papertrees Posted September 24, 2007 Share Posted September 24, 2007 I know it's generally not recommended, but I don't know how else to battle my depression. Maybe an SSRI can help? I am also currently taking lamictal and abilify, which doesn't do squat to control my depression. What SSRI can be used for bipolar depression? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unregistered Posted September 25, 2007 Share Posted September 25, 2007 I've been on both Cipramil and Cipralex (Celexa and Lexapro) {{edit: not at the same time, obviously}}for depression as my pdoc reckoned they were the ADs least likely to trigger mania. Prozac was real ugly for me... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OreoKitty Posted September 27, 2007 Share Posted September 27, 2007 I take wellbutrin which is not an SSRI and effexor which is an SNRI (serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor I believe). If I start to have manic signs I stop the provigil (not an AD) and decrease the effexor. So far so good with them and it's been a long time. Oreo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
null0trooper Posted September 27, 2007 Share Posted September 27, 2007 I take wellbutrin which is not an SSRI and effexor which is an SNRI (serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor I believe). If I start to have manic signs I stop the provigil (not an AD) and decrease the effexor. So far so good with them and it's been a long time. Oreo The catch for Papertrees is that Abilify is metabolized through 2 versions of a common liver enzyme, one of which is strongly inhibited by Wellbutrin, Prozac, Paxil, and Cymbalta; the other can be inhibited by grapefruit juice and possibly Fluvox. Before CB went down, I'd also found a reference to Lamictal and Zoloft not playing well together - again the issue is inhibition of a liver enzyme. (I've read that Lamictal, the Crazy Med it is, doesn't necessarily play well with med changes anyway.) There's a limited potential for interaction with Abilify and Celexa/Lexapro, but with bipolar disorder in the mix, you probably won't want the mania risk of higher dosages anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scatty Posted September 27, 2007 Share Posted September 27, 2007 Lamictal can take a while to kick in fully. My advice is to wait until you've been at a therapeutic dose for a few weeks to a month before adding an AD. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loon-A-TiK Posted September 27, 2007 Share Posted September 27, 2007 then again, an AD will take at least a week for you to really notice, and 2 for it to work, and 4 to reach a very good level. i take abilify, WB, and lamictal all together and this seems like a magic combo for me. my WB was just increased because i've been depressed, but i think the increase is kicking in because i'm starting to feel a bit better. my pdoc started me on both lamictal and WB together during my 3rd hospitalization, so i suspect it is safe. ask your pdoc all about it. i'm sure s/he knows all there is to know. all i know is what they've given me and what works in my body. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
papertrees Posted October 28, 2007 Author Share Posted October 28, 2007 I've just been prescribed prozac for bipolar depression. Will this work? And is it true that it is metabolized in the same pathways as abilify? If so, what do I do?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cetkat Posted October 29, 2007 Share Posted October 29, 2007 I've just been prescribed prozac for bipolar depression. Will this work? And is it true that it is metabolized in the same pathways as abilify? If so, what do I do?? This is from the Abilify article on Wikipedia: Aripiprazole (aka Abilify) is metabolized by the Cytochrome P450 isoenzymes 3A4 and 2D6. Accordingly, coadministration of aripiprazole with medications that may inhibit (e.g. paroxetine, fluoxetine (aka Prozac) ) or induce (e.g. carbamazepine) these metabolic enzymes may increase or decrease, respectively, plasma concentrations of aripiprazole. Basically, that means you can take the two together - but the Abilify will be a bit stronger in your system.. so you don't need to take as much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
papertrees Posted October 29, 2007 Author Share Posted October 29, 2007 Okay.. Thanks.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhy Posted October 29, 2007 Share Posted October 29, 2007 My gp. tried me on several ADs before he started to think maybe I had bipolar (I guess I should have told him about my previous two diagnoses as such, but I didn't believe it) and sent me off to another psychiatrist. Anyways, I tried a few SSRIs (Paxil, Zoloft, cant remember the others), a SNRI (effexor), a tricyclic (clomipramine)...I had issues with every single one of them (some degree of hypomania) finally he put me on Wellbutrin & low dose of Seroquel (to regulate my sleep, which I'd actually started with the clomipramine, cause I never said anything about the other hypo symptoms other than insomnia because i was adamant that I was not going to give him any reason to think I had bipolar cause as far I was concerned that was not a possability) which worked quite well. No hypo. Helped w/ the depression to a degree, Lamictal picked up the rest of the slack (although I know you said Lamictal isn't helping in that respect for you). So yeah, out of all the ADs I tried, Wellbutrin has been the ONLY one that I've been able to tolerate. But of course, that's me, and different people are going to react differently to different drugs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anelize Posted October 29, 2007 Share Posted October 29, 2007 I couldn't get out of the depression hole until we added Effexor to my mix. I take 400 of Lamictal, 300 of Seroquel, and 150 of Effexor--I haven't been down that rabbit hole in a while, thank god. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
papertrees Posted October 31, 2007 Author Share Posted October 31, 2007 So it is not so rare to prescribe antidepressants for bipoplar folks? I was just started on Prozac two days ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ophelia Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 So it is not so rare to prescribe antidepressants for bipoplar folks? I was just started on Prozac two days ago. to augment a mood stabilizer... no, it is not all that uncommon. of course, it all depends on the person and how one actually *reacts* to certain meds and med combos... can't finish... late for class... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loon-A-TiK Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 all of my bp friends also have an AD wtih their mood stabilizer, so it seems like a common practice. i think the line of thought is that the mood stabilizer alone won't necessarily prevent depressive episodes, so we need the AD, but the AD by itself. i used to take paxil with lithium and now i take WB with lamictal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ophelia Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 now i take WB with lamictal. I take wellbutrin with lamictal as well... i mean, among other things also! i think that some people have been able to get by with just lamictal due to the fact that it apparently has some antodepressent qualities or something. i guess it really depends on the person, how bad the depression is, etc., etc., etc...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
papertrees Posted November 1, 2007 Author Share Posted November 1, 2007 I wanted to suggest wellbutrin to my pdoc but apparently it is not available here in the Philippines. Being in a thrid world country has its disadvantages! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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