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Originally Posted by jtassar93
I'd appreciate any input on any of my questions.
Wow, i think i can answer all of these...lol
1. I've been on lithium for about 3 months now. My next app. is this Thursday. I read online that you have to have regular blood tests when taking lithium, but my doctor hasn't even mentioned this yet. If he doesn't mention it this Thursday, what should I do?
2. I've been on Olanzapine for about a month now. I wanted to know everyone's experiences with it, and if it worked for them.
3. I've been in a really bad place lately and worried about a bunch of stuff. When/can your psychiatrist recommend going into a hospital? It's one of my biggest fears... I don't have to if it's not voluntary, right? ....
4. How long does it usually take to get on the right combination of meds? I hate being put on something new and not knowing how it's going to affect me.
5. Once I do actually have the right combination of medications and seem to be in a good place. how often do I have to have doctor appointments?
6. Even if I'm on all the right meds, is there still a chance for a manic/depressive episode? What do I do if that happens?
7. Lastly!! All of this began in 2011, when I was still in high school. I'm 21 now and have never had a job or gone to college. I still don't have a license either. Anyone else have the same situation as me? I do still want to go to college when I'm able to.
Would it be weird being a 22 year old freshman in college? Am I still eligible for scholarships/grants if I'm so far past high school?
Thanks everyone. I'm glad I finally have somewhere to rant and ask all of my questions.
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you do need regular blood tests but i am unsure how often. i know blood tests revealed lithium was messing with my thyroid so i stopped taking it. i couldnt have been on it more than six months. if your pdoc doesnt bring it up, you bring it up. it is important.
2. i am very sensitive to meds. zyprexa worked fabulous for the first couple weeks but then i started peeing pink, i could not get my thoughts to come out in words and my depth perception got skewed and i almost fell down a flight of stairs so i stopped it.
3.if you are doing poorly, your dr can recommend hospitalization but they cannot hospitalize you unless you are a danger to yourself or others. i was locked up because the pdoc didnt think i could take care of myself but the hospital didnt agree but since she had already done it they couldnt let me out. they freed me after the 72 hours was up. just dont talk about harming yourself.
4 it took me 2 1/2 years to find the right med combo. i tried everything. but i was shooting for perfect. i would not give a med a chance if i didnt like a side effect. i would not wait for it to wear off in time or increase doses of meds that werent working within a couple months. i was constantly changing. i went thru every med there was till i found the combo that eradicated my cycles completely. doctors like to stop at good enough. i wanted them gone.
5 most pdocs see patients every three months
6 unfortunately yes. i have been stable up to two years at a time but then things have happened. my pdoc gave me an antidepressant to control my anxiety and that triggered a two month mania. two years later i have had to get off a med due to side effects and was doing fine but my ptsd got royally triggered which triggered my mania. so now i am seeing my pdoc every two weeks and we are adding other meds to try and stabilize. acutally we went back to the old med with another med to counteract the side effects.
7 i am 51. i got an aa degree out of high school. i got my second aa degree at age 41 and my bachelors degree at 44. no, it would not be at all weird to be a freshman at 22. i went to school on the pell grant and scholarships. they dont care how old you are.