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Desafinado
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Default Oct 23, 2019 at 03:21 PM
  #1
Hi all. I'll try to be brief here.

I was diagnosed in 2007 and have been taking Risperidone ever since. In the early days I was taking Lamotrigine, a mood stabilizer, but took myself off of it. Since that period I've been pretty stable.

What's interesting is that I found a new psychiatrist about a year ago, an eminent bipolar researcher in Canada, and he seemed surprised that I wasn't on a mood stabilizer in addition to the Risperidone. He didn't recommend I change but he seemed surprised.

My question is: what exactly do mood stabilizers do and have they been helpful for you in combination with other drugs?
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Default Oct 23, 2019 at 03:36 PM
  #2
I take a mood stabilizer (trileptal) in combination with other meds. It keeps me from getting manic and helps my mood stay level. Lithium didn't help me, Depakote did but caused weight gain so I switched to Trileptal. The APs I take are for my psychotic symptoms which occur outside of episodes because I have schizoaffective bipolar.

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Default Oct 23, 2019 at 03:37 PM
  #3
Hi Desafinado,

I don't think Lithium or one of the anti-convulsant moodstabilizers are mandatory for everyone. I only say that because more and more I read on antipsychotic websites that some can be used as monotherapy for some patients. I know that some are quite useful for both ends of the mood spectrum and some seem to be helpful for some people for prophylaxis. Again "some people".

There are, apparently, people with bipolar disorder that can find great benefit for both depression and mania control from just the moodstabilizers. Lucky them!

Lamictal does help with my bipolar depression, but does nothing for preventing or curbing my mania. It does for others, I guess.

Lithium may or may not have done anything for me. I will never find that out for sure because I can't take it because it affected my kidneys. I think it did more at giving me side effects than true help. Others call it a wonder drug.

Depakote was very helpful at curbing my mania. Too helpful in that I became depressed. It didn't help me out of depression. Some people love it!

Tegretol is a medication I like very much. I'm not 100% sure how much it does for my bipolar disorder, but it stopped musical hallucinations, so I love it! It works for some people when no other moodstabilizer will. I think it's more known for its anti-manic effects.

The rest of the anticonvulsants I tried benefited me little or worsened matters. I read glowing remarks about some of them.

I am most benefited by antipsychotics.

Last edited by Anonymous46341; Oct 23, 2019 at 03:54 PM..
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Default Oct 23, 2019 at 03:55 PM
  #4
Hi Desefinado,

In my experience, pdocs tend to try to rely upon mood stabilizers (alone) when treating BPII. My pdoc has recently said : If you were to consult a board of Bipolar experts, at any location in the U.S., they would tell you the ideal med treatment goal is solo therapy with a mood stabilizer, preferably Lamictal.

Is your diagnosis BPI or BPII ?

Some practitioners prefer to use an Antipsychotic as monotherapy.

Do mood stabilizers work for me?

I have great difficulty tolerating most meds in this class. I have been able to tolerate Lamictal, up to a certain dose.

I am not yet sure of how much it might be helping. I do think it is helping some. I have a lot of stress in my life and this has been the case since before trying Lamictal. Thus, i am not sure if some of the mood fluctuations might be due to environmental/situational factors. We may not yet have a clear picture of the efficacy of Lamictal in my case..
I would/do recommend people try Lamictal, if their pdoc thinks this might be a good option for them. I have found it a relatively easy med to tolerate.

I hope you find the med/med combo that works best for you!

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Default Oct 23, 2019 at 04:16 PM
  #5
My pdoc insists I stay on a mood
Stabilized as well as my anti-p.

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Default Oct 23, 2019 at 11:37 PM
  #6
I'm pretty sure that Lamictal (300mg) helps with my depressive episodes. As for mania...I do think Lamictal controls it somewhat, but what I don't like is that Lamictal seems to crush euphoric mania, but doesn't seem to help with dysphoric mania at all. In other words, I've lost the hypomanic highs, but still struggle with anxiety, some agitation, and anger/rage. I don't like that about Lamictal. The antidepressant effect is a good thing, though.

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Default Oct 24, 2019 at 03:15 AM
  #7
antipsychotics. i am fortunate in that antidepressants help my low end, and i dont get drug induced mania. the anti-seizure drugs have largely been a bust. kinda calmed down. trileptal caused depression. depakote was a nightmare. lamictal was ok-ish.

for a long time, family doctors would manage bipolar i people with low(ish) doses of mid-to-hi potency older antipsychotics, plus whatever was needed for a time. psychiatrists frowned on it, blah blah bah...then the 'atypicals' hit it big in the bipolar market, now psychiatrists do the same.exact.thing, just with new drugs.
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Default Oct 24, 2019 at 03:01 PM
  #8
Lithium did a great job of calming the noise in my head, and making me calmer and happier. I started getting hypomanic episodes followed by depression, but in a way that I could recognise what was happening, for the first time ever. My pdoc chastised me for watching it happen rather than call him, but it was kind of fun. Then I got more episodes, and each time my dosage increased. Now I am feeling like I'm stupid, and can't concentrate, and some of the noise is coming back. Used to be a wonder drug, now I want off of this ride.

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Default Oct 28, 2019 at 02:57 PM
  #9
My doctors, and I've had a lot, have always prescribed a mood stabilizer with an antidepressant, and it has mostly worked pretty well. I'm on a couple of stabilizers now (gabapentin has some anecdotal recommendations as an adjunct). I haven't been manic in a long while, although still get hypomania, buts it's "slower" and easier for me to control.

My youngest daughter was diagnosed as bipolar, and her psychiatrist (who I saw ONCE and think he's a quack) started her on Zoloft and a week later she went completely ape-stuff. We're talking breaking furniture, smashing windows and kicking out doors all while screaming something unintelligible, but contained a lot of swear words. Her boyfriend called me and when she was finally controllable I took her to my doctor, explained what the other Doc had prescribed, and he immediately started her on lithium. She got a lot better quickly.

I think mood stabilizers are really indicated in some cases.

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Default Nov 25, 2019 at 05:42 AM
  #10
Yes. Lamictal has worked for me! Years ago I started taking it after one whole year of telling my psychiatrist that "No, I don't want to take it." I finally listened to her advice that I take it and I'm so glad I did! Within two days I felt like I had a new lease on life. I felt like I had been underwater and Lamictal brought me to the surface so I could breathe and live again. And I didn't even know that I was depressed!
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Default Dec 02, 2019 at 08:24 AM
  #11
Lamictal brought me out of severe depression. I wanted to die every day for months. Got a new pdoc. I was already on Abilify from the hospital. Lamictal did stabilize me. Then I went on an antidepressant for the first time in years. Welbutrin. Seems to have help with both hypomania and depression. I was totally against an antidepressant because I had a bad reaction to Celexa years ago. But I have to trust someone or I will be lost. Welbutrin has not caused any major side effects as of today. The Abilify has caused kidney problem, so I am titrating from it. Good luck with treatment.

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Default Dec 03, 2019 at 10:12 PM
  #12
Ive tried many mood stabilisers with little or no effect. The only mood stabiliser that helps me is Lithium, but it only stops me being impulsive rather than help with my moods. It is Geodon that does the magic for me. No ups, no downs, and no psychosis. Since I was put on it in February (well it took a week to take effect) I have been stable. I have cut my Lithium dose down from 1350 mg to 450 mg and it is still helping me restrain myself when wild, and now I don't have most of the side-effects. I just did a blood draw to check my Lithium levels and my health in general. Will be interesting to see what my level is.

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Default Dec 04, 2019 at 12:03 AM
  #13
Lamictal did nothing for me without an antidepressant.

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