Posted by jeffrey d roth, md on April 11, 2005, at 22:15:53
In reply to Roth: backwards addiction, posted by AuntieMel on April 11, 2005, at 12:04:02
> Thank you so much for being here - and I apologize in advance if this is outside your realm, but Dr. Bob introduced you as a psychiatrist so I'll hit you with a medical/addiction problem.
>
> Background: I started being treated for depression in March -02. My doc believed a lot of my depression could be explained by my drinking and that quitting would help.
>
> April '03 I quit drinking. Almost two years ago.
>
> The problem: After I quit the depression got worse. Much, much worse - to the point where I was no longer functional. {functionality wasn't a problem before, except when actually snockered} I literally couldn't even remember what I just did, much less what I did the day before. I had to make a list in the morning just to do minimal mundane things. Work was out of the question.
>
> The addition of Wellbutrin to the coctail helped some, and adding Provigil also helped.
>
> Do you know what it might be in my chemistry that is different? Why did drinking *help* my overall mood and function during the times I was sober? What might restore the functionality?
>
> I went from being a 'rising star' traveling the world for the company (software) and being involved in many high profile projects - to barely being able to complete much simpler things and holding onto my job by a thread.
>Dear Auntie Mel,
Thanks for the question. I want to say clearly that as an addiction psychiatrist I have my own biases about the relation of addiction to other mental illness. That being said, I will state my opinion that most of us confuse alcohol with the "ism." Simply stopping drinking may exacerbate whatever symptoms led to drinking in the first place. I consider all of the symptoms part of the "ism." What recovery from addiction entails is addressing all of the components of the "ism", not only as a form of relapse prevention, but also to achieve a quality of life that is experienced as worth living. The folks in AA say that the "ism" stands for "I sponsor myself." Whether you are engaged in a Twelve Step program or not, I hope you have an opportunity to receive support from others who are recovering from alcoholism, and I suspect you will find a subgroup within any cohort who share your experience with depression. While medication may help, in my experience there is no good substitute for interpersonal support.
Jeffrey D. Roth, MD
poster:jeffrey d roth, md
thread:482795
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/subs/20050323/msgs/483107.html