[vivianja]

This happened to me, and I'm okay now, but is now happening to my brother in a different city, different doctors, and I'm unable to help him, and he can't seem to help himself. Depression 'gallops' in my family. We have both done well on antidepressants for a lot of years. Last year he was told that he was bipolar or had bipolar depression and they keep trying him on different meds, none of which are helping him. He has been hospitalized twice. He has even been suicidal. When this happened to me, I went to a different doctor, and she immediately knew that I had unipolar depression, switched me to Effexor, weaned me off the bipolar meds, and within a few weeks I was back to normal and have been great ever since. My bro is miserable. Now they have him on Zyprexa, and I can't figure out how to get the message across to everyone that he is unipolar depressed, needs antidepressants, not antipsychotics or bipolar meds. I'm not sure what I'm asking here, I'm just frustrated.

[gimmeice]

Can your brother see a new doctor? or another idea is he could work with you to write down a list of things that he wants to tell the doctors and then take that to the next appointment. Sending you both hugs

[Rohag]

Hello! Yes, doctors can certainly have their pet diagnoses. Gimmeice's advice is sound. If you can put something in a doctor's hand (new doctor or old doctor) documenting your family history of unipolar depression, your misdiagnosis and subsequent successful treatment, then that might compel the doctor to take it into account.

[turquoisesea]

I agree with the above posts, they are good. wishing you the best of luck

and let us know how it goes