Meds Experiences Thread!!

Ive been taking trileptal about two weeks and my blood pressure has spiked scarily high @_@ i havent changed anything else recently so my doc switched me to depakote. Not sure what to expect

 

Also my doctor told me to take prenatal vitamins even though ill never be pregnant to offset how much the depakote is going to apparently fuck me up, so thats kinda funny.

 

Note to future self forgetting your lexipro is a no go. The brain zaps the come the next day are awful.

 

Getting on to Depakote can be a bit rough. Staying on can also be rpugh for some, albeit fewer. For me it is *so worth it* though. I may currently be depressed, but am fairly certain that is due to my recent multiple rounds of powerful antibiotics (they can make me very emotionally labile, even manic).

Depakote is supposed to be this great anti-manic. And it is, for a lot of people. And I know it's an anti-convulsant of course. But for me (and a few others I have met) it is a fanTASTIC anti-depressant. Definitely worth the rollercoaster of tapering on to the stuff. I wish you much success too.

 

Note to self: take our afternoon Dexedrine. It actually helps.

 

I've been a bit of a mess lately wrt daily habits, which means I've forgotten to take my meds for mumbledy days (citalopram, strattera, various non brain things like birth control and allergy stuff).

My tongue feels weird. I mean my whole head feels weird, sort of like I'm about to get a nasty headache, but it never shows up. Brain, neck, face, and tongue all feel sort of fuzzy bad.

Anyone else get this?

 

So my doc is straight out ignoring me and not authorizing my lexapro refill. I took half a pill today to try to make the last pill last. I do have two remaining fills on my sequeoul script from ages ago....is it better to take serquel than be off this type of med at all?

 

I'm not sure. When I was on lexipro I went cold turkey and I was ok, but it also wasn't working for me so that may have contributed. Can you see another doctor about it? In my experience docs will see that you're on a certain med and give you a script for it without fuss so long as it's not an opiate.

 

I can't afford too see another doctor nor you know find one at 2pm on a Friday. I can't afford /this/ pyschrists. I had to go cold turkey over the weekend until the pharmacy gave me four days. I was and am still not okay. I've been trying to get her to authorize the refill since last Friday. we;re driving to utah sunday to pick up/rescue our new room mate I can't be a mental wreck.

 

Oh man, that sucks. But I think new meds usually take a while to kick in so I'm not sure how useful the others meds would be. I don't know anything about them. But if they didn't have nasty sideeffects for you it might be worth it.

 

Seroquel and lexapro have different effects on your brain, it wouldnt work the same way. Also seroquel is a drug you have to taper up and down on, it could probably be dangerous to try and start it yourself without a docs opinion. I know if you go to the emergency room theyll send you to whatever floor psych emergency is on and you can get an emergency refill. It usually takes upwards of 4 hours to get you in though, and ive stayed as long as twelve before (not counting admission)

 

that's a good point.

but yeah no not going anywhere near the psych floor. Not ever. not giving my mother or anyone else any chance to just commit ever.

 

Are there any free clinics in your area? GPs can give scripts for antidepressants too.

 

Not that don't make you go through financial intake first. And it's friday. I've been hoping all week she'd you know do her damn job and authorize the refill.

 

she's on vaction. she's been on fucking vaction. and the guy doing 'refills' for her isn't in on friday. oh my god.

 

Are you in the US and near a Medexpress? They're at least cheaper than paying out of pocket for a doctor. Or, do you have a general practitioner you can call?

 

Yeah this is such bullshit, im sorry youre going through this. If you change your mind i could probably go with my mom to take you to an emergency room if you need someone with no say on if youre admitted or not? they wont commit you involuntarily unless youre being a danger to yourself or others, and i know for a fact even then theyll look for excuses to send you home rather than admit you because theyre so backed up with people.

Last time i was at the emergency room i was so out of it i tore a hole in my face and kept spouting paranoid nonsense and they still saw no reason to admit me.

 

I have five dollars to my name right now. and I really really appreicate it but I'm not going to the er. called the emgerince number of the guy supposed filling in my pysch and hopfully my blubbering pleading will get action. I don't have a GP, just the doctor I used to see when I had insurance (my mother's so we're talking 1999ish times) that I still see when mom can be convinced that yes something is wrong with being sick for two months. Also I thought probably get my blubbering
edit: just got off the phone with the doctor covering her refills and appointments. He was very kind and he's calling my script in right now.

 

I am so glad. So glad. You DON'T force someone to cold turkey off an SSRI (ESPECIALLY ONE LIKE LEXAPRO AAAHHH) especially if they already display discontinuation symptoms! Physically one should be okay, minus brain zaps and such but... Augh. All I remember is taking myself off it more quickly than my GP instructed and just. Awful.

Seroquel could actually be not that bad of an aid during Lexapro discontinuation/taper-off. But that's *in general*, Seroquel can really knock you on your ass. Defo NOT something to take when you need to be driving anywhere. Not something to take even the day before you need to do anything.

It is an antipsychotic technically, but neurophysiologically it literally does not behave like one until you are over a few hundred mg per dose, IIRC, and at doses below a few hundred mg it acts more like a super strong antihistamine, a strong tranq/sleep aid/etc. Basically if you were able to take a couple weeks off of any responsibilities, Seroquel could potentially be used to help w/ sleep or when you feel too agitated. I am knocked on my ass for even the day after I take one 25mg pill. But I don't take it very often -- only when I am manic. However, my first experience with it was as an adjunct med to help me while I discontinued Lexapro. (Note: I am not taking it at antipsychotic-level doses even though I take it to combat mania/agitation/sleep/anxiety/irritability/etc.)

Just. So glad you don't have to make that decision. :/ Ideally one discusses medication use with a doctor before making a big change like that. But I realise sometimes we have to make our own decisions and then try to talk them over with a professional as soon as we can after that.

I hope things continue to get better, level out, something along those lines.

 

Oooh, yeah i keep forgetting some people can take really low doses of seroquel. Still, im also glad it worked itself out that you dont gotta mess around with it out of the blue