Posted by hgi698 on July 4, 2007, at 20:38:14
In reply to Re: Confused about Mirapex and Campral » hgi698, posted by Flame on July 4, 2007, at 10:00:52
I think effexor/ssri can definitely make alcoholism worse too. It seems very likely that it is either the effexor or the mirapex or the combination that is aggravating you husbands alcoholism. Wellbutrin is a decent antidepressant and is also good for attention problems, restless legs and addiction. I would definitely ask about it.
"Husband's psychiatrist is very adamant that he will not change anything in husband's medication regimen until he gets off (or cuts way back) on his drinking."
Sounds like he's a bad psychiatrist. If he was a good psychiatrist he would realize that it is likely that the previous meds probably lead to the drinking. I would get a new psychiatrist to be honest. He sounds like he is just giving too many meds to your husband. Sometimes adding more meds can just make things worse. At this point he is taking so many things it is hard to know what is doing what. I think it would be better to have your husband take a break from some of the drugs, just to get a feel for what they are doing. Mirapex doesn't have much withdrawal. He could try taking a break from that for a couple weeks (with doctors permission). What dose of effexor is your husband on? Maybe he could lower it a little. I know when I was on an ssri it really made me feel like drinking more. Your doctor is just ludicrous to say he will not change your husband's meds until he stops drinking. If the drugs are probably causing your husband to drink, how does that make any sense? It seems like this psychiatrist is just throwing meds at every problem your husband has. I am not anti drug at all, but I realize not everything needs a heavy duty medication.
You might want to read this article about polypharmacy. I put an excerpt of it below. It is about a girl who went to a psychiatrist and after 8 months was on a regimen of 8 medications. The gist of the story is that it was questionable whether she needed ANY medications at all. But as more medications were added more problems came up. Well, just read the story because I think it applies to your husband's case.Here's the link: http://www.preskorn.com/columns/9703.html
"A 17-year-old female became distressed after breaking up with her first boyfriend. She was taken by her mother to a senior psychiatrist in another community after she made superficial cuts on her arm. Her past psychiatric history was unremarkable. She had been an A and B student in school, but her grades had recently declined following the breakup. She had no truancy or disciplinary problems at school but had been more irritable and sullen at home. After 8 months of care she was on the following regimen:
Lithium 1200 mg/day
Carbamazepine 500 mg/day
Valproate 1750 mg/day
Fluoxetine 40 mg/day
Risperidone 3 mg/day
Benztropine 1 mg/day
Ranitidine 300 mg/dayShe came to our community for the summer to stay with her father, who requested a second opinion. The interview was difficult because the patient would fall asleep unless she was actively engaged and prompted by the interviewer. While the father was receptive to the recommendation to attempt to simplify the current regimen, her mother was convinced that her daughter would significantly deteriorate if any of the medications were stopped or even reduced."
Another article (Polypharmacy when is it rational)
http://www.preskorn.com/columns/9507.htmlMore articles:
http://www.preskorn.com/column1.htmlI think your husband's psychiatrist needs to read this guy's stuff.
poster:hgi698
thread:767011
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20070630/msgs/767698.html