Posted by ItsHowdyDudytime on December 13, 2002, at 17:39:06
In reply to Extreme Anger...anyone with sim feelings?..Please., posted by jay on December 12, 2002, at 21:07:18
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> Right now..I am just on Risperdal. I am miserable, angry, and absolutely hate anybody who causes me *any* problems. This can be anybody..from my Mom to anybody on the street.
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> My temper is just ready to crack..and antidepressants and 'mood stabalizers' don't bring much relief...and can often make things *worse*.
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> Is it possible for someone to be in such a state of depressed anxious psychosis that *everything* makes me miserable? Geezzus...I just want some relief..please! Any special med combo or such? I've been grinding at this for 10 years. I just want to yell, cry, scream. This isn't just a few months or a couple of years..it is a decade!! If there is no hope...why even bother with carrying on...it's just pain. Any help...please.
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> Thank you,
> Jay
Here is my advice. I had "extreme anger" in the beginning months of my depression which was years ago. This was because my depression was steroid induced, from prednisone. Prednisone just set me off and changed my personality completely. Since then, my anger/irritability has gradually waned, now to the point where I no longer really feel all that irritable beyond a basic depression type irritability that mainly only shows up when im off antidepressants.First of all, anger has gotten a bad rap in psychiatry. Its the one emotion you cant have and get away with, psychiatrists dont like it because it means you are a "high risk-high liability" patient for them (high lawsuit risk). Many of them prefer to use atypical anti-psychotics for anger, even if you arent psychotic or manic, particularly in males who exhibit anger/irritability.
However the reality of the situation is that anger, even extreme, is a totally normal part of many forms of severe mental illness. Its just something you have to learn to live with, deal with and try to combat it with drugs the best you can. Generally, combatting the UNDERLYING major mental illness will dissipate anger/irritability. Whether it be severe male depression, bipolar manic depression or whatever, treating that underlying Axis I disorder with the appropriate class of meds willtend to get rid of most of that anger.
Male depression is notorious for severe anger and irritability and is a sign of low serotonin levels and being very unhappy and frustrated with one's life. Treatment in that case involves antidepressants.
In your case, where you claim antidepressants and even mood stabilizers worsen your anger, that is a bad sign and probably points to bipolar disorder or some form. Usually, antidepressants make people nicer, calmer, more relaxed. When they do the opposite,thats a very bad sign. You have diagnosis issues that need attending to.
Oddly, low testosterone levels in men can cause bad irritability and mood swings. Youd think it would be the opposite, that low testosterone levels would make men turn into a wuss, but it can be the opposite. Low testosterone can cause a man to become very grouchy and mean.
Another thing thats bad for anger is booze. Booze can make some people extremely mean and angry and if you drink much and your Pdoc knows it, you place yourself in a high liability risk. Cut out all booze, all street drugs to start with if you do any of that stuff.
If psychosis is truly the underlying cause of your "anger" then longterm treatment with anti-psychotic drugs will probably be in order. If you are unsure of your dx, some neuropsychological testing might be in order such as the Rorschach test, the TAT test, etc. Although oftentimes schizophrenics are very withdrawn socially and dont exhibit many emotions, good or bad.
I bet you have major diagnosis issues to figure out, just a hunch. Other good advice for you if you are male and have bad anger/irritability symptoms is to AVOID using female mental health professionals as much as possible, if at all avoid them totally. Female mental health professionals are much more sensitive to male anger/aggression/irritability, even if its not your fault and is just a symptom of your severe mental illness. Stick to male mental health workers, male psychiatrists, etc. They are less sensitive to these issues and tend to not make as big a deal out of it as females do.
Howdy Doody
poster:ItsHowdyDudytime
thread:131567
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20021210/msgs/131702.html