![[dr. bob]](/dr-bob-sm.gif)
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
[email protected]Shown: posts 1 to 2 of 2. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Jody L on August 31, 2000, at 14:30:47
I went to my general doctor with unbearable depression and requested his help, as he gave me luvox a year ago and it seemed to help at the time. I had weined myself off and been completely luvox free for 6 month then the depression came back. he then gave me luvox again but failed to noticed the dose he perscribed was at 100mg instead of customising my body as he did previously, after 2 day of taking this drug at the high doseage, thought became very "electric" and scattered, I was zipping around from one end of my house to the other, and a compulsive sense and panic sense overwelmed me, I was slurring and stuttering my speech. As the day progressed things were getting worse I could not make complete sentenses, in my mind I could phrase the words but nothing would come out, for example: If I wanted to say this sentance it woud look like this in my head; Iffff Iii ww n t sy thhhhhsssss sss....tttssss ... .. .... thhsss heeaaaddd.
I would be twitching like I had terrets syndrom without the swearing. I was makeing a lot of ticking sounds and convusling constatntly. this went on for 2 months, then the seizures started and have continued ever since, it is now going on the 2nd year of recovery. I do not have epilepsy and it is not in my family, I went through all the tests, MRI, EKG, Psycologists, Neurologests and all dismissed the fact that the luvox caused this but could come up with nothing in replace of it. all that was suggested was that seisures can mysteriously apper at any time, that one day I may wake up and never have one again. I have not taken any drugs legal or otherwise before thsi has happened. I still get panic attack, and seisures, and I don't see this letting up soon, can someone please help explain what happened and if there is a way to correct this situation?
Posted by JohnL on September 1, 2000, at 3:21:07
In reply to Luvox, posted by Jody L on August 31, 2000, at 14:30:47
Jody,
So sorry to hear of your suffering. I can't even imagine how disturbing this situaion must be.I wish I had some explanations or suggestions. The best I could do if I were in your shoes would be to seek a good psychiatrist. Not just any garden variety pdoc, but a real good one. They may for example put you on an anticonvulsant like Lamictal, Neurontin, Depakote, or Dilantin, and at the same time put you on a different kind of antidepressant. My gut feeling though is that an anticonvulsant is definitely warranted. Even people who don't have any seizure problems can find good relief of their depression with them. Of them all, I think Lamictal has probably the least side effects. On the other hand, since anxiety is a factor, Neurontin might be a good choice. It is usually more calming and relaxing.
I think an anticonvulsant may be needed in order to calm down whatever weird electrical short circuits are going on. I know all the tests came up negative, but that doesn't matter. You know for sure something is short circuiting. Anticonvulsants can tame that and possibility treat the depression and panic attacks simultaneously. The symptoms are all probably related in some intricate woven fashion. Lamictal or Neurontin would be top choices in my mind. You could add in an antidepressant later after stabilized on an anticonvulsant. But sometimes they cure the depression just fine with no need for an antidepressant.
If you go to Dr Bob's 'Tips' section and do a search on Lamictal(Lamotrigine), Neurontin(Gabapentin), mood stabilizers, new generation anticonvulsants, you could print out everything you find and bring it to your general practitioner. Who knows, he may be able to treat you with them without the need for seeking a specialist. Everything you and your doc need to know is spelled out by other docs in Dr Bobs Tips. Some general practitioners are comfortable with these psychiatric meds. Some are even better at it than psychiatrists. It's worth looking into.
Did Luvox cause all this? Who knows. My gut instinct is that there was already some weird electrical problem laying dormant, and the Luvox triggered it to come alive. But whatever, it certainly sounds like an electrical problem to me, and thus either Lamictal or Neurontin would be warranted, since they both smooth out and calm down the electricity in the brain.
John
This is the end of the thread.
Psycho-Babble Medication | Extras | FAQ
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
[email protected]
Script revised: February 4, 2008
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/cgi-bin/pb/mget.pl
Copyright 2006-17 Robert Hsiung.
Owned and operated by Dr. Bob LLC and not the University of Chicago.