[arieus84]

I am 25 and I suffer from bipolar disorder. Not only that, but I also have horrible anxiety and I suffer from sexual trauma based PTSD. I started out taking Paxil for the bipolar disorder. That was working great until last summer. Then I started having an over load of stressful things happening and my depression got worse. So, my doctor switched me over to taking Celexa coupled with a low dose of Valium. Now, I still have the mood swings, just not as severe, but I still feel as if something is not right. I'm wondering if I should talk to my doctor about going back to the Paxil or is there something else I could try that would help both the severe anxiety and the bipolar? Also, if anyone has any advice or insight on dealing with this issues at the same time, that would be a great help. If this is not where this goes, then I deeply apologize.

Thanks for the help guys.

[Amazonmom]

I would think a mood stabilizer like lithium, an anticonvulsant, or even a drug like Seroquel would be better for bipolar than an antidepressant. My anxiety is tied to my manic symptoms...lithium has wiped out the anxiety almost completely. I thought I had an anxiety disorder it was so bad.

Mood stabilizers may or may not treat the depression directly, but they do prevent the mood swing from happening in the first place. Lamictal works pretty well for the mood swings and the bipolar depression for example.

I've got Bipolar and PTSD...and taking an antidepressant by itself sent me into a hypomanic episode that really scared me.

Good luck with your doc...and get a pdoc if your current doc won't go the mood stabilizer route. But that's just me being bossy LOL

[thinker22]

Everyone's chemistry is unique, but I too am bipolar and Paxil gave me a manic episode where I was doing dangerous things. Celexa made me irritable, tired, and have insomnia. So, SSRIs aren't necessarily good for bipolar depression. True, they work on some to relieve the depression. For me, only Wellbutrin has helped with energy for the day and no negative side effects. Effexor, an SSNRI, made me severely depressed after the shaking wore off.

I also have PTSD from childhood abuse. The Seroquel helped me get calm at night, not have so many intrusive thoughts and be able to sleep. Again, this is all my experience and yours may be different. If you've been diagnosed with bipolar I wonder why your Dr hasn't prescribed a mood stabilizer like Lamictal or Lithium. I haven't started Lamictal yet, but just got an Rx. I hear it prevents the swing into severe depression and doesn't interfere too much with hypomania, so you can still have good days where you can accomplish things. Hope this helps.

[Amazonmom]

I think it's Bipolar +PTSD day today...

Hope all of us find the right meds....

[arieus84]

Thanks so much for the info guys. I'm supposed to have a check up appointment with my doctor in the next few weeks and I'm going to ask him about the medications you all mentioned and see if he thinks one of them might fit me better.

It's also really good to hear that I'm not alone out there. Some days, it just feels very lonely living with these issues, but for once, I know I'm not alone and that there are those of you out there that understand what it feels like. Thanks.

[jattitude]

hello, I agree with the mood stabilizers, they do help out quite a bit. I was on lithium for a few years and just recently switched to lamictal and abilify. they all seem to work well for me, I prefered the lithium but was skeptical of long term side effects so we switched, good luck to you, Jen