Posted by whitmore on September 28, 2012, at 15:39:04
For the last few years, I have been suffering from severe depression, anhedonia and anxiety.
I have recently been injured(broken ankle) and while off work have started zoloft, 100 mg. It worked for a while, but now I seem to be back to square one.I asked my psychiatrist to prescribe adderall, as another doctor had suspected ADD. The previous doctor had given me a few stimulant medications to try, but since I was working, the side-effects were too much for me to deal with and I only tried each once.
This time I tried the Adderall(5 mg) for a few days and it was remarkable for mood and relaxation. Initially, I took 1/2 in the am, per doctor's orders, but increased it to 1/2 twice a day. Side-effects were bad(dizziness, lack of focus--go figure!) and it was an emotional roller-coaster, with severe insomnia by day 3, which resulted in my stopping it.
However, it does lead me to think that dopamine may be what's lacking.
I know there are various dopamine enhancing medications out there that are used for Parkinson's, but does anyone know if these are useful in depression and if they can be dosed to provide a steady level of dopamine without insomnia? And if so, if there's any chance of a psychiatrist prescribing it?
I should also mention that I am a 59 year old woman, have been diagnosed with lyme disease and babesia(2 years now) and made little progress with antibiotic treatement. I am now seeing a naturopath and attempting to treat these infections holistically.
One more thing: I have craved cigarettes for the last couple of years, having given them up 30 years ago and not missing them until recently. I've thought of a nicotine patch, but don't know if that would be enough of a boost.
Any input would be gratefully received.
Regards.
Sue
poster:whitmore
thread:1026936
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20120922/msgs/1026936.html