Posted by ronaldo on December 23, 2006, at 16:53:34 [reposted on January 3, 2007, at 2:33:15 | original URL]
In reply to St John's wort and bioplar -recipe for disaster?, posted by survivin bpd on December 22, 2006, at 17:54:34
Hello Maria
Its me again, the one who recommended Zyprexa for sleep. I'm sorry. :-(
How does your present depression feel? Is it a heavy, constant, overwhelming, depression? Or is it a lighter, transitory, avoidable, depression? If it is the latter maybe you could tough it out for a few weeks and see if it goes away. A few weeks will give the Zyprexa more time to clear. If it is the former then you have to do something about it. Is St Johns Wort the right something?
Maybe you can research it on the internet to assess your chances of success.
Maybe you can try it gently, cautiously, stopping at the lowest dose that makes you feel well again.
I have never used SJW so I don't know what I am talking about. My advice is born of concern and whatever common sense I may have. Seems to me if you go gently and you're careful you can't do much harm. But I could be wrong. Don't keep on taking it if you don't get any response...you might suddenly get more response than you bargained for.
Wikipedia judging by the look of it has a good article on SJW. See:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Johns_WortSJW in your search engine will give you loads of leads.
If all else fails you could go and see a doctor. :-) Or a psychiatrist :-))
Actually why don't you try the above. They may be able to help you. Psychobabble can be a dangerous place to go shopping for a cure - especially with me on the loose.
Just insomnia on its own can induce hypermania in me. I think it will in most manic depressives. A final word, found this by putting SJW and Mania in my search engine:
"People with a history of manic-depressive illness (bipolar disorder) or a less severe condition known as hypomania, should avoid use of St. John’s wort as it may trigger a manic episode.15 16 17 18" http://www.hollandandbarrett.com/vf/healthnotes/HN_live_uk/Herb/St_Johns_Wort.htm
Alan
> HI
>
> Has anyone with bipolar 1 succesfully used St John's wort when depressed? I am worried about it precipitating a switch to mania. This is my first depression or mood change at all for 5 or 6 yrs. the depression has appeared due to using olanzapine for chronic insomnia - a try out that went wrong. I don't want to get back on the rollercoaster and dont like the side effects of the antidepressants that i know are ok for me. venlafaxine works ok but wrecks my sleep and i have to watch out for hypermania. mirtazapine also works but makes me angry initially and i pile on the weight.
>
> what do you think about the risks of trying st johns wort?
>
> Maria
poster:ronaldo
thread:715931
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/alter/20061218/msgs/718794.html