Posted by Tony P on February 7, 2008, at 15:29:50
In reply to buspar + lamictal?, posted by toolman on February 7, 2008, at 12:40:06
I tried this combination a while back and found the buspar ineffective, at least at the doses that used to work for me.
History: I was on Serzone 300 mg/day and Buspar 20 mg/day for several years and found it an ideal combination. Unlike some people, I got very beneficial results from the Buspar, mainly mood-brightening and extra energy, plus a decrease in stress-related anger followed by depression crash.
After Serzone was withdrawn (and trying a few other ADs), I was on Lamictal and getting only a mild anti-depressant effect. I tried adding up to 20-30 mg Buspar, and it was like I was taking nothing. Possibly larger doses would have worked, but I never pursued it. I suspect (but have no evidence) that lamictal somehow suppresses the effect of Buspar.
But take my experience with a large grain of, um, salt. Peoples' reaction to Buspar varies more than almost anything else -- some swear by it, others find it has zero effect on them. YMMV as usual. The only thing I'm reasonably sure of is that trying it would be harmless; Buspar has quite a wide therapeutic range, so if you experiment, ask your pdoc to let go up to the max dose if you're not getting an effect within a week or so. Actually you'd probably know even sooner than that; although the lit. says Buspar takes 1-2 weeks to have its max. A/D effect, I always found there was an immediate stress-reducing effect within a a couple of hours as well.
Tony
poster:Tony P
thread:811292
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20080207/msgs/811319.html