Posted by Racer on April 4, 2006, at 18:47:43
In reply to What about Effexor, Topamax and Lamictal?, posted by CEK on April 4, 2006, at 15:15:17
I wouldn't suggest starting anything now, before seeing a new pdoc, because there could be interaction potentials that would require you stop everything for a while next month. The good news is that 4 May is less than six weeks. (I know, not a great deal less, but gotta find something good, eh?)
On the other hand, if the Effexor was working that well for your mood and anxiety, and the Topomax was working for your compulsive eating, I think I'd call your doctor, say that you really feel as though you have to do something while you wait, and ask if those two would be OK together. If you got a rash while on Lamictal, don't think about restarting it until you've been on a stable dose of other meds for a couple of months. Reduces the risks involved. (And if the pdoc started the Lamictal at the same time as the Zoloft, he needs a spanking.)
My last pdoc told me "there's nothing left to try..." In that case, though, what I think he was trying to tell me was that "there's nothing left to try, unless you're willing to risk trying some of the drugs that you've refused to try..." I was afraid to try a couple of drugs that he really liked, because of bad reactions I'd had while taking them in the past, and I refused to take a couple of others because of weight gain. It sounds as though the doctor you saw was too new for it to be something like that, though. Sounds much more as though he's hinting that medications won't help, because your problems are all psychological. (Twist your mind around that for a while, and you'll see a little problem...) Maybe he's a big believer in the magic of CBT.
Speaking of which, do you have a therapist? Not necessarily CBT, which I'm not real big on, but just a psychotherapist of some flavor whom you see regularly for talk therapy? Optimal treatment would include both medications and psychotherapy, and if you're only getting the meds, it's worth trying the other as well. (Wait -- my aching brain tells me you do have a T. If so, never mind...) Assuming you do have a therapist, can you ask him/her for help with this? Even call today to ask?
Good luck.
poster:Racer
thread:628754
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20060403/msgs/628853.html