Bipolar Disorder Support Group
Bipolar disorder is not just a single disorder, but a category of mood disorders marked by periods of abnormally high energy and euphoria, often accompanied by bouts of clinical depression. This is the place to talk about your experience with bipolar disorder, learn from others' experiences, and find support.
Hello everyone. I guess you could say I've been lurking the past few weeks on here. Just reading your posts to each other as been a major help for me but I finally decided to join.
I was diagnosed with bi-polar 2 and primary insomnia about 12 years ago. Most of the time I've been able to manage with just trazodone to help me sleep. Right now I'm experiencing a "health crisis" as my therapist call it.
I've been dealing with dizziness issues,migraines,bone spurs in my neck causing pain and a fibroid in my uterus that I am having a hysterctomy for in 3 weeks.
I was handling everything ok until about 2 months ago. I was a restaurant manager working 60 hours a week but had decided to step down to bartending because of the health issues and stress. Around that time I started having anxiety whic his when all heck broke loose.
My pdoc prescribed lexapro for my anxiety and I ended up in the ER and the psych ward for a few hours. I could not calm down I thought I was going to flip out,wanted to punch walls,couldn't stop crying my head was pounding,etc. Thankfully my psych was on call. I cannot take benzos because they give me shortness of breath so he prescribed atarax to call me down. I did ok on it the first night,then hallucinated the next night on it. I went 4 days without sleep. The trazodone which was like my security blanket did not work. I was scared to put a pill in my mouth because of the lexapro ordeal.
Two months later after many doctors and tests for the dizziness they think it might be migraine related. I'm not sold on that but I'm paranoid in general. My main problem right now is that my neurologist wants me to start depakote for migraine prevention. I talked to my psych about it and he thinks it's a good idea and it will also level my mood out. I am so scared to try a new med (which he knows). He told me the side effects are hair loss and weight gain usually. This is going to sound awful but I don't care about either one of those. I'm afraid anything I take that is new will send me over the edge like the Leaxpro. It was the worst expereince ever. I wouldn't even take an asprin for a week because I was so afraid of what any pill would do to me.
I guess I came on here for some support and a push to get over my fear and try the depakote. I have a wonderful boyfriend,good friends and family that are supportive. I'm sorry this post was so long but I wanted to give you guys some background and it did feel good to get it all out.
I was diagnosed with bi-polar 2 and primary insomnia about 12 years ago. Most of the time I've been able to manage with just trazodone to help me sleep. Right now I'm experiencing a "health crisis" as my therapist call it.
I've been dealing with dizziness issues,migraines,bone spurs in my neck causing pain and a fibroid in my uterus that I am having a hysterctomy for in 3 weeks.
I was handling everything ok until about 2 months ago. I was a restaurant manager working 60 hours a week but had decided to step down to bartending because of the health issues and stress. Around that time I started having anxiety whic his when all heck broke loose.
My pdoc prescribed lexapro for my anxiety and I ended up in the ER and the psych ward for a few hours. I could not calm down I thought I was going to flip out,wanted to punch walls,couldn't stop crying my head was pounding,etc. Thankfully my psych was on call. I cannot take benzos because they give me shortness of breath so he prescribed atarax to call me down. I did ok on it the first night,then hallucinated the next night on it. I went 4 days without sleep. The trazodone which was like my security blanket did not work. I was scared to put a pill in my mouth because of the lexapro ordeal.
Two months later after many doctors and tests for the dizziness they think it might be migraine related. I'm not sold on that but I'm paranoid in general. My main problem right now is that my neurologist wants me to start depakote for migraine prevention. I talked to my psych about it and he thinks it's a good idea and it will also level my mood out. I am so scared to try a new med (which he knows). He told me the side effects are hair loss and weight gain usually. This is going to sound awful but I don't care about either one of those. I'm afraid anything I take that is new will send me over the edge like the Leaxpro. It was the worst expereince ever. I wouldn't even take an asprin for a week because I was so afraid of what any pill would do to me.
I guess I came on here for some support and a push to get over my fear and try the depakote. I have a wonderful boyfriend,good friends and family that are supportive. I'm sorry this post was so long but I wanted to give you guys some background and it did feel good to get it all out.
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Good Thursday to you!I've been watching a really long trial on Youtube these last couple of nights and will finish tomorrowHopefully I'll be in the land of nod soon and I hope my peeps are having sweet dreams followed by a great daySending hugs...xo
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Hey all, i know its been quite awhile since i posted on here. Its been a summer all right. Its been something else........... You know how they say not to open the can of worms? Well a few months ago i decided to find out what my due date would have been for my first baby, the one conceived by r***. My baby would have been due on March 4th of 2006. They would be 20 years old. I was R**** on June...
A med change can be scary.
But Depakote is one of the older meds it has a long history of success with mood stabilization
I wish you good luck !
I've been tried on many meds over the past 10 years, and up until a year and a half ago finally found my perfect balance. I'm on epival ( depakote) and it's been great.
Good luck.
((((Hugs))))
I'm grateful, pills have worked and improved my life... yet, bad ones, I usually give a month, and deem it awful, no help and quit. Oh Well - rule that one of the list...
Depakote was great for me for 7 years.... I'd do it again, a recent med change sucked and I thought I was taking poison, but if it would have worked 7 years - I"d puke a week or two!!!
If you don't like it - stop. But all the fear is useless energy, and if you think its going to be horrible, or you think its going to Work - then your going to watch farts and burps, headaches and hiccups - and you'll never know if it helps...
The best drugs - you wonder over coffee if the last month was better or not, LOL not introductions times - not withdrawal time, no magic pill and no reason you can't quit it...
But why not try? It could work for 10 years, if you'd give it a month or two! Depakote and lithium take awhile to just find a therapeutic level! Too little doesn't work, too much zombie..
I believe in find a good med - then tweak up and down with pdoc, to get the best "ME" with the least side effects...
IT sucks, but we are worth it - LOL I mean life has sucked the last six months for me, why wouldn't I dedicate a month or two to TRYING to be BETTER, a better me : )
It's sucks, and I hope it happens quick for you - but hold on! Give it a try : )
My psychiatrist is great. He called me back at 3am during my 4 days of not sleeping to help me. He tried to get me to take sapphris but at the time I was too scared to take it .He kept telling me we need to calm your mind down but I was determind to do it without meds because I was too scared to take anything .I went through 4 days of no sleep and my mind would not stop racing. I don't wish that on anyone. He said my family doctor shouldn't have given me the Lexapro because it can spike mania in people with bi polar.
(((hugs)))