Been through all the depression meds??

Motherhen · 01-01-2006, 01:18 AM

I have been told I am out of options.

I have tried zoloft....effexor....wellbutrin....and lexapro (current) and everytime I am on them for about a month my mg's need to be upped. Then I am on that for another month or so and I feel myself losing it again....screaming at the kids, wanting to divorce dh...not *seeing* the sun shine...etc.
Now they tell me I am pretty much out of options...with the exception of seeing a psycologist and having them up my lexapro (20 mg right now) or putting me on prozac.

I am so tired of feeling out of control one month and the next I am totally fine. I truly feel like a mad woman and I feel so bad for my family having to live with me like this.

Anybody have the misfotune of going through this? How did you get through it?
Any advice at all?

nicole47 · 01-01-2006, 01:26 AM

*hugs*
I have not gone through this, but I had a high school roommate who did. It took several years, and a summer of doing nothing but therapy and medication to get her to be happy. Prozac ended up working for her. Then a few years later it started depressing her emotions so she played drug roulette again, got some really good talk therapy, worked on some underlying issues about her past that she had not been able to deal with and went off both therapy and drugs for a few years. Then she went to graduate school and had to go back on therapy again (because grad school does that to a lot of people), but now that she has her phd she's back to (mostly) normal.

Could you talk to an endo more about your thyroid? Something there might be the problem, and fiddling with that medication might do the trick. Also, if you're on birth control pills (or not on birth control), that may also be causing problems.

Are you getting any talk therapy? That may help too. Keep shopping for therapists until you find one that works well for you. Therapy can be really wonderful.

Never give up hope, and keep trying new options. It is very difficult to dig out of depression and takes effort, but the effort is well worth it.

oaktreegirl · 01-01-2006, 06:10 AM

I'm sorry you're hurting. (((hugs)))

I know some people find relief in non-medical methods of dealing with depression. I've tried making an infusion of dried St. John's Wort leaves. It didn't act like an antidepressant to completely prevent spells of depression. But when I drink the SJW infusion I don't feel so overwhelmed with apathy as I do otherwise.

Nicole's idea of talking to a therapist is a good one. Being able to talk things through can make a big difference.

I have also found that journal writing and meditation help me get through depression. I have a habit of distancing myself from my emotions. Journalling, and meditating are a great way for me to spend time with myself. For me that makes a difference in how well I can handle depression.

Motherhen · 01-01-2006, 07:06 AM

Thanks to you both!
~Nicole47 Yes I do have hypothyroidism and they just tested my tsh levels yesterday to adjust my meds accordingly. And I am also on bcp's, but how can that be a problem?

~oaktreegirl Journaling is a great idea and my dh really believes in meditating but with 2 kids I find it hard to do either one.

I wonder if there is a difference in actual depression and anxiety.?
I noticed that I snap alot more during times of stress but other times I am pretty ok.

Nonetheless, I do need to seek counseling, Im sure that would help more than I realize!

nicole47 · 01-01-2006, 07:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mom_of_1

And I am also on bcp's, but how can that be a problem?

Some people get depression *from* different types of bcp. I know that when I got switched from Alesse to another brand for a month, it caused me to become very moody and depressed. I'm not saying that's your case at all, but if the timing works out, it would be another thing to consider.

Quote:

Originally Posted by mom_of_1

I wonder if there is a difference in actual depression and anxiety.?
I noticed that I snap alot more during times of stress but other times I am pretty ok.

You can have situational anxiety or depression. When I was in graduate school, I was clinically depressed and suffering from extreme anxiety (panic attacks and so on) for a semester, then got a month break where I was happy and would only be depressed when thinking about the new semester starting, and then went back to anxious and depressed, though by that point I had started therapy and was able to work my way back to being relatively calm and almost happy. I think it's also normal for non-depressed, non-anxious people to get snappish when they're under stress. There are a lot of factors going into a diagnosis of depression.

Good luck!

oaktreegirl · 01-01-2006, 09:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mom_of_1

I wonder if there is a difference in actual depression and anxiety.?
I noticed that I snap alot more during times of stress but other times I am pretty ok.

In some people they can be related. I'm sure talking to a therapist will help sort out the issues. Good luck.

luv4deliah · 01-11-2006, 05:39 PM

Mom_of_1....it could be possible you are being misdiagnosed....it almost sounds like you are cycling which could mean you have bipolar disorder. Do you ever feel manic (racing thoughts, rapid speech etc) If you have bi-polar disorder, anti-depresants alone won't help you and can actually make you cycle more. For me, when I am manic I have high anxiety.

Besides bi-polar disorder, there are many other mental illnesses and they might confuse your symptoms for something else. It took years for my doctors to realize I had bi-polar disorder, an anxiety disorder, Adult ADD and personality disorder (aren't I lucky? lol) Always question your doctor. It's your life and you have to do whatever it takes to get better.

Also, I was wondering if you are giving the meds enough time to work? It can take months even a year or so for anti-depressants to work to their full potential in our bodies. So one month is definately not enough.

Good luck Cyster and I hope you find some answers.

Shana P

austinmandi · 01-11-2006, 08:30 PM

Are you seeing a psychiatrist or a general physician? The reason I ask is that your family doc or any other general practicioner should not be the one diagnosing your mental illness. My personal experience with Lexapro was a nightmare. My family doc is the one who prescribed them to me because I was depressed, or so he thought. Instead, by taking the Lexapro, he actually sent me into mania because I was bi-polar and he had misdiagnosed me. I understand that this happens frequently. I have to agree with luv4deliah - it sounds to me like you're cycling. And to put your mind at ease, those are not the only anti-depression meds on the market and you are not out of options! If you're not already seeing a therapist (someone just to talk to) it really helps. I know my pdoc (psychiatrist) said that taking meds without seeing a therapist is like only taking half your dose of pills. They are a complementary therapy and see the most benefits when done together. It did make a world of difference, and if you are at the point where I was at, you do whatever you can to get better. I would talk to your dr again and get more answers. If you don't find the answers you need, go to another one. With the right dr and the right meds, I promise you things can and do get better. Best of luck to you and your family.

hopeless · 01-12-2006, 05:26 AM

I haven't been through that....but do have some thoughts.

Maybe you're not out of options, but they're just looking at the wrong ones. Have you considered thyroid meds? Or changing BCPs, if you're on them?

I changed BCPs from Demulen to Alesse, and it definetly made me feel better. (a lot less moody and over-emotional) I also found a good doctor who put me on cytomel (thyroid meds), and it *really* helped with my depression. It was a whole new world for me. It brought me "up" enough that I could work on my attitudes towards life and myself, and really change things. I'm still on cytomel, but was able to get off of Wellbutrin about a year after starting thyroid meds.

Worth looking into, perhaps.

Good luck.

maycontainnuts · 01-12-2006, 06:50 PM

nevermind

discogeek · 02-27-2006, 01:04 AM

Been there, done that. Throughout the years, I've been on Desyrel, Paxil, Zoloft (twice), Effexor, Lexapro (I went off that due to my insurance refusing to pay for it, though), and am currently on Celexa and Wellbutrin.

I second austinmandi's suggestion to see a psychiatrist instead of a PCP for your medication management. I found that the PCP (and the first pdoc, though that's another story for another time) didn't know enough about the particular intricacies to be able to help me effectively. I've got a great med management team now with my current pdoc and my Other Half's father (who's a pharmacist).

One thing that my current pdoc picked up on, that helped me immensely, is that if your particular symptoms are due to something more complicated than serotonin deficiency (which mine was) then sometimes the standard ADs won't work at all, work less efficiently than they could, or make things worse. Apparently there's a couple hormones that have an effect on mood, not just serotonin. That's why I'm on polytherapy now, and it's working better than ever. That's something only a pdoc would be able to figure out, though, in conjuction with your therapist.

Good luck - hang in there!

barneyb · 02-27-2006, 02:20 AM

I have a panic disorder/situational anxiety, but also become snippish and irritable with people when I'm under stress for long periods of time. I'm lucky that Effexor is working for me after Lexapro made me severely depressed and physically ill. But I wanted to mention that bcp's can really get you, especially if you already have an underlying tendency toward anxiety and/or depression. Within 24 to 48 hours of starting the Nuvaring, I couldn't stop crying and felt like I was falling apart. My gyn didn't want me to take it out, saying I'd get used to it, but I did it anyway and good riddance. I'm now on Alesse and, although I still have anxiety issues, it was definitely better for me to question the doctor and do what I thought was right for me in spite of what he said.

It does sound as if you might be dealing with more than run-of-the-mill anxiety and if you are, anti-depressants will definitely make you worse. General practitioners just don't know how to diagnose this stuff and treat it effectively -- find a good psychiatrist who can help you. It'll be well worth it.

acrwi1 · 02-27-2006, 04:39 AM

There are definately more options than those 4. I currently take lexapro 10mg but I accompany it with gabapentin a mood stabilizer and it seems to be helping. I also feel that I am fine one week and not the next. Sometimes a combo works better. I know its contraindicated but I took lexapro and celexa together and that worked for a while. I seem to have attention/concentration issues lately and strattera ADHD med works well and can also be used for depression. I dont know if you see a psychiatrist but they are usually better once you have gone out of a physicians comfort zone.
acrwi

BlueAngel22 · 03-01-2006, 09:46 PM

There are definitely way more options! Actually, all of the meds you've been on are in the same class of meds. My psychiatrist told me that with a lot of the SSRI's, you tend to get a "poop out effect." I was on Lexapro, and it just flat-out stopped working. She put me on Cymbalta, which effects norepinephrine as well as serotonin. She said that she sees a lot less of the "poop out effect" with it than with the serotonin-only drugs. Of course, I'm not saying that Cymbalta would work for you, just giving you an example of other meds that are out there.

It sounds like your doctor has no idea what he/she is talking about when it comes to psychotropic meds, and you need to see a psychiatrist ASAP. I learned more about antidepressants in my sophomore-level abnormal psych class than he/she seems to know!