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Have lived in the Midwest, the South, and Philadelphia area
My home is in the lovely midwest - I have lived here most of my...
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Sunday, November 23, 2008
View All of HeyJude's Posts
At times, I maintain fairly good bipolar health, but during the winter months I often slip into depression for no particular reason. Depression can actually happen any time of the year with me, but it seems to occur most often after the holidays for approximately 2 months. I don't really ...
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meds' shortcomings?
su1
Sunday, November 23, 2008 at 06:27 PM
An interesting observation - that our brain's chemistry is always changing, and it is a challenge to always keep our brain and our meds in sync. I have seemed to find the 'magic bullit' in my new med, Geodon. But I wonder, How long will it last? Before I was diagnosed with BD in 2006, I was treated for unipolar dep for 3 years. The first med we tried worked brilliantly, for a year. But then it abruptly fizzled out. The 2nd drug worked as well for a year, and then it fizzled out. Each time these 'fizzle outs' happened, my depression was worse than ever - does that mean our brain becomes chemically dependent on these drugs? I know doctors refuse to say that these SSRI's are 'addictive' - yeah, that's what they used to say about benzo's in the 60's, too. A local doctor here in Vancouver who specializes in mood disorders now fully acknowledges the common 'poop-out' phenomenon of SSRI's (more common than with the older anti-deps?). Anyways, this is all just one example of how our brain's chemistry can be altered out of the blue - is that the meds' fault or our brain's? I have a feeling it's the meds - especially anti-deps. I have been on Prozac for years now & it has yet to poop out on me - I've heard from a pharmacy person that it seems to be the best SSRI for a lot of people, for this reason.
I'm hoping BD drugs are more dependable. They seem to be, according to many people I know. Would love to hear others' experiences with BD meds.
re: meds' shortcomings?
HeyJude
Sunday, November 23, 2008 at 08:10 PM
Thanks, Sharon, for your insights. It's so damn frustrating at times when we are not certain how long a new med will work for us. Guess it's best not to worry and just go with the flow - better for us psychologically. I'm waiting to see how my brain will react to Seroquel. So far it's very sedating. I take it at night and some mornings I stay in a fog until noon. But if it helps keep me healthy I won't complain. Regards to you.
Judy
An interesting observation - that our brain's chemistry is always changing, and it is a challenge to always keep our brain and our meds in sync. I have seemed to find the 'magic bullit' in my new med, Geodon. But I wonder, How long will it last? Before I was diagnosed with BD in 2006, I was treated for unipolar dep for 3 years. The first med we tried worked brilliantly, for a year. But then it abruptly fizzled out. The 2nd drug worked as well for a year, and then it fizzled out. Each time these 'fizzle outs' happened, my depression was worse than ever - does that mean our brain becomes chemically dependent on these drugs? I know doctors refuse to say that these SSRI's are 'addictive' - yeah, that's what they used to say about benzo's in the 60's, too. A local doctor here in Vancouver who specializes in mood disorders now fully acknowledges the common 'poop-out' phenomenon of SSRI's (more common than with the older anti-deps?). Anyways, this is all just one example of how our brain's chemistry can be altered out of the blue - is that the meds' fault or our brain's? I have a feeling it's the meds - especially anti-deps. I have been on Prozac for years now & it has yet to poop out on me - I've heard from a pharmacy person that it seems to be the best SSRI for a lot of people, for this reason.
I'm hoping BD drugs are more dependable. They seem to be, according to many people I know. Would love to hear others' experiences with BD meds.