Seeing my pdoc today - need moral support!

Hi all,

Long time no see!

I'm writing this because I am seeing my podc today for the first time in two months - It's been that long because, until now, I'd been stablized for a year. However, due to several very stressful occurences this past 5 months, my depression is back and in a big way.

I want to switch to Wellbutrin XR from Paxil, and I'm worried she's going to say no - she kept me on Zyprexa for months, even though I told her I hated it and there's other, better mood stabilizers out there. The Paxil has very obviously crapped out. I'm on 25 mg/day of Paxil CR. I don't want to up my dosage, as I've had to do that once this year already and that, to me, means that it's just not effective enough for me anymore. I hate how the SSRIs make me feel, and I know from reading a bazillion research papers that besides Paxil, Wellbutrin has the least likelihood of causing an affective switch to mania. It also has a much lower chance of causing the agitation and sexual side effects of the SSRIs. Also, good for quitting smoking (which, due to stress, I am back to doing...ugh).

I feel so strongly about this that if she won't even consider Wellbutrin, that I will a) tell her that I will refuse to take any of the SSRIs and b)find another doctor.

I'm currently seeing a therapist every week and I'm going to be home for the holidays with very supportive, knowledgeable parents for the week around Christmas. Therefore, it's highly unlikely that any affective switch will go unnoticed.

Any ideas for courage/more scientific ammo/not getting my wishes as the patient here subsumed?

Thanks so much!

Love you all,
Anna

Hey stranger! Nice to see you again, tho sorry to hear the depression is back. It sounds like you know exactly what you want and there is simply no reason that your pdoc shouldn't give Wellbutrin a try. Especially with the smoking issue, and as they say on TV, "the low risk of sexual side effects"!

When a patient is a knowledgeable as you are, and they do as much research as you, I can't imagine why a pdoc would fight you on switching to well known, safe med.

Take care and give her heck. emmy

Hi all,

Thanks for the wishes!

Well, as it happened I didn't even have to argue. One little bit. I simply told her what was going on, and she said, "I'm adding Wellbutrin" and then she even gave me a copy of Dr. Gary Sach's book on managing bipolar from the clinical perspective (I'm returning to school this summer for graduate work in psychology....you love what you are, after all!) and it was absolutely fascinating from both a patient's perspective and a future clinician's perspective.

I'm such the nerd

Wow! you seem to know your stuff. Im impressed. I should know so much more about my meds and their effects but sadly I dont.

Glad to hear it went well with the pdoc