Posted by Racer on December 3, 2008, at 23:15:54
In reply to Advice on effective antidepressant, posted by flip777 on December 3, 2008, at 20:31:51
> Hello,
> New to the forum.Welcome to Babble! There are a lot of great people here, and it can be a good place to find information and support. I hope you find it to your liking, and decide to stick around a while.
>Currently taking valproic acid 1000mg, effexor 325mg, mitrazapine45mg, trazadone 75mg, buspar 5mg. PTU 25 mg for hypertyroidism.
The best answer I have for what is an effective anti-depressant sounds flip -- "the one that works for you." The problem is, everyone reacts differently, your mileage will vary, etc. I can tell you that I couldn't survive on what you're taking, for example.
I've got a little more helpful advice, too, though -- at least, I hope it's helpful to you.
Effexor is often seen as the "old faithful" of psychopharmacology -- it seems to be effective and tolerable for many people. The problem is, it tends to stop working after a while. How long have you been on it? It may be that it's time to cycle off it -- often, people can take a break from a medication like Effexor, take something else for a while, and then come back to it and find it more effective again. If you've been on Effexor for a while, it is probably worth discussing alternatives with your doctor.
You don't mention your diagnosis, but with the valproic acid, I'm guessing some flavor of bipolar? If so, maybe trying another mood stabilizer, one known to help with depression, might help? Lamictal is quite good for many people, and if you haven't tried it, it's probably worth giving it a go. Lithium is another option to consider -- it is the gold standard, and is often used to augment antidepressants.
The Remeron Trazodone pairing makes me wonder, too -- Traz is more often used for sleep than depression, and Remeron often fills that purpose, too. Maybe another option would be more helpful? Rozerem, while not a "knock you out quick" drug, is often good for resetting sleep patterns, and augmenting antidepressants.
As far as anxiolytics, I like Buspar, because I react badly to most others. That's me, and I'm apparently quite weird...
Best luck to you, and I hope that was at least a bit helpful for you.
poster:Racer
thread:866530
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20081123/msgs/866562.html