Lexapro

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I've done this several times and being a daily drinker let me just say that it's always easier said than done. This is how I do it. If I'm averaging about a pint of vodka a day (whatever the equivalent of that is in beers or wine), if on Saturday I have a full pint, then Sunday

I drink half of that, which is obviously a half pint. That half pint may not even register in terms of how "buzzed" I feel after it. If I drink it fast (within five to ten minutes) I may feel something close to a buzz, but not for long. This is where it gets tough, because if you are like me, you can't help but think of getting another half pint if not more. But I remind myself that I'm weaning off, not increasing the amount I'm drinking. It's also helps to remember the reason I'm doing this to begin with. In my case for example, I do it for several reasons, one is that I know from experience just how miserable I feel when I'm feeling the withdrawal symptoms when I've tried to do it cold turkey. The other, which is the main one really, is that I want to feel better and not have to depend on alcohol to feel better or get by. I always have a real hard time sleeping that first night, it's normal if I don't get any sleep at all. I'm so sick of people saying (usually AA types) that lack of sleep doesn't kill you. It is not pleasant to say the least, but if I really want to wean off completely, it's the price I have to pay. Because of the lack of sleep, I'm very tired and irritable that whole next day (Monday) so instead of cutting it down again to a quarter of a pint, I just keep it at a half pint that night. I do sleep Monday night, but not well, and not for very long. Usually not more than four or five hours, but compared to an hour or no sleep at all, it's a lot. Tuesday I do cut it down to a quarter pint, or switch to a couple of beers. Again, I may not get much sleep that night but because I slept ok the night before I usually have the energy to go for a long walk, for at least an hour (sometimes two hours if I have the time) this I do just to physically tire myself so I may get some sleep, if any. Amazingly enough, the exercise does the trick. Again if I don't sleep well or at all, I'm not happy about it, but it's all part of the process.

Come Wednesday I have a quarter pint or two beers again. I should mention that I usually don't go out to drink during this whole process, simply because it's too easy to

just blow the whole plan of weaning off if I'm out. I stay in and don't really socialize

by going out until I'm done weaning off. Even then it's hard for me to go out and not drink. When Thursday comes is when I don't have any alcohol at all. Believe me, my body misses it, and I've blown it at this point several times. If I can get that Thursday and Friday without any, I'm in the clear. The only problem I have is sleeping. The only way I know to handle that is by exercising, usually just long walks, sometimes biking

is good too. Hope this helps.

It shouldn't stop working, no. Have you been going to your regular therapy so you can learn how to deal with stress and your depression? That's the only sure cure because if you're not doing therapy, your depression is going to get worse over the years. Lexapro is a good antidepressant because it has few side effects and doesn't make you drowsy like some of them do. If you're working on the therapy end regularly, and still having depression, ask your psychiatrist about adding a second drug (like Abilify) or trying some non-medication treatments like sunlight bulbs for seasonal depression.

Another thing that works with many people is to get out of the house and do something for someone else - volunteer at your local shelter or hospital, or join Habitat for Humanity or another charitable organization.

Hi there

Lexapro is a fairly good drug, but like most there is not 100% accuracy. Also, while dealing with bipolar there is usually what they call a "cocktail" meaning trial and error of several medications and perhaps being on more than one medication to balance the brain chemistry.

I suffered from panic attacks, Agoraphobia and then depression during the 70's and my doctor put me on "Amitriptyline" which worked wonders for me. The biggest complaint of SSRI's (for depression) is weight gain, but I managed to control my weight by watching what I ate and exercising as well as drinking 8 -10 glasses of water a day.

If you would like more answers and more research done on this please email me and I would be happy to give you more information.

Marcy

The way it was explained to me by my Dr. is that Lexapro isn't mood-altering. It simply maintains your seratonin levels so that you don't get rock bottom depressed or stay there.

I'm starting to wonder, however, if this isn't the drug for me or if I'm treatment-resistant.

Please don't give up, everything takes time. It's hard to be patient but in the end it will pay off.

Good Luck!!

ANSWER

I took Lexapro and WellbutrinXL for depression for 4 years and began "rapid cycling" into depressive episodes. My psychiatrist added Lamictal, a drug for Bipolar II. I've been amazingly stable for the last 1-1/2 years and so my doctor is letting me slowly stop taking the Lexapro and WellbutrinXL - and yes, I'm having the awful physical withdrawal symptoms, but not the emotional ones. We're going to see if the Lamictal by itself is sufficient. If so, it's worth it all.

ANSWER

My personal experience has been that it has worked fantastically for me. I have had everything and took this as something that was only supposed to work for the prevention of bottoming out. I'm "rapid cycles" type (often misdiagnosed as scizos because people leave out the things that we DO NOT share when our illnesses are not properly medicated) and I notice that finding the correct medicine is a matter of "personality" not diagnois. All of us have seen medicine that works great for someone else; we try it and..... nothing. After going through that time and time again you begin to lose faith in the Pharms' to make anything to help and that you'll be stuck down this hole the rest you life because what you've taken in the past has never gotten you to where you were before your illness reared its ugly head in your life. DON'T GIVE UP!!! Keep trying everything, even the drugs you've been told won't work for your affiction.

E-Mail me at: tpm4063015@yahoo.com There has got to be an answer. Best of luck.

rest, dring lots of fluids, and eat healthy. MAKE SURE TO WASH YOUR HANDS!

washing your hands will not help you recover from a cold but this is important as it will stop other people from catching it.

I have been taking Lexapro for about a year and it does not make me high at all. The first we I took it, I felt a little overly happy but that's it. If you want to increase your dosage, I was told to go up a half a pill each week but stop at 2 pills at the most. (first week: half a pill, second week: one pill, third week: one and a half pills, fourth week:two pills) Taking an extra pill than you are suppossed to does not make you high, it can make you throw up and lose your appetite.

ATTENTION: I AM NOT A DOCTOR, SO DO NOT TRUST THIS COMPLETELY. DIFFERENT PEOPLE APPLY TO DIFFERENT DOSAGES.

• My 5 1/2 yr. old son begins Strattera (10 mg. going to 20mg. after one week, depending) tomorrow. He is curently on Valproic Acid (Depacote) for a seizure disorder named Lennox-Gastaut. His neurologist suggested that if the Strattera turns out to be ineffective that Adderal is next. Because of his seizure disorder we have addressed his:

1. Seizures w/Valproic 2. Sleep Disorder w/Benadryl

Now we find ourselves with a seizure-free, full-night sleeping child that has a 5-10 second attention span. I'll let you know how the Strattera works.

• I am 18. I have ADHD inattentive type, (aka ADD). I'm a very bright kid and if you met me in person, you couldn't tell. I tried switching from Adderall to Strattera for a summer between middle school and High School. It made me extremely irritable, paranoid and anxious. It appeared to be anger and irritability to my family. I went back to Adderall and felt much better. However, last year i went to see an ADHD specialist in my area and she prescribed a much smaller dose of Strattera (18mg for 1st week, followed by increasing the daily dose to 36mg) to be taken at night. This also helped my trouble sleeping. My previous dose was around 200mg per day, taken in the morning. Obviously WAY too much. Now on the smaller dose I feel much better. I still take 40mg of Adderall in the morning and 20mg in the afternoon. I can function normally and sleep more than 3-4 hours a night.

• He's just a kid. Who's giving him all this stuff? Even just taking one of them can be dangerous. Check ritalindeath.com for information on how to take him off the stuff, what to do instead, and which other sites would come in handy.

• My son was in to see the doctor yesterday and has been diagnosed with severe ADHD. I was wanting to put him on Strattera and was told that it only addresses part of the problem. I was told with my son Strattera would be great working in conjunction with Adderal or Ritlin. So that is likely why he is on both Adderal and Stratera. Hope that helps. We have tried about everything natural for my son. We were very nervous about meds. Now it has come to the point that his ADHD has caused him to be extremely depressed. Natural ways don't always work and sometimes medication is the only way to give these poor children a normal life. They deserve to be happy like all the other children.

• My Nephew was on both Strattera and Adderall. It seemed to cause anger issues. Once the Strattera was removed, the anger dissolved.

• I am 19 and have depression, anxiety, and panic disorders. I was taking Wellbutrin SR and Adderall. The Wellbutrin is for depression and I was taking it twice a day. The Adderall I began taking a few months ago after being diagnosed with Adult ADD. I noticed that I became immune (tolerant) to it and the doctor increased my dosage. Over the past month I have been a mess, EXTREMELY irritable, cannot concentrate on anything, feel "spaced out" all the time, horrible memory, etc. which made it very difficult to make and keep friends and do well in school. I finally went to the doctor today and he switched me to Wellbutrin XL, a higher dosage of Adderall (2x a day), and Strattera. My dad didn't like the idea that I was on so many meds and just did not understand it. I now see that Strattera is used WITH other meds and not alone. So it basically boosts the other meds. As for the Adderall and Strattera mixing, well, I was prescribed both, so it was not just you. I thought it was odd because I thought they were the same, but after reading several things on the internet I have found that it is normal to take it with other ADHD meds.

• My son and daughter only take Strattera and it works great. I believe that the increased anger some people have noticed when used in conjunction with Adderall is not from the Strattera, but the Adderall, or more correctly from the combination therapy. I noticed that when my son took Straterra in conjunction with a Ritalin based product, he was wildly hyper, and I believe the same to be basically true for Adderall. The Ritalin based products my children were taking needed dosage increases every 3 months consistently, which I believe to be necessary because the body adjusts to the meds so a higher dosage is needed to get the same results. Adderall is the same. In the evening hours when Ritalin based products would wear off my children were especially hyperactive (even more so than before they started meds) and decreasing the dosage caused withdrawal symptoms. This pattern of Highs, Lows, and withdrawal symptoms tells me that these drugs are addictive. I stopped giving him the stimulant drug altogether and kept him on Strattera only and within a day he was normal again. I would not recommend combining Strattera with Adderall or a Ritalin based product. But, after a year of Straterra following a year of a Ritalin based product, I could not recommend any stimulant even taken alone.

• I have a 15 year old son that takes Risperdal and Strattera. It seems to be working at the present time. He has OCD, ADHD and a tic disorder.

• My son is eight and has ADHD. Please note although Risperdal is widely prescribed for children. It is NOT, I repeat, NOT approved for use in children by the manufacturer, Janssen. Closed clinical trials, those required by the FDA to approve efficacy have not been done for children. Respirdal can cause certain serious and potentially permanent side effects in children and adults. Go to www.risperdal.com for more info. I have switched psychiatrists because he wanted to combine Adderall and Risperdal. The Adderall appears to work. Also note that the prescribed dose for Strattera is 1.2 mg per kilo of weight. He also got that wrong. Bottom line, in my opinion, go to the manufacturer's website for the best info.

• I only take Adderall and Strattera. The closer I take Adderall with Strattera, the stronger my bad symptoms: I experience indigestion and severe nausea. I was able to solve this by taking Strattera at night and Adderall in the morning. I haven't been aware of other symptoms or decreased effectiveness.

• My son is 10 and has been on Metadate CD for 3 years for ADD. It worked well, with the exception of reduced appetite, stomach sensitivity, and difficulty focusing on homework in the late afternoon/early evening. This summer we switched to Strattera (40 mg 1Xday). It helped minimize some other symptoms of mild anxiety (he is doing more independently); however, it doesn't seem to do enough to address the focus deficit. His Dr. prescribed a combination of Strattera (40 mg) and Adderall XR 10 mg in the am, plus Adderall (Amphetamine Salts 5 MG) 1-2 tablets around 4:00 pm if needed for homework. I've looked on line for info on the combination, and haven't had much luck other than a recommendation to take the Adderall in the am and the Strattera in the pm. Any advice or warnings would be appreciated.

• Mothers and caregivers are very perceptive and not all treatments are going to work for all children. When your child is having a bad reaction to a single medication or combination therapy, do not hesitate to phone your doctor and voice your concerns:

  you must be the one to sound the alarm! If your doctor dismisses your concerns, you

  are wise to get a second opinion...or third, fourth...whatever it takes until you and

  your child are satisfied. Most physicians want happy patients and caregivers. They are human and can only make determinations based on the limited information they have when deciding what may work. Many times, it is "trial and error." Until optimal

  dosage(s) and choices of medication(s) are reached, the control issues are difficult

  for the family as well as the physician. Keep really good records: make a log of your

  observations of your child (including teachers' and others' observations) and how the

  symptoms relate to the time of day, how long after administration of the medication,

  and your own personal rating scale. Your intuition and "red flag alarms" need to be

  trusted. The more objective data you can offer to the physician by phone and during

  office visits, the faster you will get the results you need. When others comment about the direction you have chosen for your child, whether "natural" or with FDA approved medications, remember that you are the boss and you "know best." Then, give their criticisms the few minutes they deserve and forget about them. They do not walk in your shoes. Any time you or your children experience a side effect from any medication, you are encouraged to call the FDA at: 1-800-FDA-1088.

• Another useful piece of advice may be to ask for partial month supplies of the more expensive C-II's (controlled drugs such as amphetamines). Some manufacturers offer trials and you can get these on line or from your doctor. Strattera is not a C-II, so when you go to the pharmacy, you can ask them to give you a partial fill. In this way, if the medication works, you can still get the remainder, but if it doesn't work your pocket will not sustain the loss. In the case of C-II's, you can ask for a smaller quantity, but you will not be able to get the remainder.
• I agree that this seems like an awful lot of medication for a child this young, but I also agree that it is your decision that matters most and how much you trust his doctor. My son is 9 and on Lexapro only. I was worried at first with this med because the manufacturer specifically says that it is not for children under a certain age, which included his age. So I was like why are they giving him this? Well it has worked great for him, no side effects except sleepiness when he first started it. Plus we have a great psych doc that I also see and my so does my 15 year-old. You could also discuss all these meds being prescribe together with your pharmacist-they are a good source of information about drugs and interactions. You could also get a second opinion. But some of these drugs are high risk and your son should be watched closely. I also posted an answer to your question with my use of Adderall and Strattera as an adult.