Quote:
Originally Posted by Dix888
I am 5'10". I went from 118 lbs. at first diag. to 150 on lithium. Changed to Paxil due to lithium damaging my liver. 5 years of switching meds, got on combo that works for me. I suffer severe manias/insomnia which cause hallucinations. So am on Depakote & Seroquel. Only seroqel has helped me sleep more than 4 hours/night. I gained 45 lbs. on seroquel. So am frustrated about the weight gain. I cut out pork/bacon, eat lots of fruits & veggies. I do yoga, walk 20-30 min/day (more on weekends) climb mountains. I never sit longer than 30 min. at a time. Do sit ups. Still, the weight gain. My readings are all good (BP 120/65, HDL/LDL normal, glycemic index good) so MD told me to stop worrying about the weight. But it's annoying, especially when I used to be so skinny before meds!!! But I would not want to go back to the speed-racing thoughts, nonstop talking, climbing trees in my dresses & high heels to reach the moon & hearing trees tell me what to do----so will stay on meds. I pray every day that scientists will find meds that do Not promote weight gain. (BTW, when I was skinny, I was sick all the time---strep throat, bronchitis, high fevers. Am rarely sick since I went on the meds!)
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Ya I'm on Seroquel to sleep as well. Just prescribed 6 days ago. I had been sleep deprived since March, very manic. I'm getting about 5 hours now which is better but I'm finding that my mind and the drug are battling each other. It's the weirdest feeling. I see my pdoc tomorrow and were going to have to have a discussion about this. Getting over my anger episode of this morning I can rationalize much better now. I know I need medication, I just hate the trade off. I know realistically that I can't let my symptoms get out of control, it ruins my life and could very well kill me, so I will look at alternatives. Thank you for sharing