Posted by KaraS on October 6, 2005, at 21:05:04
In reply to Re: Parnate to Selegiline, last 5 months... Ed_uk » KaraS, posted by Optimist on October 2, 2005, at 21:36:49
> Thanks Kara, it's been awhile. :)
> The Selegiline plus DLPA is instead of the Parnate. I was doing quite well with the Parnate for a few weeks then seemed to have made a sharp downturn once may showed up. The downturn seemed to coincide with the seasonal allergies that I always seem to get every summer(may-august). That's also when I tend to get depressed, as well as the winter(november-february). Anti-histamines seem to help with my summer depressions for whatever reason. I've read a few theories on why this may be true, although they do not relieve my depressions fully by any means.
Sorry to hear that. It's like we're trying to hit a moving target sometimes when treating depression. There have been a lot of posts here on inflammation and depression. I'm sure there's something to it.
> I also seemed to feel more flat when taking the parnate and was starting to have some sexual dysfunction(libido problems). It also seemed to be exacerbating my hypoglycemia which is a known side effect. Hypoglycemia tends to make me feel much worse so I decided to go off the parnate. I actually went on it a number of times throughout the summer due to wanting relief from my depression, but then going off it due to the hypoglycemia primarily.
Guess it's just not the medicine for you then. I have hypoglycemia as well so I would probably have that same problem with Parnate.
> I tend to be doing quite well now, even before the selegiline. September, and especially october seem to be good months for me. I don't feel I need any antidepressants now, but it worries me as november approaches. I know I usually feel like I've been hit by a train early november.
>
> I'm seriously considering lithium at this point as I am pretty certain I have some kind of softer bipolar features, either cyclothymia, or some kind of cyclical depression.Certainly sounds like a cyclical thing happening especially if it's that regular. The trouble is sorting out the cycles from the allergies I imagine. I would be interested to hear whether lithium helps you.
> The reason I decided upon selegiline and DLPA, is because I seem to get the most antidepressant response from a herb called Vitex. It's known to be a dopamine agonist, but it tends to poop out after awhile for me. I'm hoping that the selegiline will be able to sustain the type of dopamine response I am looking for. Vitex mostly helps me with energy, self-confidence, and sexual drive, as well as general motivation.
Yes, I remember you mentioning Vitex before. Maybe I should try it though dopaminergics tend to sedate me unfortunately.
> Caffeine is also a great antidepressant for me, but imperfect in a number of ways due to it's tolerance and energy and mood fluctuations it seems to cause me.
Not to mention that it can also aggrivate hypoglycemia and cause jitteriness. Still, it's the only thing that has ever helped me with energy and motivation.
> After taking the selegiline and DLPA the past couple days I have noticed an increase in anxiety, especially in social situations. I had to leave the bar early last night due to finding it too difficult to relax and stop thinking too much regarding what I was going to say, and concentrating too much on breathing deeply to calm down.
It can be activating for most people. You'd probably have to take something else with it for the anxiety. Any more luck with it since your last message here?> I don't think it's the selegiline so much as the DLPA, since I've had similar problems with tyrosine in the past. I took 2 grams of DLPA yesterday which may have been too much. Today I experimented with taking 5-HTP instead and I seem to feel better in terms of less anxiety. I'll have to play around with it a little to see what works best. I think I'll settle for 5mg of selegiline though, as I am not too concerned with playing around with the dosage. If I don't feel much from it I doubt I'll raise it. Regardless it seems like a good long term drug in terms of cognitive health, life-extension, etc... so I don't think it's something I'll readily abandon.
Has lowering DLPA helped? Maybe the patch (if it ever comes out) would be good for you although maybe it would cause some of the same problems as Parnate?
> I still think that Parnate is a great AD. I also think that I probably would have felt good last april without the Parnate as it's a good time for me anyways, and AD's in general don't seem to prevent me from falling in to depressions during certain times of the year. I'll most likely start lithium therapy by the end of the month, probably starting with a lower dose and going from there.
I may end up having to do that as well. We'll see. I haven't tried Lamictal yet though.
> Hope everything is going well with you.
Thanks. It's not great but I'm working on it. :)
Kara
poster:KaraS
thread:555597
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/alter/20050924/msgs/563852.html