![[dr. bob]](/dr-bob-sm.gif)
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 12 of 12. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by JaclinHyde on February 12, 2006, at 17:36:56
TylerJ had asked me in another thread what my MAOI experience was like so I thought that I would make it a seperate thread so that if anyone else was curious they could read it too. My experience was this class of drugs goes back over 25 years. At that time my only options were therapy, tricyclics or the MAOI's. I was suffering horribly with panic and depression with hypochondria and mild ocd thrown in. My therapist was a good guy but really didn't want to refer me to a shrink for meds. But the more he tried to fix me with just talking the more he could see that it wasn't working. The panic was so horrible that it was sheer torture to get from Brooklyn (where I used to live) to the docs office in NYC. So I got on the meds merry-go-round with the tricyclics. Horrible horrible things, imho. My heart was racing and skipping beats to the point where even the doctor said 'these are not the drugs for you.' Being a hypochondriac I had read all the textbooks about how dangerous the MAOI's were and so put off starting them even though they were my only other option (ect would have been the very last straw.) Knowing I had run out of options I finally decided to bite the Nardil bullet and start it. I can still remember going on week 8 with no relief. My doctor said to me 'well, how do you feel?' and I said that I felt the same except that my head would get these zapping feelings. He said 'well, that just shows that it is doing something inside of you...let's give it another week or so' to which I agreed, in tears. Two days later I went to bed feeling nothing different. On the morning on the 3rd day I opened my eyes and everthing was changed. It was that dramatic and it still almost brings tears to my eyes to remember it. I wanted to go out and do things. I was happy....no, I was overjoyed! I started a new life on that day with those wonderful orange pills. Fast forward many years and the SSRI's came out. New city, new doctor (hubby was in the navy so we moved around alot.) I was talked into trying these new and safer (haha) antid's. Figured OK, blue cheese dressing on my salad does sound good so I jumped on the merry-go-round again only to be disappointed over and over and over. Back on the MAOI's only this time marplan which was even better than nardil. No weight gain (for me anyway) and not overtly sleepy. I only had one time where it started pooping out so the doctor augmented it with neurontin which held it steady. I was told by another doctor since then that neurontin is a good choice for this purpose so that might help you too Tyler. Fast forward to about 1 year ago when I was diagnosed as mildly bipolar. Taken off the Marplan and tried on even newer drugs. No go. I said to the doctor "look I was told many many MANY years ago that serotonin wasn't my problem. The SSRI's and even the SSNRI's don't do anything for me. I read that Parnate is ok with bipolars so can we just go with that?" Having had a gastric bypass back in 1999 weight gain was not something I would settle for and parnate was a good choice in that respect too. I got my wish and have noticed a quick and so far steady climb back to normalacy. So that is my story up till now. I watch what I eat but always keep a tab of seroquel (a good sleep helper but normally used as an anti psychotic) with me in case I feel that nasty headache coming. I have had that happen once: I ate some sour cream that had been in my fridge too long. My god that hurt like hell. And I know I was very lucky. But when you consider the fact that up to that point I had been on this type of drug for about 20 years, that was a pretty good track record blood pressure wise. I believe it is important to wear a medical ID bracelet so that if you cannot speak the doctors will know NO DEMEROL. I was given a shot of demerol not long after starting Nardil with no adverse effects but that was sheer luck. My psych doctor went ballistic because my regular doctor knew I was on the MAOI. Morphine is OK. Also be careful when you go to the dentist because you really aren't supposed to get novacaine. They do make a version of it that doesn't interact with MAOI's and most dentists carry it. 'Laughing gas' is ok too. Hmmmm.....what else....oh gee well, just let me know if you have any other questions :-)
Posted by mike99 on February 12, 2006, at 19:05:45
In reply to My MAOI Life Experience, posted by JaclinHyde on February 12, 2006, at 17:36:56
Glad to hear Parnate is working out for you. That was a very informative post. Thanks.
So only one poop-out in 20 years--which was fought off with Neurontin? Not bad.
Have you ever noticed your heart "racing and skipping" on any of the MAOI's like you did with the tricyclics?
Also, how well do you find the MAOI's work on your hypochondria?
Any preference between Marplan, Nardil and Parnate?
Thanks again for posting your experience and hope you continue to improve and do well with the Parnate.
Posted by JaclinHyde on February 12, 2006, at 19:41:27
In reply to Re: My MAOI Life Experience...great info » JaclinHyde, posted by mike99 on February 12, 2006, at 19:05:45
> Glad to hear Parnate is working out for you. That was a very informative post. Thanks.
>
> So only one poop-out in 20 years--which was fought off with Neurontin? Not bad.
>
> Have you ever noticed your heart "racing and skipping" on any of the MAOI's like you did with the tricyclics?
>
> Also, how well do you find the MAOI's work on your hypochondria?
>
> Any preference between Marplan, Nardil and Parnate?
>
> Thanks again for posting your experience and hope you continue to improve and do well with the Parnate.No, not that I can remember (re: heart skipping/racing.) In fact if anything the Marplan calmed down my heart. My doctor when I was young used to say that I had a race horse heart because it's resting rate was around 90. On MAOI's it became a normal 60-70 beats per minute. The hypochondria just vanished. The medicine brought my focus outward instead of inward so I just stopped worrying about my body. And leaving Parnate out of it because it is too soon to tell, Marplan was much better than Nardil. And now that I have heard complaints that they changed the chemical composition of Nardil from its original form to a weaker variety I would definitiely put it on the bottom of my MAOI choices.
Posted by forgetful mary on February 12, 2006, at 20:03:19
In reply to Re: My MAOI Life Experience...great info, posted by JaclinHyde on February 12, 2006, at 19:41:27
My beginning with Nardil tok about 8 weeks as well.....was about to give up....just started Parnate two months ago and troubled by bad anxiety...Nardil never did that. (I switched because the new formula not as good as the previous one I took for 20 years!) I am perplexed by this anxiety...has my stomach in knots...may have to quit and go back to Nardil or maybe try Marplan??
> > Glad to hear Parnate is working out for you. That was a very informative post. Thanks.
> >
> > So only one poop-out in 20 years--which was fought off with Neurontin? Not bad.
> >
> > Have you ever noticed your heart "racing and skipping" on any of the MAOI's like you did with the tricyclics?
> >
> > Also, how well do you find the MAOI's work on your hypochondria?
> >
> > Any preference between Marplan, Nardil and Parnate?
> >
> > Thanks again for posting your experience and hope you continue to improve and do well with the Parnate.
>
> No, not that I can remember (re: heart skipping/racing.) In fact if anything the Marplan calmed down my heart. My doctor when I was young used to say that I had a race horse heart because it's resting rate was around 90. On MAOI's it became a normal 60-70 beats per minute. The hypochondria just vanished. The medicine brought my focus outward instead of inward so I just stopped worrying about my body. And leaving Parnate out of it because it is too soon to tell, Marplan was much better than Nardil. And now that I have heard complaints that they changed the chemical composition of Nardil from its original form to a weaker variety I would definitiely put it on the bottom of my MAOI choices.
>
>
Posted by Phillipa on February 12, 2006, at 20:33:00
In reply to Re: My MAOI Life Experience...great info, posted by forgetful mary on February 12, 2006, at 20:03:19
So where is everyone finding these doctors willing to use MAOI's. I know of none. Haven't heard of them being used in years in real life. Fondly, Phillipa
Posted by JaclinHyde on February 13, 2006, at 8:10:55
In reply to Re: My MAOI Life Experience...great info, posted by forgetful mary on February 12, 2006, at 20:03:19
Parnate is the most activating of the MAOI's which is probably why you have the anxiety. You don't want to go the Nardil route now that they have changed it. There is even a website dedicated to the Nardil fiasco. If I can dig up the website I will post it. Marplan is a great choice, again imho. Not tiring like Nardil and not activating like Parnate. The good thing about Parnate is the lack of weight gain and usual weightLOSS that comes with it. What's your Parnate dose? You say it took you 8 weeks to get up to speed on Nardil and that you have been on Parnate for 2 months (8 weeks also.) Why not give it another week or so before giving up on it? The anxiety might just taper (as it did for me) leaving just the good stuff behind. Or maybe your doc could give you a mild tranquilizer in the interim? Marplan is there for you if the Parnate doesn't do the trick. It is my favorite of the MAOI's just not a good choice for bipolar. Hope this helps!
JH
Posted by JaclinHyde on February 13, 2006, at 8:14:56
In reply to My MAOI Life Experience, posted by JaclinHyde on February 12, 2006, at 17:36:56
Some Nardil websites showing the problems people are having with the new formula.
http://www.stratguitar.com/nmember/nardil.php
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/rx/pfizer_nardil.html
JH
Posted by cecilia on February 14, 2006, at 2:37:05
In reply to Re: My MAOI Life Experience...great info, posted by Phillipa on February 12, 2006, at 20:33:00
Maybe it deprends where you live, I've had no trouble getting MAO's prescribed, in fact the 1st of the 3 I've tried (4 if you count Moclobemide, which I got from overseas with my pdoc's knowledge) was prescribed by a GP. Unfortunately, I've had no luck with any of them, they're not the miracle meds for everyone. Still. I guess they must not be used much becasuse when I called the anesthesia dept of my HMO to find out how long I needed to be off Marplan before surgery the person i talked to kept saying oh don't worry about it, I've been here 2 and a half years and we never wean off anything but blood thinners. I knew perfectly well if I believed her I'd end up getting my surgery postponed and finally managed to get hold of someone who had heard of MAO's. Kind of scary, considering the many potential interactions. Cecilia
Posted by cecilia on February 14, 2006, at 2:59:00
In reply to Re: My MAOI Life Experience...Phillippa, posted by cecilia on February 14, 2006, at 2:37:05
My MAOI Life Experience: Nardil: on 28 days at 45 mg. no side effects or benefits, increased to 60 mg for 10 days, no effects until day 10 when I got the worst headache in the world (with no increase in BP) , pain in all my joints and muscles., eyes so dry and painful I worried I was going blind. Didn't touch the stuff again. Parnate, close competitor with Effexor for worst side effects ever, a nervous wreck, lasted a week on 90 minutes sleep a night. Moclobemide, no benefits, made me grind my teeth a lot. Marplan, been on since Nov.-no benefits unless you count no longer needing my blood pressure med, wake up every hour, lucky to get about 4 hours total sleep a night. Cecilia
Posted by willyee on February 14, 2006, at 11:58:55
In reply to Re: My MAOI Life Experience.., posted by cecilia on February 14, 2006, at 2:59:00
Good post its important people remeber everyone responds different,i think the only thing that bugs me is how the industry downplays any effectivness of maois when this group alone shows how many success stories it has.
But still we cant forget everyone is different,from close looking im noticing the people who do respond to maois seem to MOSTLY only respond to maois and poorly to ssris.
Thanks for that post good luck.
Posted by forgetful mary on February 16, 2006, at 17:27:09
In reply to Re: My MAOI Life Experience.., posted by willyee on February 14, 2006, at 11:58:55
Hi Jaclin, I know about the Nardil change..that's why I tried Parnate... LOL!!! Still I think nardil worked better in the inferior formula than the Parnate...couldn't stand the anxiety and was traveling for three days to train for a new job..needed to have my wits about me....as it was cut back on the Parnate and was fine...may try Marplan now ...is that in danger of being discontinued? my doc thought so that's why he gave me Parnate instead...anyway now back home Mission Accomplished but due to lack of sleep -thanks to insomnia...I feel like a zombie---Need a nap soon!!! Because I cut the Parnate dose I wasn't even that nervous flying!! Yippee!!
Posted by JaclinHyde on February 16, 2006, at 22:08:38
In reply to Mao exp-thanks Jaclin, posted by forgetful mary on February 16, 2006, at 17:27:09
Hey Mary! Yeah, Parnate can be very activating (nice way of saying wired :-) In fact there are conflicting reports that when you take it part of it breaks down to something damn near amphetamine (NOW I opened a can of worms! That sound you hear is a million depressed feet running to their doc for a Parnate scrip, lol!) As far as I know Marplan is and will stay on the market which is a very good thing considering how much Parke-Davis has screwed up Nardil. I just did some checking around and see no mention of it being removed from the market. Blue cross, for instance has just put out its 2006 list of drugs it covers and it is on there. I am a big believer in the MAOI's (duh) and imho Marplan is the best. Let me know what happens!
JH
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.