do you know much about bipolar disorders?

[Anonymous]

just wondering if any of you know much about bipolar disorders? i have taken antidepressants off and on (mostly on) for the last 18 1/2 years with varying degrees of success—which would only last for a limited time when successful. i have mostly been treated by my obgyn. a little over a year ago he started suggesting that maybe what i actually have is a bipolar disorder rather than regular depression. i have actually wondered that myself over the years, but i knew i didn’t fit the diagnostic criteria. then i discovered there was bipolar II, which was milder, but i still didn’t fit the criteria. while doing research, i discovered there is an even milder form called cyclothimia—–the description of this one fits me. the psych i saw about 2 months ago started me on lamictal after i asked if i could be bipolar—like my son, who he diagnosed as ADD and bipolar II. we had to stop the meds before even reaching a normal dose because we discovered the doc would not make return phone calls if you had medication problems—-he just wanted you to come back in. this might not be such a big deal, except it is a 6 hour round trip for us to get to him. i knew we could not work with this doc.

have any of you ever used mood stabilizer meds and had success with them?

[Anonymous]

I haven’t, but a college friend did, and it made a huge difference for her. She was definitely bipolar with pretty clear manic and depressive episodes. Once she was on meds, her moods and her life stabilized significantly.

[Anonymous]

My dh best friends wife has pretty significant bipolar disorder as well as other addictive behaviors and has to take meds in order to function normally. They have wanted to have children but that would require her going off her meds which isn’t an option, anytime she tries things go really badly, but when she is on her meds things are wonderful.

[Anonymous]

Christine,

I have horrible panic attacks for 21 years and when I tried antidepressants it would cause me to have worse panic attacks. My panic attacks are the felling that I am going to die. I feel like my heart is racing and in my own mind I believe that either I have cancer, brain tumors, and just about anything that will take my life early. I am on clonazempam and have been for many years now and I am not trying to get off of it because each time I try my panic attacks get worse. If you would like to talk PM me. Like you I also have fibromyalgia (sp?).

[Anonymous]

I do not have bipolar and thankfully no depression now, but have in the past and have been on effexor. Not sure if you have ever heard of it, but don’t take it. I think it has possibly even been pulled because people couldn’t come off it. I almost killed myself coming off it. Everytime I talked to the dr about my symptoms she would say, “hmm those aren’t side effects listed”. Other people that have been on it said the same thing that they almost took their lives trying to come off it. I also had some memory loss due to it. I guess at the time it was a newer drug, but I was young and trusted my doc. Now I do all my own research on things. We rarely even go to the dr anymore. Not to discourage you. Just to say DON’T take effexor and research whatever they tell you to take.

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