Bipolar support thread

Sueinbirmingham

xXMessedUpXx wrote: »

It's not just me then. Its frustrating as i feel i need an AD adding to my mood stabliser as the ms alone doesn't lift the depressive symptoms. Can i ask what techniques you use to cope with the depression?

The ones that come to mind, not in any order of importance...

Talk to friends and relatives on the phone every day
Exchange emails with people on the internet every day, even if it's only one
Aim to help at least one person every day
Chat with my neighbours when I bump into them
Find some reason to go out every day, even if it's slowly plodding to the late-night shop when it's dark out and the shop is quiet so I'll feel safer
Take fish oils and eat fish (flax is an alternative source of omega 3 if you don't want fish)
Get plenty of sleep no matter what time I go to bed
Stroke my cat
Try to keep some sort of a weekly rhythm with chores
Do voluntary work
Listen to music
Listen to plays, sitcoms, dramas
Engage in spiritual activity

de1amo

i feel slightly 'blue' today---avoid alcohol--i have also noticed in my old age when i drink i am getting a verbally angry 'drunk'--i dont drink very much or often and judging from last night i should give up altogether -it does slightly raise my mood initially--as the drugs subdue me!

the_devil_made_me_do_it

I can't drink at all now. It puts me on a high, then I go really low for quite a few days after, & it can get to the point were I require 7 day course of diazepam.

the_devil_made_me_do_it

Seroquel..anybody experience of this medication? I understand it cause weight gain, how do people deal with it?

sarah*a

the_devil_made_me_do_it wrote: »

Seroquel..anybody experience of this medication? I understand it cause weight gain, how do people deal with it?

uurgh - hated it hated it hated it :mad: :mad: :mad:

I put on about 3 stone in 2 years on it and it made me feel like I was swimming in treacle all the time - everything was so meh! so hard to do. And I was on a really low dose of about 150 - 200mg.

I think a lot of the weight gain is caused by the fact you just can't physically do as much as you could before.

When I first took it I took half in the morning and half at night but after about an hour it would knock me out cold and I'd sleep the day away - so I changed it so I was taking it all at night and was at least awake in the daytime even if I couldn't get anything done.

A friend of mine is still on it and he calls it the 'seroqual haze' as he spends the first couple of hours after he wakes up just unable to focus on anything.

My MH Care Worker has told me that the difference in me since I stopped taking it is amazing - I'm dressed when she comes round - and have usually been up and out and about - whereas before I was literally dragging myself out of bed minutes before she arrived and would go back to it when she left.

I spent practically the entire time I was on Seroquel in bed or in my bedroom :mad::mad:

So - not a fan

I liked Depakote though :rotfl:

System

the_devil_made_me_do_it wrote: »

Seroquel..anybody experience of this medication? I understand it cause weight gain, how do people deal with it?

I was on it for nearly a year. At first it did supress the hypermania but after a while it seemed to stop working. I found it very sedating and i put on a lot of weight (daamnit why can't they make mood stablisers that don't make you put on weight!!)

Ralphy101

Hi Everyone,

A week last Thursday, I went to see a shrink, after a couple of months seeing a mental health nurse.

He has basiclly indicated that I have rapid cycling mood disorder - I am assuming this is Rapid cycling bi polar?

As I am sure all of you are aware and share my symptoms of the hights - the inflated ego, the go get them attitude, the "everybody fancies me", the surge in energies, the need to buy everything in the highstreet ( the reason why i ended up here in the first place - debt boards!) the ideas at work.... Then out of nowhere a black haze - colours are less vivid, music is not enjoyable, life is one big drag, the "im so ugly" looks in the mirror, i cant get out of bed! My boss calling me scruffy, people are talking about me... my gf is cheating on me... the come home from work and fall asleep.... The panic attacks whilst driving on the motorway.. the i think im going to die soon.

After big low over xmas, i decided to seek help... after a history of anti depressents ( 3 seperate occansions since 2003) - I fathomed it was more than unipolar depression - as previously described - i would get this amazing feeling of power and belief every now and again. My relationships have always been rocky - My ex and i Split on 6 occasions in a 3 yr period - all my own doing - The manias - the binge drinking the need to go and party... It has also happend in my current relationship and has got worse since the birth of my child... during a manic episode - (prior to my semi - diagnosis) - I suffered from what i can only recall a severe paranoia trip on a night out with my gf, and ended up punching a man - to whom thought was talking about me - my gf testifies he didnt say a word! needless to say i ended up in court and was fined - cementing my belief i needed help - fast!

I got a copy of the letter that my shrink sent to my gp - basiclly states , and i quote " it seems he has rapid cycling mood disorder" - and that he would benefit from "depakote 50mg twice a day " up to 150mg. " I will be seeing him again in 4 weeks".

May i ask a couple of q's?

1) Does anybody have any experience of depakote?
2) Can i take this as a formal diagnosis - or would that happen in 4 weeks time?
3) Am i entitled to any financial help? - i.e. prescription costs, carer benefit for my partner?

Many thanks for reading, this - it was nice to be able to get some things of my chest, and hope to be a part of this forum from now on.

de1amo

casting my mind back to when i was first diagnosed as bi-polar it was deemed that i could get no certain diagnosis until i had two manic episodes under the jurisdiction of a consulting doc- it may have all changed in the years!
As for finances it depends on your circumstances-i pay a yearly fee as normal to get my numerous meds because of my income-mental health in that respect gives you no privilages over any other medical condition

Ralphy101

de1amo wrote: »

casting my mind back to when i was first diagnosed as bi-polar it was deemed that i could get no certain diagnosis until i had two manic episodes under the jurisdiction of a consulting doc- it may have all changed in the years!
As for finances it depends on your circumstances-i pay a yearly fee as normal to get my numerous meds because of my income-mental health in that respect gives you no privilages over any other medical condition

The manias, are quite frequent - I am currently keeping a mood chart just to record how frequent.. last week i was somewhat in a hypermood - giggling at anything, and life was good, this week im feeling a little low - not low enough to count as depression though.

What about DLA?

sarah*a

Ralphy101 wrote: »

I got a copy of the letter that my shrink sent to my gp - basiclly states , and i quote " it seems he has rapid cycling mood disorder" - and that he would benefit from "depakote 50mg twice a day " up to 150mg. " I will be seeing him again in 4 weeks".

May i ask a couple of q's?

1) Does anybody have any experience of depakote?
2) Can i take this as a formal diagnosis - or would that happen in 4 weeks time?
3) Am i entitled to any financial help? - i.e. prescription costs, carer benefit for my partner?

Many thanks for reading, this - it was nice to be able to get some things of my chest, and hope to be a part of this forum from now on.

Firstly - Hi and Hugs to you for going through all that without a diagnosis! I know how confusing it all is

Depakote - I loved it, sorted me out no end I was taken off it because my pdoc decided he didn't like it and put on the dreaded Seroqual :mad: You generally have to have fairly regular blood tests with it because - as skipsmum said - it can cause liver damage and there are other side effects too (hair loss is one I had).

I'd wait the four weeks and ask the pdoc (shrink) if it's a formal diagnosis and ask if he means bipolar - there are so many different variations of MH disorders and the difference between them can be practically invisible.

I have rapid cycling bi-polar and from the minute I started my meds I noticed a difference - my highs aren't so high anymore although I do still get 'too over-excited' and shopping brings out the worst in me My lows are less frequent but still crippling on occasion.

As for the financial help - I receive DLA but I have never been sectioned and have had only one super-high since I've been under formal care - however, as I said, I do get incredible lows and cannot take anti-d's to help as I react very badly to them.

It goes on individual cases so is worth applying once you have that formal diagnosis. We were advised to apply for Carers allowance for my OH when he was unemployed for a while but I was already getting IB/DLA then so not sure how it works if you are getting neither.

Definately go for the prepaid prescriptions if you are getting a few items a month as it's well worth the savings

Good luck :cool: