Posted by manowar on February 1, 2002, at 20:58:31
In reply to Re: Is light therapy effective for Cyclothymia? » manowar, posted by Ritch on January 30, 2002, at 0:26:01
> > I ran across this old article from Medline below (very short). It states that light therapy can be beneficial for Cyclothymia. I've never heard this before. At the end of the article it also claims that, "Bright-light treatment is also effective against depressive disorders in non-seasonal depressions."
> >
> > Again, I've only heard about the efficacy of bright light treatment for folks that have Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).
> >
> > Any comments would be appreciated.
> >
> > --Tim
> >
> > [Effectiveness of bright light therapy in cyclothymic axis syndromes--a cross-over study in comparison with partial sleep deprivation]
> >
> > [Article in German]
> >
> > Heim M.
> >
> > Klinik fur Frauenpsychiatrie, Bezirkskrankenhauses fur Neurologie und Psychiatrie Arnsdorf bei Dresden.
> >
> > In a preliminary crossover study, fifty patients with a cyclothymic axial syndrome were given bright-light treatment, while fifty other such patients were treated by means of partial sleep deprivation, 60% of the patients responded to bright-light treatment, as opposed to 50% of the patients partially deprived of sleep. The superior results of the bright-light treatment (Hamilton Depression Scale) are confirmed on the Nurses' Observation Scale for Inpatient Evaluation and the Profile of Mood States. Comparatively young patients with a not so extremely marked depression show the best response rates. Bright-light treatment is also effective against depressive disorders in non-seasonal depressions.
> > Here's the link:
> > http://www.mentalhealth.com/dis-rs/frs-md03.html
>
>
> Hi,
>
> Interesting notion. Well, I have BP-II and my major depressions are seasonally synched. In fact I can predict with fair accuracy the entire year how I am going to feel. Major depressive, mixed state depression, bubbly hypomania, etc. Haven't done the light box stuff yet, but came close-Wellbutrin this latest episode. There is a theory that I have about my mood cycling troubles. I came up with it when I tried Adderall (a pstim) during a winter depressive episode. I had no depressive symptoms at all, but I got anxious (could have been SSRI withdrawal). I also didn't have *any* cycling (I wasn't taking anything but Adderall 5mg AM and Neurontin 100mg 3x daily).
>
> The theory goes like this:
> 1) My mood cycling is caused by some neuro-endocrine disturbance that has a direct relation to the environment around me (time of year-amount of sunlight-heat, whatever).
> 2) IF I sleep soundly at nite I am more alert during the day-which results in an increased level of *contrast* between daytime brain activity and nightime sleeping.
> 3) Somehow, this is connected up with ADHD, in the sense that kids with ADHD are drowsy during the day and sleep lightly at night.
> 4) When I tried Adderall it *increased* the amount of brain *exercise* during the day and I felt *tired* at night and my sleep became more sound and more *regular*.
> 5) The increased *regularity* of the sleep/wake cycle had an *anti-cycling* effect.
>
> Maybe your idea about the light therapy for mood *cycling* has an anticycling effect for these type of reasons???
>
> Anybody got any thoughts.....
>
> MitchHi Mitch,
Man, I agree with your theory big time.
This is what I’ve found with my Cyclothymia/ADD (Inattentive/Deep Limbic):
I call it the ying/yang theory of depression and it goes like this:
It is VITAL that I sleep well and not for too long. When I’m depressed, I sleep too much, and I think I get too much REM sleep which researchers say causes depression.
I take Klonipin (1.5 mg in the evening) and now I’ve added Clonidine (2mg). The Klonipin is primarily for the mood swings, though as an added benefit it is also a great sleeping agent. Sometimes when I think I need it, I double the dose of Klonipin to 3 mg in the evening. I asked my doctor if he would try me on a higher dose of Klonipin; instead he started me on the Clonidine to augment the Klonipin last month. Man, I sleep sound! I’ll go to bed at 1:00 AM and get up at 7:50—ten minutes before my alarm goes off. I then make a pot of coffee and take Wellbutrin –150 mg, Modafinil-200 mg or Adrafinil 600 mg. Also, if I feel I need it, I also take a 54 mg of Concerta.So in a nutshell, the Klonipin/Clonidine combo is my Ying while the Wellbutrin/Adrafinil/ sometimes Concerta + Coffee is my Yang.
Now, I know this sounds crazy, but by God it seems that the huge contrast from day to night makes a BIG difference in my overall mood, and activity level.
I told my doctor about my theory, and surprisingly he didn’t shoot it down. It could very well be crap, because I don’t know much, but for me at least, my theory seems to hold true. And yes, I think lots of sunlight and exercise during the day also adds much to the equation.
--Tim
poster:manowar
thread:91597
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20020131/msgs/92567.html