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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
[email protected]Shown: posts 1 to 17 of 17. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by mworkman on September 12, 2005, at 14:23:57
Is abilfy for Social Anxiety? Does it make you more social?
Posted by ed_uk on September 12, 2005, at 15:14:37
In reply to abilify for social anxiety?, posted by mworkman on September 12, 2005, at 14:23:57
Hi,
How are you doing on Nardil?
~Ed
Posted by MoparFan91 on September 12, 2005, at 16:55:23
In reply to abilify for social anxiety?, posted by mworkman on September 12, 2005, at 14:23:57
No!
Not for me.
I took it at 2.5mg, then 5mg, recently to try to help depression, social phobia, and some attention issues. I took 10mg one other time but hit jackpot on side effects. At first, I had a decent anti-depressant and pro-motivational effect. I praised the drug at first. However, several weeks after being on it, the bad side of the drug came about:
Great paranoia
Extreme fear around people
Feeling scared
Dark moods
Marked guilt giving way to suspicious personality
Altered perceptions giving way to mild delusions
Warped thinking
Hyperemotionality
AgitationI went off it, and these symptoms abated as the drug left my system over 2 weeks.
My dopamine should really not be tampered with. This bad reaction from the drug was presumably due to dopamine excess from Abilify's dopamine agonism.
> Is abilfy for Social Anxiety? Does it make you more social?
Posted by mworkman on September 12, 2005, at 17:09:14
In reply to Re: abilify for social anxiety? » mworkman, posted by ed_uk on September 12, 2005, at 15:14:37
I'm not on nardil anymore.
Posted by Phillipa on September 12, 2005, at 19:12:45
In reply to Re: abilify for social anxiety?, posted by mworkman on September 12, 2005, at 17:09:14
So nardil isn't what everyone says it is? Fondly, Phillipa
Posted by Chairman_MAO on September 13, 2005, at 9:40:46
In reply to abilify for social anxiety?, posted by mworkman on September 12, 2005, at 14:23:57
No. Abilify will not work for social anxiety unless they're due to psychosis and the like. Try a robust medication such as Nardil for social anxiety. SSRIs do not work.
An alterantive is clonazepam, 2-4mg/day.
Posted by mworkman on September 13, 2005, at 11:28:54
In reply to Re: abilify for social anxiety? » mworkman, posted by Chairman_MAO on September 13, 2005, at 9:40:46
Do you just say that because it is an antipsychotic? I'm already on paxil and klonopin 2mg.
Posted by Chairman_MAO on September 13, 2005, at 14:04:33
In reply to Re: abilify for social anxiety?, posted by mworkman on September 13, 2005, at 11:28:54
I say that because its receptor binding profile does not resemble that of anything known to be beneficial in social phobia beyond a pilot study.
It often makes people anxious and induces akathesia, which is the last thing someone with social anxiety would want. I have tried it, and it was HORRIBLE.
I suggest you increase the clonazepam as necessary (2-4mg/day is a common dose for social phobia), discontinue Paxil, and add Nardil, starting at 45mg/day and increasing SLOWLY. Since you are already on clonazepam you may not need the 1mg/kg phenelzine normally required.
Posted by ed_uk on September 13, 2005, at 14:47:51
In reply to Re: abilify for social anxiety?, posted by mworkman on September 13, 2005, at 11:28:54
Hi,
Why are you not on Nardil anymore?
~Ed
Posted by med_empowered on September 13, 2005, at 15:06:27
In reply to Re: abilify for social anxiety? » mworkman, posted by ed_uk on September 13, 2005, at 14:47:51
antipsychotics do sometimes help people with anxiety...its an old off-label tradition; if you notice, things like Stelazine and Mellaril were (sometimes still are) prescribed to those who were anxious and weren't adequately helped by benzos. That said...I'd try the benzo approach first, maybe adding something to the Klonopin (like prn Ativan) instead of continually upping the Klonopin, since drug-induced depression can be a problem. If you decide *not* to take an MAOI, Buspar can be a useful add-on...30-45mgs is a good dose for a lot of people. You might get some help from antipsychotics, but I think you'd be best served by trying the more conventional routes first...one little-used option would be adding a bit of Limbitrol, the elavil+librium combo, to another antidepressant (I think you can add it to an MAOI, but its tricky). Low-dose tricyclic therapy helps a lot of people, so you could probably take a couple Limbitrol tabs daily and get a lot of benefit. Good luck!
Posted by Lazarus on September 13, 2005, at 18:06:31
In reply to abilify for social anxiety?, posted by mworkman on September 12, 2005, at 14:23:57
I took 5 mg Abilify today and my brain has felt completely scrambled. I am stumbling, staggering over words which usually flow easily from my mouth. I'm calm and relaxed, but at what cost?
Lazarus
Posted by MoparFan91 on September 13, 2005, at 18:28:01
In reply to Re: Abilify - Cognitively blunting, posted by Lazarus on September 13, 2005, at 18:06:31
If SSRI's or atypicals fail, you can try GABA-based meds/agents such as benzos (not the most recommended, though, due to addiction issues). But. Klonopin in the class is the least addictive one, though, and is thought of highly. Other classes of GABA-based meds are the anti-convulsants like Neurontin, Topamax.
Also, there are supplements that work on GABA:
Taurine, GABA (bonded with Inositol and Niacinamide), Niacinamide, Picamilon, Theanine, Magnesium, Kava Kava (not sure if it's GABAergic)In my experience for social phobia, Don't take anything that messes with dopamine or norepinephrine. It will just amplify the anxiety status and tension around people. Wellbutrin (which touches those), Tyrosine, stimulants, Abilify (which agonizes dopamine), all did this to me.
Posted by Iansf on September 13, 2005, at 18:47:11
In reply to Re: abilify for social anxiety? » mworkman, posted by Chairman_MAO on September 13, 2005, at 9:40:46
> No. Abilify will not work for social anxiety unless they're due to psychosis and the like. Try a robust medication such as Nardil for social anxiety. SSRIs do not work.
>
>
SSRIs worked for me for social anxiety. That is, Prozac and Luvox worked - very well, as a matter of fact - though Citalopram, Celexa and Lexapro did not. Had it not been for side effects, I would be on one or the other of them now.
Posted by jonh kimble on September 14, 2005, at 22:47:28
In reply to Re: abilify for social anxiety?, posted by Iansf on September 13, 2005, at 18:47:11
I for years (literally), had a very strong belief that dopamine enhancing drugs were, at least for me, the way to go for social anxiety/phobia/avoidance/low confidence/depression/etc... I still believe this slightly, as dexedrine in combo with something calming, does help. However, I think this connection does not have a very strong basis as I have experimented with most of the powerful dopaminergics over the years, from ritalin to mirapex to amisulpride to coffee and cocaine ect... The tendency that I notice is that dopaminergic drugs make social phobia WORSE much more often than make it better, and I think a few others here agree with me. It (dopamine) has a role in enhancing confidence, but I find it has a bigger role in makin you/one nervous as hell, hypervigilant, and if not flat out paranoid when with people. You could be different, but even the dysthymic depressive social phobics more often find this to be true. Go with klonopin, nardil, group cognitive behavioural therapy and last but not least, really look into assertiveness training. All of these (well I cant say nardil yet) give me the rush I was sure only a dopamine based drug could. Good luck
Tom
Posted by Emme on September 16, 2005, at 6:25:27
In reply to Re: Abilify - Cognitively blunting, posted by Lazarus on September 13, 2005, at 18:06:31
> I took 5 mg Abilify today and my brain has felt completely scrambled. I am stumbling, staggering over words which usually flow easily from my mouth. I'm calm and relaxed, but at what cost?
>
> LazarusTry a lower dose and see what happens.
Posted by Lazarus on September 16, 2005, at 17:40:44
In reply to Re: Abilify - Cognitively blunting » Lazarus, posted by Emme on September 16, 2005, at 6:25:27
> Try a lower dose and see what happens.Thank you. I'll try 2.5 mg tomorrow.
Lazarus
Posted by Emme on September 16, 2005, at 23:27:48
In reply to Re: Abilify - Cognitively blunting Emme, posted by Lazarus on September 16, 2005, at 17:40:44
>
> > Try a lower dose and see what happens.
>
> Thank you. I'll try 2.5 mg tomorrow.
>
> LazarusJust curious - I assume you're taking it in the morning? I wonder if the cognitive blunting might be reduced by taking it at night so you sleep through the worst of it. The half life is long, so that might not matter. But it might be worth a shot anyway.
emme
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