Prescriptions from Psychiatrist

[JoeFailure]

She prescribed Lexapro for anxiety/depression and Adderall XR for ADHD. She said the other options were Wellbutrin or Sertera or something like that.

Any thoughts?

Thank you. I'm really freaking out about this, I've never used medication. I'm really scared I can't support myself in life.

 

[Soul]

I'm not familiar with either of those meds but someone who is will be along soon. Did she say how long they take to be effective?
Did you feel okay about her - did she seem attentive and responsive? Do you have a follow-up appointment?

(((Hugs))) I want to wrap my coat around you, Joe.

 

[JoeFailure]

I'm not familiar with either of those meds but someone who is will be along soon. Did she say how long they take to be effective?
Did you feel okay about her - did she seem attentive and responsive? Do you have a follow-up appointment?

(((Hugs))) I want to wrap my coat around you, Joe.

Yes, I asked the pharmacist too which is where I am now. She thinks it should be fine if I take the Adderall in the morning and lexapro at night.

I've just screwed up my life so badly. I'm at the pharmacy and these people are so nice and working hard. I just never understood it. It never clicked for me about following a career and making and saving good money. I'm trying now but I really do think it's too late and I just feel like this all the time.

I should have gone to the psychiatrist years ago. This is all my fault, I don't think I even deserve anyone's pity. I think I always knew something was wrong with me but I just thought I was fine because I was getting by.

So much wasted time in my life. I should've used it to further my career, help people, grow myself. I just didn't get it. Any of it. I really, really need a miracle mentally and financially now.

 

[SpanishLullaby]

I haven't taken all of those at once but I have taken all at some point together or in pairs.

Lexapro made me feel like a zombie. Even with Adderall. I stopped it immediately but everyone is different. Adderall by itself was a godsend for years until it didnt work anymore. The brand makes a HUGE difference. Name brand was AWESOME. Out of genetics Teva is garbage. I would have my pharmacist specifically order Sandoz brand.

Wellbutrin is Bupropion. Most report it makes you doze off. It made me so sleepy I started to take it at night at one point. If you have bad anxiety you may occasionally get panic attacks or labored breathing. It has contraindications for those with anxiety /GAD.

I haven't heard of the other one but if its Straterra 25mg I took that with and w/o Adderall. It was great for me for years to help depression but didnt help much with ADHD w/o Adderall. When I upped Straterra to 50mg without Adderall I became nonfunctional at work. Falling asleep several times midday.

Keep in mind every one is different. But overall those are not bad drugs. You havent mentioned the dosage though.

EDIT:
Forgot to mention be careful with Adderall. It may affect your erection. I'm a girl with a lot of hair and it contributed to hair loss and thinning. It diverts blood away from places needed / it affects blood flow (hair follicles, etc.) I also started to get reynauds syndrome in my finger tips. (Not the full blown immune disorder) my fingers would go from Red to white to blue when exposed to anything cold. I haven't taken it in years and I still have that problem.

 

[Soul]

Giving the meds a chance to do their good work is a step toward getting the rest right.
(((Hugs)))

 

[GeorgeJL]

Medications have saved me, I would have committed suicide a long time ago if it wasn't for them. Ultimately you could very well end up trying different kinds of medications until you find the right combo or that one. But the key is to keep looking until you find the ones that work. People often have this idea in their head that all psych drugs are the same, nothing could be further from the truth. Each one has a very specific action. What people especially doctors don't want to admit that is that the patient is the first one to know if a medication is working or not. If something doesn't feel right stop taking it. At the same time you must weigh if this side effect is worth it's benefit. Some symptoms you must listen to more than others. A symptom of constipation for instance is easily fixed, whereas a symptom of tinnitus you should stop right away. Talk to your doctor about any side effects.

 

[barny]

Yes, I asked the pharmacist too which is where I am now. She thinks it should be fine if I take the Adderall in the morning and lexapro at night.

I've just screwed up my life so badly. I'm at the pharmacy and these people are so nice and working hard. I just never understood it. It never clicked for me about following a career and making and saving good money. I'm trying now but I really do think it's too late and I just feel like this all the time.

I should have gone to the psychiatrist years ago. This is all my fault, I don't think I even deserve anyone's pity. I think I always knew something was wrong with me but I just thought I was fine because I was getting by.

So much wasted time in my life. I should've used it to further my career, help people, grow myself. I just didn't get it. Any of it. I really, really need a miracle mentally and financially now.

its not too late for you to do things.

 

[TimeToDie]

Lexapro is an SSRI, and SSRIs are the standard fist line of treatment for depression & anxiety today. If somebody goes to an MD complaining of depression or anxiety they have a 99% chance of getting an SSRI. Other SSRIs include Celexa (Lexapro is an isomer of Celexa), Paxil, Zoloft, Prozac, Luvox, and I think there's one other. Sexual side effects are quite common with SSRIs and these effects can include the inability to orgasm or loss of libido. As for taking it at night, it isn't likely to matter what you take an SSRI. The standard schedule is take it in the morning if you find it stimulating and take it at night if you find it sedating and if you find it neutral then flip a coin to decide when. If an SSRI works it will likely take 4 weeks and possibly longer for full effect. Studies done by the drug companies (which have strong financial incentive to be wildly optimistic) report that about 70% of patients improve on an SSRI. One should note that these same studies show that about 35% improve while taking placebo, so there is a huge placebo effect here. These studies claim to be "double-blind" meaning neither the patient nor the researcher knows if they are getting the drug or placebo. This is 100% total bull shit though, since it's blatantly obvious to everyone involved if they are getting a real drug or a sugar pill. At least it's obvious to me when the mystery pill makes me totally unable to orgasm. That effect is anything but subtle and makes the study anything but blind! Drug makers know the sexual problems and they intentionally avoid asking about sexuality in their trials. Instead they ask absolutely asinine questions such as if the pill makes you fart -- participate in a clinical trial if you don't believe me on that.

Adderall XR is a perfectly fine choice. I prefer immediate release myself, but lots of folks like the XR version. It's a matter of personal preference.

Wellbutrin: that's an atypical antidepressant, meaning it's one-of-a-kind that doesn't fit into a class with any other drugs. The major selling point of Wellbutrin is that it's one of the very few antidepressants that lacks sexual side effects. In fact, Wellbutrin is sometimes even used with SSRIs in an attempt to counteract the sexual side effects of SSRIs. I really have no idea if that's effective or not. The negative of Wellbutrin is that some people find it too stimulating and it may cause insomnia. At least that's what I hear. I personally didn't find that to be true. It's also possible that Wellbutrin may result in a trivial amount of weight loss. In fact, Wellbutrin tried to get FDA approval to market itself as a weight loss aid, but the FDA rejected their application as they felt the amount of weight loss was trivial. This too could be a significant selling point given that there are people who complain that SSRIs (and TCAs and MAOIs) cause weight gain. I did notice a minor drop in appetite while on Wellbutrin though it wasn't enough to lower my weight. This same drug is also marketed under the name Zyban as a smoking cessation aid. Seizures are a possible side effect of Wellbutrin, and back in the 1980s it was removed from the market due to seizures. That was back when the max recommended dose was 600 mg/day. It soon came back to market with a new lower max dose of 450 mg/day. I knew a woman who was very happy with her Wellbutrin -- at 450 mg -- though she had a number of seizures over a period of years due to it, but she still felt it was worth it.

 

[Final Escape]

She prescribed Lexapro for anxiety/depression and Adderall XR for ADHD. She said the other options were Wellbutrin or Sertera or something like that.

Any thoughts?

Thank you. I'm really freaking out about this, I've never used medication. I'm really scared I can't support myself in life.

My ex bf did well with lexapro, I didn't have a good reaction to it. Adderall sure it will probably help for awhile but just know that it is extremely addictive like meth and if u ever want to come off depending on how long you are on it entails a lengthy withdrawal process that could last many months to a year or more. It's a powerful drug. If I had it to do over I might have just never touched adderall. It causes so many new problems lol! The trade off I'm not sure it's worth it.

 

[Sever]

Never trusted in this poison. IMO it's better to drink or get high to feel better. After I was commited for a month and was forced to take some shit (I don't even kmow what it was) for a week after commitment my whole body was hurting as fuck, I had extremely low bp and was unable to do even the simpliest things. So I will never even touch such meds again

 

[Shamana]

Lexapro sucks as. It will numb all your emotions and give sexual dysfunction that might be permanent.

 

[DoomedxFromBirth]

I was on lexapro very shortly, I didnt like how I felt, it zoned me the hell out.

 

[MAIO]

Lexapro is an SSRI, and SSRIs are the standard fist line of treatment for depression & anxiety today. If somebody goes to an MD complaining of depression or anxiety they have a 99% chance of getting an SSRI. Other SSRIs include Celexa (Lexapro is an isomer of Celexa), Paxil, Zoloft, Prozac, Luvox, and I think there's one other. Sexual side effects are quite common with SSRIs and these effects can include the inability to orgasm or loss of libido. As for taking it at night, it isn't likely to matter what you take an SSRI. The standard schedule is take it in the morning if you find it stimulating and take it at night if you find it sedating and if you find it neutral then flip a coin to decide when. If an SSRI works it will likely take 4 weeks and possibly longer for full effect. Studies done by the drug companies (which have strong financial incentive to be wildly optimistic) report that about 70% of patients improve on an SSRI. One should note that these same studies show that about 35% improve while taking placebo, so there is a huge placebo effect here. These studies claim to be "double-blind" meaning neither the patient nor the researcher knows if they are getting the drug or placebo. This is 100% total bull shit though, since it's blatantly obvious to everyone involved if they are getting a real drug or a sugar pill. At least it's obvious to me when the mystery pill makes me totally unable to orgasm. That effect is anything but subtle and makes the study anything but blind! Drug makers know the sexual problems and they intentionally avoid asking about sexuality in their trials. Instead they ask absolutely asinine questions such as if the pill makes you fart -- participate in a clinical trial if you don't believe me on that.

Adderall XR is a perfectly fine choice. I prefer immediate release myself, but lots of folks like the XR version. It's a matter of personal preference.

Wellbutrin: that's an atypical antidepressant, meaning it's one-of-a-kind that doesn't fit into a class with any other drugs. The major selling point of Wellbutrin is that it's one of the very few antidepressants that lacks sexual side effects. In fact, Wellbutrin is sometimes even used with SSRIs in an attempt to counteract the sexual side effects of SSRIs. I really have no idea if that's effective or not. The negative of Wellbutrin is that some people find it too stimulating and it may cause insomnia. At least that's what I hear. I personally didn't find that to be true. It's also possible that Wellbutrin may result in a trivial amount of weight loss. In fact, Wellbutrin tried to get FDA approval to market itself as a weight loss aid, but the FDA rejected their application as they felt the amount of weight loss was trivial. This too could be a significant selling point given that there are people who complain that SSRIs (and TCAs and MAOIs) cause weight gain. I did notice a minor drop in appetite while on Wellbutrin though it wasn't enough to lower my weight. This same drug is also marketed under the name Zyban as a smoking cessation aid. Seizures are a possible side effect of Wellbutrin, and back in the 1980s it was removed from the market due to seizures. That was back when the max recommended dose was 600 mg/day. It soon came back to market with a new lower max dose of 450 mg/day. I knew a woman who was very happy with her Wellbutrin -- at 450 mg -- though she had a number of seizures over a period of years due to it, but she still felt it was worth it.

In multiple countries now exercise is prescribed before SRRIs. Antidepressants, especially Srri are not twice as effective as a placebo. There is debate that they are effective for severe depression. However for mild/moderate depression they rival exercise at best in effectiveness

Antidepressants and the Placebo Effect

Antidepressants are supposed to work by fixing a chemical imbalance, specifically, a lack of serotonin in the brain. Indeed, their supposed effectiveness is the primary evidence for the chemical imbalance theory. But analyses of the published data and ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

 

[ProhibereDolor]

Ssri's have kept me alive thus far. I've been medicated since the age of 8(now 33). I have tried tons of different drugs. I'm currently on wellbutrin, seroquel, clonidine, propranolol, amitriptyline, gabapentin, and temazepam. I've been sequestering away pills in case I want to go that route but probably won't. But you never know. Problem is my doc says my "issues" are treatment resistant. Pretty much all I can hope for is some med to come out that will scratch the surface. Even on that friggin cocktail of meds every day I'm still sitting here on this site. I've already decided how it's gonna happen. I may just eat a ton of pills to go along with my chosen method.

Best wishes

 

[TimeToDie]

In multiple countries now exercise is prescribed before SRRIs. Antidepressants, especially Srri are not twice as effective as a placebo. There is debate that they are effective for severe depression. However for mild/moderate depression they rival exercise at best in effectiveness

Antidepressants and the Placebo Effect

Antidepressants are supposed to work by fixing a chemical imbalance, specifically, a lack of serotonin in the brain. Indeed, their supposed effectiveness is the primary evidence for the chemical imbalance theory. But analyses of the published data and ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

I'm not at all impressed by antidepressants either and I've tried a dozen of them. Like I said, it's blatantly obvious -- from side effects such as anorgasmia -- that you got the real drug rather than a placebo. This obviously biases clinical trials. Since knowing you got the real thing is likely to make you believe that it's working since patients typically hold the belief that drugs actually work. Even the color of a pill can influence how "effective" it is -- blue placebo have a calming effect, while red placebos help depression, and I suppose that a half red/half blue pill might be just the perfect placebo for somebody who is both nervous & down.

It was mere months ago that the FDA approved J&J's "new" and ultra-expensive esketamine spray. It was put on the fast track to approval as it's been 30 years since the market has seen any new antidepressants. It was approved despite that fact that one trial showed it to be no better than placebo. J&J, of course, intentionally avoided testing it against generic ketamine. There have been literally no advances in the effectiveness of antidepressants in the last 60 years. SSRIs & SNRIs, which are the standard today, are no more effective than the TCAs which were phased out due to being useful suicide drugs, nor are they any more effective than MAOIs which could kill you if you eat blue cheese or take amphetamines, etc...

 

[JoeFailure]

So I got freaked out by what I've heard about Lexapro so I didn't take that yet. I actually had a good first day on Adderall though. By good I mean I actually had moments during the day that I didn't think about ctb, not actually good. But that was an improvement.

I had forgotten to mention what my psychiatrist said when I said I was hesitant to take either one. She said "you need to, you've already wasted so many years". Thank you for that, not like I haven't been ruminating about that endlessly for the last 3+ months.

 

[TimeToDie]

So I got freaked out by what I've heard about Lexapro so I didn't take that yet. I actually had a good first day on Adderall though. By good I mean I actually had moments during the day that I didn't think about ctb, not actually good. But that was an improvement.

What's your dose? You're not alone, just about everybody likes amphetamines. When I got dextroamphetamine back in 2010 it make me think that living yet another day sounded quite reasonable. That was later switched to Adderall (which feels the same), but after a couple of years the effect wore off. But it was good while it lasted.

 

[JoeFailure]

What's your dose? You're not alone, just about everybody likes amphetamines. When I got dextroamphetamine back in 2010 it make me think that living yet another day sounded quite reasonable. That was later switched to Adderall (which feels the same), but after a couple of years the effect wore off. But it was good while it lasted.

Ugh that scares me that the effect can wear off. But maybe if it can get me through a couple of years, life will be better and I can function more even with it wearing off. Right now I'd be impressed if I made it 2 years so I guess I'd take that.

My dose is 10mg once per day, in the morning, right now. Is that a safe amount?

 

[TimeToDie]

My dose is 10mg once per day, in the morning, right now. Is that a safe amount?

XR comes in 5 to 30mg sizes, so I'm sure you can safely use 10mg. My prescribed dose was 20mg 2 or 3 times a day (immediate release version), though I virtually never took that much.

I entirely stopped amphetamines from 2014 to 2017 because they can't be taken with MAOIs. After I stopped MAOIs I went back on Adderall for excessive daytime drowsiness but when I started Adderall again after years off it I found that my tolerance did not reset and it still wasn't nearly as potent as it had been way back in 2010.

 

[Morphinekiss]

I've tried a lot of medications and lexapro has been the best for me, especially at controlling my slight ocd. Everything else was like a sugar pill, did nothing. Wellbutrin worked well but I have epilepsy and it made my seizures worse.

 

[justanotherday]

I have tried most of these Meds for depression, anxiety, OCD, and ADD. I simply cannot tolerate the horrible side effects they cause.

 

[Beautifulletdown]

How are you doing? I hope the medication has helped. It's so hard to gauge from other people because everyone's body is so different.

 

[justanotherday]

How are you doing? I hope the medication has helped. It's so hard to gauge from other people because everyone's body is so different.

Yes, that is a good point. These medications effect each person in a different way. I have tried Meds in the past that are supposed to help with sleep, and usually knock most people out, only to have the total opposite effect on me.
I feel like crap, yet feel even worse whenever I try taking any kind of medication.

 

[Beautifulletdown]

Yes, that is a good point. These medications effect each person in a different way. I have tried Meds in the past that are supposed to help with sleep, and usually knock most people out, only to have the total opposite effect on me.
I feel like crap, yet feel even worse whenever I try taking any kind of medication.

I understand what you mean. I've tried everything including Ketamine, TBS and TMS but my brain is an asshole and nothing seems to work. I think this last round of meds fucked me up bad.

 

[k75]

I had forgotten to mention what my psychiatrist said when I said I was hesitant to take either one. She said "you need to, you've already wasted so many years". Thank you for that, not like I haven't been ruminating about that endlessly for the last 3+ months.

What the hell??? That is not something a therapist should ever say to anyone. I think the important thing is that you're taking steps to get better now. So it really doesn't matter what happened in the past or what you didn't do, you're doing stuff now.

Anyway I think you should give the drugs a chance. They usually takes several weeks to fully kick in so you have to be kind of patient, but if you find they don't work for you then you can always switch to other ones. But unlike a lot of people, I think that medication can help but it's just a matter of finding the right one which is pretty difficult.

I know that adderal is kind of energizing and makes you super focused and able to concentrate better. You have to be really careful with it though, because it can be addictive. But if you take it as prescribed then you shouldn't have a problem.

I have not taken Lexapro but I have taken celexa, and I thought celexa was pretty good. It did not zombify me and it just kind of made everything less intense, so I was able to just go about my life and not worry so much. But I had to switch from it because it wasn't really helping my depression in the long term.

I was on Wellbutrin for a while. The main side effect I noticed was appetite suppression. Not necessarily a bad thing I think. It also made me have more energy and I just felt like doing stuff that I hadn't had the energy or motivation to do before. Then I went off hit for some reason I don't even remember. Sorry.

 

[LittleJem]

So I got freaked out by what I've heard about Lexapro so I didn't take that yet. I actually had a good first day on Adderall though. By good I mean I actually had moments during the day that I didn't think about ctb, not actually good. But that was an improvement.

I had forgotten to mention what my psychiatrist said when I said I was hesitant to take either one. She said "you need to, you've already wasted so many years". Thank you for that, not like I haven't been ruminating about that endlessly for the last 3+ months.

You might be lucky and the medication might change your life. Mine has improved my depression a lot. It's really worth trying. Not everyone is treatment resistant.

 

[Astral316]

I'm on welbutrin and lithium just to appease social security and the courts.

I kind of envy those who are actually effected by these pills. A few may keep me up at night, otherwise they're basically just placebos for me...

On the other hand, give me cannabis and I'm a happy camper.

 

[justanotherday]

I understand what you mean. I've tried everything including Ketamine, TBS and TMS but my brain is an asshole and nothing seems to work. I think this last round of meds fucked me up bad.

I am so sorry you have trouble with medications as well.

 

[Beautifulletdown]

I am so sorry you have trouble with medications as well.

Thanks for always being so kind.

 

[justanotherday]

Thanks for always being so kind.

You are welcome. I can relate to what you say.