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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 10 of 10. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by baseball55 on December 31, 2015, at 18:59:31
2016 - Can I really be that old?
Posted by rjlockhart37 on January 1, 2016, at 0:15:25
In reply to Happy new year, posted by baseball55 on December 31, 2015, at 18:59:31
happy new years!!!
Posted by SLS on January 1, 2016, at 8:06:21
In reply to Happy new year, posted by baseball55 on December 31, 2015, at 18:59:31
> 2016 - Can I really be that old?
<sigh>
I know the feeling.
Do you feel that your life has been stolen from you or that it never existed at all?
- Scott
Posted by SLS on January 1, 2016, at 8:07:04
In reply to Re: Happy new year, posted by rjlockhart37 on January 1, 2016, at 0:15:25
> happy new years!!!
Ditto.
:-)
- Scott
Posted by baseball55 on January 1, 2016, at 22:10:13
In reply to Re: Happy new year » baseball55, posted by SLS on January 1, 2016, at 8:06:21
No. I never really had depression until 50. It was horrible for about 4-5 years. But in the last couple of years, it's just been episodic. The episodes are awful, but don't last forever like they used to. I also have found that, when depression gets really bad, I can take ability for a week or two and stop and it seems to kick the depression out of my system for a while. I can't use abilify on a regular basis, because it makes me gain huge amounts of weight. But I feel like parnate and lamictial (and therapy) control the depression for the most part. When a bad episode breaks through, ability will generally pull me out in a week or two. I have not been hospitalized in 4 years and, before, I was hospitalized over and over again.
So I'm sorry, Scott, if you feel life has been stolen from you. Chronic, unremitting depression is a horrible disease.
>
> Do you feel that your life has been stolen from you or that it never existed at all?
>
>
> - Scott
Posted by SLS on January 2, 2016, at 8:15:47
In reply to Re: Happy new year, posted by baseball55 on January 1, 2016, at 22:10:13
> No. I never really had depression until 50. It was horrible for about 4-5 years. But in the last couple of years, it's just been episodic. The episodes are awful, but don't last forever like they used to. I also have found that, when depression gets really bad, I can take ability for a week or two and stop and it seems to kick the depression out of my system for a while. I can't use abilify on a regular basis, because it makes me gain huge amounts of weight. But I feel like parnate and lamictial (and therapy) control the depression for the most part. When a bad episode breaks through, ability will generally pull me out in a week or two. I have not been hospitalized in 4 years and, before, I was hospitalized over and over again.
I'm glad you found methods to help keep the beast at bay.
:-)
Do you cycle more than 4 times a year?
If you should ever want to investigate other drug treatments, perhaps Lamictal or low dosage lithium (300 mg/day) would prevent relapses. Also, dosages of lithium as low as 100 mg/day are supposed to help prevent Alzheimer's Dementia. That is one reason why I plan to take lithium indefinitely. My risk of contracting Alzheimer's is elevated substantially due to the severity and length of depression. I would try Lamictal first, though. It has shown itself to have antidepressant properties in both unipolar and bipolar disorders, and is known to prevent rapid cycling in bipolar disorder. Perhaps it would help with rapid cyclicity in unipolar depression, too. I know of no investigations that studied this question specifically.
Do you exercise? I don't think it would help much once an episode of depression is triggered, but it might help prevent it.
> So I'm sorry, Scott, if you feel life has been stolen from you. Chronic, unremitting depression is a horrible disease.
I was born in 1960. I was moderately depressed by 1970. I became severely depressed abruptly in 1976 with social anxiety. Between June, 1987 and February, 1988, I experienced a true remission achieved through treatment with antidepressants. I experienced a few drug-induced acute manic reactions. That's about it.
- Scott
Posted by baseball55 on January 2, 2016, at 20:23:53
In reply to Re: Happy new year » baseball55, posted by SLS on January 2, 2016, at 8:15:47
> Do you cycle more than 4 times a year?Sometimes.
>
> If you should ever want to investigate other drug treatments, perhaps Lamictal or low dosage lithium (300 mg/day) would prevent relapses. Also, dosages of lithium as low as 100 mg/day are supposed to help prevent Alzheimer's Dementia. That is one reason why I plan to take lithium indefinitely. My risk of contracting Alzheimer's is elevated substantially due to the severity and length of depression. I would try Lamictal first, though. It has shown itself to have antidepressant properties in both unipolar and bipolar disorders, and is known to prevent rapid cycling in bipolar disorder. Perhaps it would help with rapid cyclicity in unipolar depression, too. I know of no investigations that studied this question specifically.
>
I take 300mg lamictal and have been for a few years. I exercise but, you're right. When the depression hits, nothing helps. Friends tell me, don't isolate,we'll go for a walk, lunch, etc. But if I can manage to get myself to see someone, all I do is cry and they end up saying - have you called your doctor/therapist? Do you need to be in the hospital? I have a DBT therapist and she used to tell me to sit with it, watch it ebb and flow. But it doesn't ebb. She now focuses exclusively on controlling thoughts of suicide to keep me out of the hospital. My doctor says I have a chronic recurrent depression. He's a great believer in lamictal to reduce the lows I fall into.
> Do you exercise? I don't think it would help much once an episode of depression is triggered, but it might help prevent it.
>
> > So I'm sorry, Scott, if you feel life has been stolen from you. Chronic, unremitting depression is a horrible disease.
>
> I was born in 1960. I was moderately depressed by 1970. I became severely depressed abruptly in 1976 with social anxiety. Between June, 1987 and February, 1988, I experienced a true remission achieved through treatment with antidepressants. I experienced a few drug-induced acute manic reactions. That's about it.
>
>
> - Scott
Posted by SLS on January 2, 2016, at 20:59:58
In reply to Re: Happy new year, posted by baseball55 on January 2, 2016, at 20:23:53
Like so many other people here, I can't seem to break the habit of wanting to help people. My area of study is psychiatric medications, so that's what I can offer.
I know that you already know quite a bit - maybe more than me. However, if you should ever want to ask me a question, please don't hesitate. I might actually know the answer! :-)
In the meantime, I just want to mention intranasal ketamine. You might be able to take it once or twice a week and achieve a remission that can last for years - if not indefinitely. I've seen it happen. I won't bore you with the details at this point
Be well.
- Scott
Posted by baseball55 on January 3, 2016, at 19:23:07
In reply to Re: Happy new year » baseball55, posted by SLS on January 2, 2016, at 20:59:58
I've read about this on babble and, given my response to ability, where I seem to be able to reset my brain after a week or two, it seems that ketamine would be a really good possibility for me.But I doubt my p-doc knows much about it or even who to send me to. I could find another p-doc, but I love my psychiatrist. I did therapy with him for five years and continue to see him once a month just to check in because he is like a father or mentor to me. But I'm sure he would refer me if I asked him to. He is very ethical that way. Something to consider.
Thanks, Scott. I always value your posts and your kindness and interest in others.
> In the meantime, I just want to mention intranasal ketamine. You might be able to take it once or twice a week and achieve a remission that can last for years - if not indefinitely. I've seen it happen. I won't bore you with the details at this point
>
> Be well.
>
>
> - Scott
Posted by SLS on January 3, 2016, at 23:47:54
In reply to Re: Happy new year, posted by baseball55 on January 3, 2016, at 19:23:07
> Thanks, Scott. I always value your posts and your kindness and interest in others.
A friend of mine is doing very well with intranasal ketamine. Prior to this, she had received a partial, but significant response to a combination of low-dose Abilify and Lamictal, such that she was able to hold a job. Prior to this, she was severely depressed and unemployable. She hated Abilify, and because of weight gain, used it as sparingly as possible. Ketamine monotherapy has brought her to remission.
I tried ketamine myself. It didn't help at all. Most likely, I have the genotype for abnormal BDNF (brain derived neurotrophic factor) production. This is relatively rare. Most people with depression seem to have the normal genotype. Most people with depression respond to ketamine. (There are actually three tiers of response based upon three different BDNF genotypes).
My regular psychiatrist would not work with ketamine himself, but was very amenable for me to have someone else administer it. He simply had no experience with it. Perhaps you can go to someone who uses it and begin treatment. You might then be able to transfer back to your regular psychiatrist after he confers with the doctor administering the ketamine. If you do respond to ketamine, and your present doctor refuses to prescribe it, you could continue with the new doctor until you are able to reduce your visits to once every 3 - 6 months. In this way you could see your present doctor for psychotherapy regularly and not have to pay for two doctors at the same time.
http://www.psychiatrist.com/jcp/article/Pages/2015/v76n05/v76n0514.aspx
Maybe you can find a local compounding pharmacy using the following URL. I'm sure any doctor using ketamine will know where you can get it, though.
http://ecompoundingpharmacy.com/
There are no guarantees, of course. However, you will know within a week whether or not ketamine will help. You do not have to discontinue the drugs you are already taking.
I would love to see you achieve remission without unwanted side effects.
Be well.
- Scott
This is the end of the thread.
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