard of Post's famous "kindling"
paper where he hypothesized that there might be
something similar going on in bipolar illness
as in epilepsy. Whether he was right about that
or not, the anticonvulsants have turned out to be
a great class of meds for some people, esp. those
w/rapid cycling etc... you know the drill!

I first read about Dilantin in a "Smart Drugs" book.
Part of being in the depressed cycle for me is feeling
(and being) really unable to think clearly. Aside from
not feeling like doing anything productive, my brain
really isn't capable of it. (In an unrelated, but fun
detour, I actually picked up some nootropics (Piracetam)
in Mexico to see if they would help. Alas, they did not.
Have also tried DMAE, Pemoline, and all sorts of
other quasi-legal-slash-natural stuff to no avail)

But I too have been curious about Dilantin ever
since reading the glowing report by Dreyfus. From
what I hear, it makes your gums over-grow, which
is a kind of odd/funny/scary side effect! It
doesn't seem to have emerged as front-line therapy
for mood disorders, but as you know, we are all
so different that it is certainly worth a try.

Let me know if you have any luck!

Sean.


 

Re: Dilantin for depression/anxiety

Posted by Dr. Bob on June 18, 1999, at 23:08:38

In reply to Dilantin for depression/anxiety, posted by Deborah on June 18, 1999, at 16:16:56

> I asked about this a couple of months ago but cannot seem to find my message anywhere here..have triple checked!!

http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/19990401/msgs/5457.html

Bob

 

Re: Dilantin for depression/anxiety

Posted by glenn on June 19, 1999, at 9:13:09

In reply to Dilantin for depression/anxiety, posted by Deborah on June 18, 1999, at 16:16:56

> I asked about this a couple of months ago but cannot seem to find my message anywhere here..have triple checked!! Has anyone heard of using Dilantin to treat depression and/or anxiety? I read an amzing book on this by Jack Dreyfus (founder of the Dreyfus Fund) recently, and am interested if anyone out there has heard of this or tried it?? Have been the Nardil, Paxil route..am getting ready to try Effexor..but this book keeps nagging at me..am very curious.
i tried it last week after reading the same book, unfortunately it did not help but you can try it and if jack is right then if its going to help it will after an hour, i tried 100mg three times and at that dosage got no side effects but no benefits
either, so its a reasonably safe try at the low doses
hope it helps
glenn

 

Re: Info please Sean

Posted by Curious on June 22, 1999, at 12:33:26

In reply to Re: Dilantin for depression/anxiety, posted by glenn on June 19, 1999, at 9:13:09

Do you need a prescription for piracetem (others?)
in Mexico? Is this something you can order for
personal use via internet?
Thanks for your help!

 

Re: Info please Sean

Posted by Sean on June 22, 1999, at 15:24:26

In reply to Re: Info please Sean, posted by Curious on June 22, 1999, at 12:33:26

> Do you need a prescription for piracetem (others?)
> in Mexico? Is this something you can order for
> personal use via internet?
> Thanks for your help!

I got the piracetam three years ago and at the
time you did not need a prescription. I think
this has changed for some meds, but probably not
the nootropics as they are not really abusable.

As for mail order, check out "Smart Drugs and
Nutrients" which talks about ways to order from
Mexico and overseas. I'm in Ca, so I get down
to Mexico every other year or so. I was not
overly impressed with Piracetam, but you have to
take gobs of starting out (3gms/day!) before
lowering the dose. It almost seemed to make me
feel stupid, but my brain is a strange thing.

Sean.

 

Re: Dilantin for depression/anxiety

Posted by Deborah on June 24, 1999, at 12:52:23

In reply to Re: Dilantin for depression/anxiety, posted by glenn on June 19, 1999, at 9:13:09

> > I asked about this a couple of months ago but cannot seem to find my message anywhere here..have triple checked!! Has anyone heard of using Dilantin to treat depression and/or anxiety? I read an amzing book on this by Jack Dreyfus (founder of the Dreyfus Fund) recently, and am interested if anyone out there has heard of this or tried it?? Have been the Nardil, Paxil route..am getting ready to try Effexor..but this book keeps nagging at me..am very curious.
> i tried it last week after reading the same book, unfortunately it did not help but you can try it and if jack is right then if its going to help it will after an hour, i tried 100mg three times and at that dosage got no side effects but no benefits
> either, so its a reasonably safe try at the low doses
> hope it helps
> glenn


To Glenn, Sean and Dr. Bob...Thanks for your replies..doc not willing to let me try dilantin at present but I will give her Dreyfus book..and persist!
Deborah

 

Re: Dilantin for depression/anxiety

Posted by Sue on January 8, 2000, at 16:30:31

In reply to Re: Dilantin for depression/anxiety, posted by glenn on June 19, 1999, at 9:13:09

i HAD good results with Dilantin for my son's depression and anxiety. 100 mg a day at bedtime. I noticed a difference but he eventually stopped taking it and became very depressed. I noticed a big improvement but he
says he did not (he was a teenager at the time).


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