Posted by JohnL on May 9, 2000, at 4:57:34
In reply to EVERYONE! I need anew drug, posted by afatchic on May 8, 2000, at 20:01:11
It seems you have responded best so far to serotonin drugs, indicating that some serotonin chemistry is involved. That's probably why Wellbutrin hasn't worked out very well, since it is not a serotonin med.
With that in mind, I think it makes sense to explore all the serotonin options in search of your best match. I think you should only settle for long term commitment to any one of them after having compared all of them first. Normally I would suggest short comparison trials of 2 weeks each or so, but the sexual side effect issue kind of makes that unrealistic. That's because, in my experience anyway, a sexual side effect can take several weeks to disappear after discontinuing the drug. With me, for example, my total lack of sexual desire did not resolve until after being completely off Zoloft for 3 weeks. Only then did my sexual desire return to normal.
So I think you should try Celexa, Paxil, Zoloft, Effexor, and Luvox. Perhaps you could look at the year 2000 as the year you dedicated to comparing all the options for your best match. Six weeks each should give you a pretty good handle on each one of them. And again, I'm focusing on the serotonin meds because that's what has worked for you in the past.
After all is said and done, it might turn out that Prozac was the best all along. That wouldn't surprise me at all. Zoloft and Paxil in particular seem notorious for causing sexual side effects, while Prozac seems to do so the least. But you never would have known for sure without comparing.
If Prozac turned out to be the best match, then you could explore ways of treating the side effects. In short, to avoid the witchy and frigid syndrome, stick with meds in a class that has worked before for you...serotonin meds. To avoid the weight gain and sexual side effects, hopefully a best match in the class will be discovered. If not, then treat the side effects.
I wish there was an easier way! But hopefully adding some structure to the process will help.
JohnL
poster:JohnL
thread:32819
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20000508/msgs/32865.html