Posted by Christ_empowered on June 5, 2010, at 12:57:23
In reply to Re: need advice from others (incl bleuberry), posted by bleauberry on June 5, 2010, at 6:17:14
hey...sorry about your situation :-(
I'm kind of struck by how within the box your treatment has been. No benzos, no stimulants, no combos. I'm not saying that's bad, I'm just saying don't give up yet--there are options.
Bleauberry mentioned zyprexa, and I think that could be good..in *small* doses, possibly even as an "as-needed" med at bedtime. Zyprexa is notorious for weight gain; I've heard that using metformin along with it tends to keep that to a minimum (the weight gain can happen even w/o changes in your diet. According to my ex-shrink, you can even get diabetes from zyprexa w/o weight gain. Be careful).
B. also mentioned Ritalin. These days, with the high failure rates of the Antidepressants gaining more attention, more docs are going the old school route and adding stimulants. Ritalin was marketed as a "psychic energizer" back in the day. Chemically, its a lot like cocaine. Amphetamines (adderall, dexedrine, vynase, perhaps even desoxyn) can be used for depression, too; I would think these would be great for someone with anhedonia (adderall treated my depression like nothing else would), but there are risks.
I would recommend you try niacinamide, if you haven't already. Some docs used it alot for anxiety and schizophrenia back in the day; higher doses (like those used in schizophrenia) seem to have antioxidant properties that can help protect you from drug-induced tardive dyskinesia. From my own experience, I found that 4 grams daily (I did 2 doses; some do higher doses in 3 doses) helped me get a lot more mileage out of Klonopin and made the taper easier. Even on its own it helped even me out; supposedly, niacinamide is a sort of natural tranquilizer. It may also help the skin.
Have you tried Lamictal? Its not the greatest thing ever, and there are side-effects, but it tends to stabilize mood pretty well for people with BP II or severe, treatment-resistant depression.
I wish you well. :-)
poster:Christ_empowered
thread:949953
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20100604/msgs/950000.html