What meds

ok, I have been diagnosed with bipolar 2, ADD and aspects of borderline personality disorder. Currently I am on
-Adderall IR 80 mg daily
-Xanax used as needed
-Celexa 20 mg daily (down from 40 mg daily)

I have a bad habit of not following my psychiatrists directions so I started the Celexa at 40 mg. That threw me into a hypomanic state (I didn't think I was BP2 untill this happened). My doc said go to 20 mg. I am a little more clear headed now. I have tried many meds. Side effects have always been a big issue along with them just not working. These are the meds I have tried (in order)
-Welbutrin
-Lexapro
-Effexor
-Prozac
-Lamictal
-Seroquel
-Geodon
-Klonopin

What meds are you on or what have you tried?

-Lexapro - Bad for me
-Wellbutrin - currently taking
-Lamictal - currenting titrating up
-Klonopin - currently taking - really like
-Buspar - Didn't quite work for me - It would spike right away and then drop and then gradually help - ended always too soon. Switched to Klonopin which seems to be more even for me.

Not following directions might not be the best thing - maybe discuss a window of descretion that the two of you can agree on...

Ohhhh, man. Let me see if I can remember everything I've ever tried! LOL

Prozac -- did absolutely nothing for me.
Trazodone -- worked great for sleep the first time, did nothing the second time
Depakote -- settled my mood, but I had every side effect in the book, including the liver damage
Topamax -- did jack for my mood but I lost 20 lbs!
Trileptal -- wasn't on it long enough to know, as it caused unusual bruising almost right away
Lamictal -- best thing I have ever tried, till it caused acute bone marrow failure and I nearly died. (Just so you know, the possibility of that happening is in the fine print in the package insert, and they say it's a 1% chance. Lucky me!)
Effexor -- been taking for years, does really well for me
Risperdal -- did great on it for years, got taken off, went back on a few months later, caused me to gain 15 lbs. and go into a months-long depressive episode right after I'd come out of a manic one
Seroquel -- currently taking and titrating up, seems to be working OK
Lithium -- made me sick as a dog and did nothing for my mood
Geodon -- did so little that I believe it's what caused my latest manic episode, because essentially I was unmedicated for 4 months, that's how little it did!
Klonopin -- can take it or leave it
Ativan -- MMMMMMMM, Ativan. Got taken off it when I was actively suicidal and never given it back.
Xanax -- good for quick, short-term needs but makes me sleepy
Norpramin -- worked well as an adjunct to the Effexor, got cold-turkeyed off it and everything else in the hospital when they were trying to figure out why I had bone marrow failure, and only got the Effexor and Risperdal (which I was taking at the time) back because the depression I fell into was scaring the nurses.

I *think* that's it

oh, I forgot about Zoloft and Serezone in high school. I felt like I was loosing my mind on those. I wish that the doctor I had at that time would have recongnized my ADD.

Ok here's my list of meds starting with the used to's...

Abilify-caused tingling in my head
Geodon-Irritabily
Zyprexa-made me irritated
Ritalin- Made me really manicy
Zoloft-another irritable drug
Celexa-Fared on it for years/stopped working for me 2 years ago
Remeron- Just didnt work for me
Ativan-made swings worse

Ok here's the present batch of meds..
Lithium
Lamictal
Seroquel
Loxipane
Lexapro (really small dose to prevent me from getting manicy yet helps with depression)

Oh yeah, I forgot about Zyprexa. I liked it OK. Pdoc took me off it because I'm a case of diabetes waiting to happen and he was worried about that part of it.

I haven't taken many medications but here's a list of the ones I have taken:

Lithium: Currently taking. All around, really worked for me in controlling mood swings. Doesn't take care of periodic irritability and suicidal thoughts.

Risperdal: Worked at lower dosages, but higher doses gave me the shakes and sedation as well as unresolved paranoia

Abilify: Took care of psychosis, but gave me nasty side effects

Geodon: Currently taking. Takes care of voices, thoughts and paranoia without that many nasty side effects.

Don't know if I'm forgetting any... Hard to believe there could be more than this.

Zoloft
Celexa
Xanax
Pamelor
Zyprexa
Ativan
Lamictal (prescribed, but never took it)
Lexapro
Serzone
Remeron
Buspar
Paxil
Prozac
Welbutrin
Effexor

The worst one by far, was Zyprexa. My pdoc at the time was a total idiot for putting me on that. I wish I knew then, what I know now about psychopharmacology. The effects were so bad that it scared me away from taking medication for the next 5 years.

Currently: Trileptal and Klonopin

currently taking
prozac
neurontin
cymbalta
klonopin
demerol
duragesic patch
abilify
levothyroxine
have tried adderall-bad suicidal
zyprexa couldnot drive or stay a wake
lamictal-no work
tegretol-got toxic 6 times
amitryptyln
nortryptyline
can't remember any more right now-onyx

I am so afraid of the wacked out side effects most of these drugs have. It took me so long to actually start Lamictal because of the rash thing. Most the others have big time weight gain, and I weigh enough as it is!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Lamictal does not cause weight gain, so that is a positive! I have come to the place where I may weigh a little more than I think I should, but my mental health is good. So, you have to come to a place of acceptance. Keep coming here, we will save your *** and you will save ours

Well, let's see, not too many, I guess:

Previously I was diagnosed with dysthymia and another couple times major depression. For that they tried:

Prozac (messed with my stomach!)
Paxil (same thing)

I got off them and on my own I tried:

St. John's Wort (didn't work enough, no help for mood swings, anxiety and anger/rage outbursts)

My new p-doc is saying PTSD, depression and anxiety, possibly Bipolar II, so we are trying:

Buspar
Trileptal
and now Lamictal.

Praying I don't get THE RASH. It sounds nasty and I don't know anyone else on this med.

Best,
RF

Basically, I've tried all the meds mentioned above with imipramine (sp?) & some other drug that knocked me out--I couldn't even stand up. It was some kind of sedative. Currently:
Abilify
Lamictal
Trazodone
Klonopin
Provigil
Concerta
meds for high blood pressure
Potassium because a side effect of the blood pressure med is low potassium
massive amounts of B-12 for pernicious anemia
Thyroid med
Sometimes I feel like a science experiment because the doc throws pills at me & waits to see what works, what causes bad side effects
Right now I'm pretty stable

I don't know what to do. I to crazy to take any SGA's because of all the side effects. I like medications that simple, like Adderall, the info sheet is one page, for Lamictal, you have like 50 pages. I tend to hyper focus on the worst case senario side effects. I told my doctor that I was sorry for being such a "difficult" patient....he laughed. I am up and down all over right now. I cut last week...not as bad as I used to but still....

I just remembered the one that knocked me out so much I was unable to stand--limbritrol--a very powerful sedative.--Suzy