alecc Posted April 11, 2015 Share Posted April 11, 2015 I only know that sertraline isn't good cause they both can inhibit each other and then raise the risk of steve johnson's syndrome. I read this in a book. Are there any other antidepressants or stimulants which it doesn't mix with? For example does it mix with ritalin or adderall? And what about tricyclic antidepressants? Does it mix with them? It would be a problem if I went on it and then discovered that it doesn't mix with other drugs which I want to take or try it. I take ritalin every now and then and I also want to try out dexedrine if possible. Then I also need a new antidepressants. I have already tried a few ssri and cymbalta and atypical ADs. There aren't that many left to try. This is why I needed to know if you can mix Lamictal with TCAs in case I wanted to try a TCA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WinterRosie Posted April 11, 2015 Share Posted April 11, 2015 It would be a problem if I went on it and then discovered that it doesn't mix with other drugs which I want to take or try it. Did you know that pharmacists go to school for years to answer exactly that kind of question? Have you ever tried asking your pharmacist? Mine knows a lot about drug interactions. That's exactly what they go to school for and what they are paid to know and to pay attention to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tryp Posted April 11, 2015 Share Posted April 11, 2015 Dude, I don't understand how many more times you want people to have this exact same conversation with you. You need to find a doctor that you don't hate, and then you need to let them make decisions WITH you. Using the medical knowledge they spent over a decade acquiring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San Posted April 11, 2015 Share Posted April 11, 2015 Dude, I don't understand how many more times you want people to have this exact same conversation with you. You need to find a doctor that you don't hate, and then you need to let them make decisions WITH you. Using the medical knowledge they spent over a decade acquiring. I am so with tryp here. Doctors make the medical decisions, you do not. Pharmacists check for interactions when filling meds. You can't walk into a doctor's office and say "I want this and that". Discussion is fine, but not telling the doc what to put you on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Always Unstable Posted April 11, 2015 Share Posted April 11, 2015 (edited) I agree. I never ask for specific drugs from my pdoc. I trust him 100%. Every now and then i might have a question about a drug interaction or side effect etc but if he believes the positive will outweigh and negatives then i will always give it a go. He is also very proactive in that if I call between appointments with a problem he will call in a new prescription straight away. I think that you really just need to work on finding a pdoc that you can trust and then follow their direction. Edited April 11, 2015 by *justalittleunstable* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt07 Posted April 12, 2015 Share Posted April 12, 2015 I think you should let your doctor do the doctoring. His/her experience far outweighs whatever you read in books or online. But to answer your question, I take Lamictal and you can see by my signature that I'm on quite a cocktail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larkspur Posted April 12, 2015 Share Posted April 12, 2015 You can also try inputting the drugs into a drug interaction checker. My favorite one is Medscape. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tryp Posted April 12, 2015 Share Posted April 12, 2015 It's really not a good idea to use online checkers as a substitute for working with a physician. For liability reasons the computer returns every single possible thing, including things that are clinically irrelevant and things that are only theoretical. The OP really needs to stop using online checkers and start communicating with their care team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alecc Posted April 18, 2015 Author Share Posted April 18, 2015 (edited) Oh boy, I have all kinds of symptoms which totally disable me and no matter how I describe them to my doc it does not matter! I feel like it's all senseless. All he suggests is one AD after the other but so far NO damn AD helped me at all! If nothing works why do they not start to think outside of the box? I suffer from racing thoughts,irritability,feeling overwhelmed and this disables me almost every day and I simply feel like ADs do NOT address this freaking issue whatever it is. Something's not going right in my brain and it upsets me that I do not get a personalized treatment which pays attention to MY issues. I could as well send someone else in for me who simply says he is depressed and that's it he would get the same drugs I get. Seriously! I put so much damn thinking into my symptoms and try to come up with explanations and possible drugs which I could try and when nobody listens to me then this angers me. I could as well simply call my doc and tell him I am still depressed gimme something else it would be exactly the same. This is making me feel totally lost and helpless. I mean who puts more thinking into my problems? Me or a doctor who has like 10 minutes time each visit? Come on. I have far bigger chances coming up with possible explanations. I read much more I think much more about myself and my issues. Why not simply give something different a chance? It cannot do more than fail me like all silly ADs did. Edited April 18, 2015 by alecc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larkspur Posted April 18, 2015 Share Posted April 18, 2015 There is no such thing as DIY psychiatric care. You aren't the one with the prescription pad, and you never will be. Get it out of your head that you know better than someone with countless years of clinical experience and training and education. You don't get to pick the pills, bro. That isn't how this works. There is a world of difference between being an informed, proactive patient and trying to do your doctor's job for them. It is frustrating to feel like your doctor isn't hearing you. What I would encourage you to do is to write down all of your symptoms in a journal and to bring it with you to your appointments. Before each appointment, make a list of the top 3 issues/symptoms that are bothering you and make sure to address those with your doctor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alecc Posted April 18, 2015 Author Share Posted April 18, 2015 I already do that but what shall I do when the doc simply declines and instead suggests another antidepressant? I have tried enough antidepressants without success to know that doctors are not all-knowing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jarn Posted April 18, 2015 Share Posted April 18, 2015 Don't you give up on anti-depressants after 4-6 weeks? You're your own worst enemy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt07 Posted April 19, 2015 Share Posted April 19, 2015 Rather than suggesting meds, have you told your doctor that you don't think ADs work for you and ask him if there is anything else you can try in addition to or instead of ADs? Let him do the doctoring and suggest the meds. Also, just because you've had a lot of AD failures doesn't mean that there isn't an AD out there that will work for you. I have tried all the SSRIs and only Celexa (and Lexapro) work for me. If I'd have given up, I never would have found it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alecc Posted April 19, 2015 Author Share Posted April 19, 2015 Don't you give up on anti-depressants after 4-6 weeks? You're your own worst enemy. Why? Staying too long on an AD also makes no sense and raises risk of withdrawals. Also if I am on the max dose and notice nothing after a few weeks then it's never going to work. @ jt07 How long did you take the other ssri? And how fast did you notice that celexa works? I took lexapro 20mg for over 3 months and then only got withdrawals. That was stupid. Staying that long on a non-working drug is stupid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alecc Posted April 19, 2015 Author Share Posted April 19, 2015 Who says that? I read the same in books written by psychiatrists. Taking a drug which doesnt work for months and months and months makes no sense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crtclms Posted April 19, 2015 Share Posted April 19, 2015 Don't you give up on anti-depressants after 4-6 weeks? You're your own worst enemy. Why? Staying too long on an AD also makes no sense and raises risk of withdrawals. Also if I am on the max dose and notice nothing after a few weeks then it's never going to work. You are wrong. No pdoc would say, "Oh, just give it a few weeks." Two months, minimum. Where do you get these ideas? Oh, right, you read a book. Well, books are exactly like a pdoc, right? You certainly aren't reading any books that my father wrote a chapter in. And if you are having trouble with withdrawal, how about asking your pdoc for some help? Or does it make you feel more righteous to suffer? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WinterRosie Posted April 19, 2015 Share Posted April 19, 2015 Methinks OP is martyring themself for the anti-meds brigade. Nothing works! Getting off them is impossible and makes us sicker! ... it turned me into a newt! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crtclms Posted April 19, 2015 Share Posted April 19, 2015 Yes they do. The tail is the thing I miss most about being a newt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Always Unstable Posted April 19, 2015 Share Posted April 19, 2015 Don't their tails drop off after a while? Sad day when you lose your tail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt07 Posted April 19, 2015 Share Posted April 19, 2015 OP, I know you are desperate. I get being desperate to find a solution when you are suffering. But you need to let the doctor do the doctoring or else find a new doctor. But even with a new doctor, you have to let the doctor be the doctor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San Posted April 19, 2015 Share Posted April 19, 2015 You weren't supposed to mention the newt thing. I've been hiding that for so long... dammit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katg10 Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 Both hilarious and caustic all at once. Anyone would think you're all nuts Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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