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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
[email protected]Shown: posts 1 to 11 of 11. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Vesper on May 26, 2000, at 20:51:41
Greetings! Things are a little strange right now. I have been off all meds for awhile(was taking wellbutrin sr, klonopin) had bad w/d from klonopin, but I'm not sure if what I'm feeling is appropriate or what. My depression is usually attenuated, and anxiety is less than in past weeks. Seems the long term klonpin use was keeping my mood kinda low. I'm still irritable and impulsive, but not as suicidal as formerly.
hey, even Noa can read my post now! maybe I AM getting better.
:o)
Posted by Tina1 on May 26, 2000, at 22:46:20
In reply to Hey y'all...remember me?, posted by Vesper on May 26, 2000, at 20:51:41
Hey Vesper: I was thinkin about you today, wondering how you are doing. I'm glad to hear that it is better if only just a little. How goes the living arrangements, still on a boat? Missed ya but am sooooo happy for your present state of mind. Here's to a long period of trouble-less times. Glad to have you back, how could we forget ya. Don't wait so long between visits. Love ya---Tina
> Greetings! Things are a little strange right now. I have been off all meds for awhile(was taking wellbutrin sr, klonopin) had bad w/d from klonopin, but I'm not sure if what I'm feeling is appropriate or what. My depression is usually attenuated, and anxiety is less than in past weeks. Seems the long term klonpin use was keeping my mood kinda low. I'm still irritable and impulsive, but not as suicidal as formerly.
> hey, even Noa can read my post now! maybe I AM getting better.
> :o)
Posted by shar on May 26, 2000, at 23:24:02
In reply to Hey y'all...remember me?, posted by Vesper on May 26, 2000, at 20:51:41
Ves,
I am so glad to hear from you, and to hear that the harsh time has passed.Good for you, and good luck! I was worried about you.
Shar
Posted by Noa on May 27, 2000, at 10:44:01
In reply to Re: Hey y'all...remember me?, posted by shar on May 26, 2000, at 23:24:02
I had to laugh as I read that. Enjoy the improvement, Vesper.
Posted by Abby on May 27, 2000, at 15:02:42
In reply to Re: reading your post, posted by Noa on May 27, 2000, at 10:44:01
Hey Vesper, is anybody supervising you med-free? Are you still in L.A.? Do you want to try some other med?
Take care,
Abby
Posted by Vesper on May 27, 2000, at 17:25:25
In reply to Glad to hear it---still in treatment?, posted by Abby on May 27, 2000, at 15:02:42
No, I am not in any sort of treatment. I have insurance(medicare+medi-cal) that would let me go almost anywhere, but medi-cal has this arcane formula for how much I should contribute every month,and it is far more than I can afford.
Does anyone here know how long I will have to be off meds before I am back to "normal"? I mean, when will I know if what I am feeling is because of meds, or an underlying problem?
thanks! and yes, I am still in L.A.
Posted by kazoo on May 28, 2000, at 0:06:49
In reply to Hey y'all...remember me?, posted by Vesper on May 26, 2000, at 20:51:41
> Greetings! Things are a little strange right now. I have been off all meds for awhile(was taking wellbutrin sr, klonopin) had bad w/d from klonopin, but I'm not sure if what I'm feeling is appropriate or what. My depression is usually attenuated, and anxiety is less than in past weeks. Seems the long term klonpin use was keeping my mood kinda low. I'm still irritable and impulsive, but not as suicidal as formerly.
> hey, even Noa can read my post now! maybe I AM getting better.
> :o)^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Several years back, Barbara Streisand was told that Kathy Lee Gifford was going to open the World Series
by singing the 'Star Spangled Banner," and the ever boorish Babs replied, "Kathie Lee ... WHO?"
So, even those in the WONK sometimes get forgotten.Greetz to Vesper. You are rarely forgotten. :-)
kazoo
Posted by juniper on May 28, 2000, at 1:53:29
In reply to More info..., posted by Vesper on May 27, 2000, at 17:25:25
welcome back---you are probably remembered by more than you even remember!
as for how long it will take for the drugs to no longer be influencing you, the half-life of klonopin is, at most, 50 hours. with my very limited scientific knowledge, i believe that this means that after 100 hours, the drug has been completely metabolized and is no longer affecting your system (babblers: please correct me if i am wrong)
i am not so sure for wellbutrin SR. i know that studies usually use a wash-out period of a month to two months to make sure that all psychoactive drugs are entirely flushed out of the system, but this is probably erring on the side of caution.good luck with your no-meds journey! keep us updated.
juniper
Posted by bob on May 28, 2000, at 10:29:51
In reply to More info..., posted by Vesper on May 27, 2000, at 17:25:25
> Does anyone here know how long I will have to be off meds before I am back to "normal"?
> ...and yes, I am still in L.A.Well, I'd say that as long as you are in LA, you'll never be normal. =^P
Now, if klonopin's half-life is 50 hours and by "half-life" that means a true half-life decay curve, then it should drop to 0.5 of your "dosed" level in 50 hours, 0.25 after 100 hours, 0.125 after 150 hours, 0.0625 after 200 hours -- just keep taking one-half of what's left out of your bloodstream every 50 hours. That still leaves two questions unanswered. #1- at what level does it provide no noticable effect even though it's still measurable? #2- How long will it take your body to readjust once the klonopin has stopped working for you?
good to hear things are going better ... here's a musical wish for you:
And when I finally get myself together
I'm going to get down in that sunny Southern weather
And I'll find a place inside a laugh
Separate the wheat from the chaff
I feel like I owe it to someone(that someone would be yourself)
Cheers,
bob
Posted by juniper on May 28, 2000, at 16:43:13
In reply to Re: More info..., posted by bob on May 28, 2000, at 10:29:51
thank-you bob for cl;arifying my half-life misgivings. it is wonderful to be constantly learning. hope that all is well.
juniper
Posted by rupert on May 28, 2000, at 18:53:41
In reply to More info..., posted by Vesper on May 27, 2000, at 17:25:25
> Does anyone here know how long I will have to be off meds before I am back to "normal"? I mean, when will I know if what I am feeling is because of meds, or an underlying problem?
You will never really know why. If a doctor tells you he "knows", the doc is probably using language that would not be accepted in a peer reviewed publication.
"In many cases X is associated with Y, but if you Z you might N." This form of explanation is about as much as anyone can accurately say.
Half-life is one measure of a drug's effect. But drugs also cause changes in the receptor sites involved in mental processes. The basic term is up-regulation. One of the chemo-geeks here can probably shred and improve my explanation, but it is sort of like atrophy in muscles, but different. If you have neurological activity occuring in a particular network of synapses, then begin taking a drug, the synapses can form extra receptor sites, in an effort to continue the neurological pattern in spite of the drugs.
I guess some pharmaceutic regimes are designed to cause upregulation of receptor sites at certain synapses. There are also pre-synaptic changes that occur in brain cells in response to various substances - changes in g-protiens and messanger (protiens?).
Ultimately, the pharmaceutical labs know some, but not nearly all of what these drugs do. The treatment regimes are based as much on subjective analysis as on chemical theory. If they do the right thing for the right people, pass regulatory tests, and don't raise flags in the company's legal department, they find a market niche.
This is the end of the thread.
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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
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