[bipolarmedstudent]

So, I saw my psychiatrist yesterday. Two reasons I LOVE him.

1. Four weeks form now I have my final exams (6 exams). I told him this and asked him for some extra dexedrine to help me study during the next month. I have never done this before, in the 9 years I have been on adhd meds. I have always had to go without on certain days and 'save up' my dexedrine to take during all-nighters/late-nights studying. He prescribed me an extra 20 short-release dexedrine to help me out during my exam period, and said that he had no problem doing this in the future to get me through certain high-stress periods. This will be my first exam period where I feel I will have 'enough' of my adhd meds. Now I don't have to decrease doses on other days, and count how many I have left, and stress and worry about running out. I can just focus on studying. Isn't that wonderful? I love that he trusts me enough to do this. He also re-assured me that I will not develop tolerance or become addicted to my dexedrine, and I should take it whenever I need it without worrying about taking 'drug holidays' (which I have been doing all along).

2. I want to go on topamax because a)recent studies show that it can be helpful for tourette's syndrome, trichotillomania, and OCD, and b)I want to lose weight. I had asked him about topamax before, and he shot down the idea, saying it's not a good mood-stabilizer. But this time, I printed off all the articles I could find on the role of topamax in tourette's, trich, and OCD, and handed them to him, and asked him to reconsider. I thought he would be mad at me for questioning his judgement and for handing him a stack of articles. Quite the opposite!! He assured me that he wasn't mad, and said that he is willing to prescribe me whatever he thinks will help me. He promised to read all the articles (wow!) and get back to me next session. He seemed pretty on-board already about trying the topamax. I also mentioned the weight-loss aspect...again thought he would get mad at me for being vain. Instead he was extremely understanding when I told him I had recently gone up a dress size. He said that it's critical that I not gain any weight on my meds, not just for my health, but also for my self-esteem. He said that if I gain weight, that will be bad for my self-esteem, which will contribute to depression. So he said we need to be very pro-active, possibly switching my meds around to a combo that doesn't cause me to gain weight. And he mentioned taking me off valproate and switching me to topamax to see if that would be more weight-neutral. Or possibly putting me on Metformin. I just love that he takes weight gain seriously, and doesn't think I'm vain for being concerned!

So....I LOVE my new psychiatrist! He's PERFECT.

For all you people out there who are unhappy with your pdocs....keep looking. There ARE some AMAZING pdocs out there! You deserve a pdoc as awesome and understanding as mine. Don't settle, and don't give up hope! GREAT PDOCS DO EXIST!!

[lostmyway21]

Just a word of thought. Make sure you don't get the generic Topamax if your looking for weight loss. I was on non generic 2 yrs ago and I lost 40lbs. This time I was put on generic, because only insurance would cover it. I didn't lose anything.

[bowhunt72]

I love my pdoc - and I have to find a new one. She's been great, actually listens to what I have to say, she's willing to make changes as needed to make something work a little better, considers my opinions when I ask about changing meds... And she's retiring. Right now she's only in her office two days a month, so it's impossible to get in earlier or get an extra appointment if needed unless I'm lucky enough to catch someone's cancellation. Figures - that's just the way my life works. One of the other docs in the practice has been recommended, so maybe he'll be a good replacement.