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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 3 of 3. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Trish on November 28, 1999, at 21:05:11
I have never been as down as I am now. I was diagnosed with depression four years ago. I started on Prozac and it work great. I had never felt better. Prozac stopped working and so I have been on combinations of prozac, effexor, wellbutrin, celexa, ritilin, etc. The dr put me on vivactil three weeks ago with no ssr. I have cried so much. I am also very irriatable. I also feel like giving up. If it were not for my children I would. I have gained so much weight that now it is interfering with my everyday life. I don't know if there is any hope for me. Please let me know if you have any ideas. I need to feel better emotionally so that I can take care of the physical. It is a never ending battle.
Posted by CarolAnn on November 29, 1999, at 14:20:22
In reply to Fat, depressed and frustrated, posted by Trish on November 28, 1999, at 21:05:11
Trish, at the time I was put on Wellbutrin, my Dr. took me off Prozac. Now, Wellbutrin is WELL documented to cause weight LOSS in people, yet I started gaining(15 pounds in 6 wks so far) as soon as I was off the prozac. I just kept(still do but not as much) having very intense cravings for sweets, even to the point of waking up in the middle of the night and HAVING to have cookies, cake, ect.
I came to a theory of why this was happening and my Dr. actually agreed with me! My theory is that when I went off Prozac(which increases serotonin) I started craving sweets for the huge amounts of carbohydrates, which have been documented as increasing serotonin level(this is why cravings are so common during PMS or stressful times). The point is that stopping the Prozac lowered my serotonin level so much that I was subconsciously using excess carbohydrates to get the serotonin level back up. Anyway, when I explained this to my pschiatrist, he put me on Serzone because it is a drug that increases serotonin. So now I take 400mgs Wellbutrin and 225mgs Serzone each day. So far I haven't noticed a lot of difference in my depression, but after 3wks, the serzone is beginning to tone down my sweet cravings. Vivactil is supposed to increase energy, so it is probably just a matter of giving it enough time to work(6-8 wks). Also, given your symptoms, I think you should talk to your Dr. about *adding* one of the serotonin affecting drugs to the Vivactil. Good luck! CarolAnn
Posted by Jane on November 29, 1999, at 17:48:39
In reply to Trish, it could be lack of serotonin, posted by CarolAnn on November 29, 1999, at 14:20:22
one of the theories about carbohydrate craving etc is that some meds may block a serotonin receptor subtype responsible for these carbohydrate cravings (5-HT2c receptor) and i'm not sure if serzone blocks this one specifically; however serzone does block 5-HT2 receptors. as for the SSRI "poop out" syndrome that Trish was talking about - i think alot of doctors are aware of this although i am not yet sure how they deal with it most commonly. i do know that some doctors switch to another class or to another agent within the class - or they augment with an additional med (buspar has been used to help an antidepressant 'kick in' although this is an off label use and therefore is up to the doctors clinical judgment). i have no idea why on earth poop out syndromes happen only speculating that your neurons have built up a tolerance for it and you need to push a different button to get the same effects?
jane
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