appetite suppresant

I am currently on topamax (125mg) to stabilize my mood and help with the constant hunger that I feel. It has helped a lot, but when I added in lamictal (50mg) for my depression, the benefits diminished greatly (began to binge/purge again). My diagnosis are Bipolar II and Bulimia. Any suggestions on meds?

I don't really know of any good suggestions except Provigil... Ask your doctor about it. It'll help with the hunger pains and decrease your appetite. You can still eat on it but you get fuller faster and don't crave food 24/7. Best of luck to you.

All meds affect everyone differently, for me Topamax, did didly, my Lamictal, is probably out of all the various meds, is what keeps me "together", plus no extra weight gain, the Top didn't help me reduce or keep any off, but again everyone is different.
I wish everyone much luck with there meds and any changes.

Take care,
DE

I understood that Provigil is used for sleep apnea or sleep disorders such as shift worker disorder.

Yes, it is used for that but is also being tested and treating people with ADD. It's a type of stimulant, but it's not the type that shows up on drug screenings. What it does is hit the part of the brain that is "fight or flight". It also hits some endorphins and gives you an "up" feeling... It makes you more alert to your surroundings and helps you concentrate on things you need to get done. Part of the side effects of this medication is decrease in appetite.

Thanks for the advice, I've looked up Provigil (it sounds great -- energy all day, decreased appetite, increased focus, no interfence w/ night sleeping) & since I'm in the process of switching pdocs, I'll probably ask my new one about it.

However, my concern is that since I don't have a sleeping disorder like narcolepcy, or have ADD, as well as since this is a stimulant (& I'm bipolar's are supercautious about anything that might cause mania) I don't know if I could even try it.

Thank you for the advice, I'll talk to my new pdoc & see about it.

~Jessie

I'm bipolar as well, and the only sleeping disorder I have is insomnia, which is the total opposite of carcolepcy. But it's worked wonders for me, haven't had a bad manic episode since being on it. But of course, all medications work differently for different people. Hope you find something that works for you.

wow, that's good to know (that it's prescribed to ppl. with bipolar & no manic episodes). Do you mind if I ask you some questions about provigil (I didn't realize that you are taking it)?

If not, could you tell me how much your appetite is affected (I'm worried that if something doesn't have an acute affect, then the lamictal could interfere w/ appetite suppressant affects again). Any negative side affects with this drug, or need to reduce strenuous activity level to avoid heart problems (since it's a stimulant).

Thanks again for all of the information, this is one area where my pdoc leaves me in the dark.
~jessie

You can ask anything you want. I'll try answering the best I can.

it's affected my appetite some. Not to an extreme, but it has helped. Where I used to eat two plate fulls of food, now I only eat one and I'm full. It also gives you some energy, so you can exercise easier and do things around the house or outdoors easier than you could without it if you have energy problems like myself. So being more active from the Provigil will help you with weight as well.

I haven't had any side effects whatsoever on Provigil. It doesn't keep you awake at night like some stimulants do, such as Adderall. Just don't take it too close to bedtime, most take it in the morning and at noon. I can find you a link to Provigil side effects and general information about it if you'd like or haven't done so already.

The only side effect you might want to consider is that Provigil lowers the effectiveness of contraceptives, so if you're on the Pill, you should use some backup birth control just to be safe. Good luck!

~Alexiel

Good point, Angel. That'd definetely be something to look into... Even if you're on the pill or some other contraceptives, it'd be good to wear a condom still. Which I'd suggest anyway even without the pill because it'll help with prevention of STD's.

I took topomax too and it did nothing for me in the weight department....when I added to lacmital it still did nothing for me so my Med Dr took me off of topamax and is upping me lamictal...I am also on other meds as well....would love to have something to help with my weight...but I have Bipolar II and BPD and PTSD....I too have to watch for anything affecting my mania do not want to go there again....
but I might ask my dr about that med....

It shouldn't really affect your mania... From what my pdoc has told me, the Provigil is a type of stimulant, it isn't the same as Adderall, Ritalin, etc, etc... You can sleep when you want and still eat while on Provigil whereas when I took my sisters Adderall before my doctor put me on medication for my ADD, it made me wired and I couldn't sleep or eat much at all. Provigil doesn't have those effects on you. They say it is a side effect that could happen, but I know personally the only side effect I've had is decreased appetite and more alert. I can still eat, just don't eat as much.

It sounds good to me... I've been having some luck with topamax when I uped my dose to 150mg, but then I ran out of lamictal for a day, and when I went back on it the appetite suppresant effects were dimished (I also took 2 Vistaril for anxiety, maybe cause). It's just frustrating how sensitive topamax is to any med additions; have you noticed that provigil is sensitive to other meds (in terms of the apptite suppresant effect)?

Not really... Then again we may be on totally different medications. I'm on Lithium, Privigil, Abilify, Seroquel... Also take medication for high cholestoral, underactive thyroid, acid reflux, and birth control. The seroquel, I think, was causing me to gain a little weight in the beginning but then when I was put on Provigil, that stopped. I have gained a few pounds in the past week or so but I'm not sure why or how since I've barely been eating. I'm fixing to get my pdoc to change my Seroquel to something else because it's not working for me anymore.