I'm glad that my posts are helping, but I've been considering stopping.

Seroquel works very quickly for me. When I take a 50mg prn (as needed) dose, it usually only takes 45minutes to an hour for it to work. But it does take time to figure out the right maintenance dose, and if I'm any proof, the right dose to bring someone down once they are manic/hypomanic, too.

It's been helpful in managing my paranoia and anxiety.

Dan's lucky to have you so close since you can easily recognize when he's manic. Since I've stopped drinking it's a lot harder for my husband to tell when I'm hypomanic unless I start scrubbing the walls, etc. To be honest, I do hide things when I can.

I'm glad that he's started to become compliant again, no matter what the reason. It must give you peace of mind to know that he'll be safer.

Steve has been a great help to me because of his years of experience on Seroquel.

Kay

Thank you Kay. Yes,I've been taking Seroquel for years. I have this weekly pill tray with four compartments for each day. I take Seroquel two times a day. Twenty five Mgs at dinner time,and 600 Mgs before bed. Taking the meds help stop a relapse before it gets started.

At one time I was under medicated in the 80's. I was very troubled,but some how I got through it. I was crawling up the walls,and started having pains in my chest,that went through to my back,and went up to my left arm pit area.

I started taking meds for OCD around 1990,and I could tell it was helping. They changed my med to Luvox around the mid-90's. It was better then the other OCD medication.

I've been on the Xanax type medication for many years. It's vital to keep the dose small, so it can work over the long run. If people take more,and more Xanax,that can start problems,and then it stops working all together.

In the late 90's,to 2005,I started crawling the walls at work,and became very agitated. I was infuriated about the way I was treated at work. I forgive them,because they know not what they were doing. In 2006,I became hyper, agitated ,anxious , depressed, panic/afraid,and etc. I with drew from the public,and moved to where most of my family lives,and was changed to a team of medical professionals,and put on Seroquel,and the other medications,and I was able to sleep. I noticed that my hyper type feeling had calmed down somewhat.

I am aware that I'll be on these medications for the rest of my life. I hope that they develop better medications.

What the Country needs to do is help people with mental health issues like they do with physical problems,but they don't. They must stop stigmatizing people who have these problems. Like I've said before,we didn't stand in line before life to get these mental health issues. We can't chose,and are stuck with the affliction like people with physical ailments. I don't see much public compassion for people with mental health issues. People fall between the cracks,and are stigmatized.

This is a major blind spot right out in front of doctors practicing medicine. They need to drop the prices of mental health treatment,because the person who is going through mental health issues won't be able to afford it more then likely if it's bad enough.

The news is way out of line when they have been talking about "Mental Problems" recently on the news. They should talk about the difference between sociopath type behavior,and people who have mental health issues. BF

My pdoc is pretty blunt. When she explained Wednesday that I was going to have to accept some level of sedation at times, she reminded me that our treatment goals remain the same 1) keep me alive and 2) keep me out of the hospital. Your treatment goals are probably different than mine. Every time I escalate it scares the (expletive) out of me, and I have ample reason. You know enough.

With your support I thought I was finally making progress last week and was going to attain something beyond those goals, even if it meant I would be adjusting meds and living in the gray area at times. I thought Gabapentin was the silver bullet and I was finally evening out...

Enter agitated mania again, where the symptoms are obvious. I'm in a unique position. I have to endure it, but only for as long as it takes to get enough med in me to quiet it. But even that is too long to wait. If you haven't experienced it, I don't expect you to understand what an hour of it feels like. There is no fine line there like there is with typical mania and hypomania- at least not for me. And it doesn't take long to get there.


Self-assessment is stressful when it comes to milder symptoms, but it will be easier now that the new plan is to stop second guessing myself and just medicate. There will come a time when things settle down and I stop escalating. Medicating will be probably be a lot easier then no matter what the plan is. In the meantime, I am still dosing at 50mg at a time to try to avoid Seroquel sedation.

When I was taking 300mg of Gabapentin, I started taking it 3hrs before bed to avoid the am sedative effect. However, last night I took 600mg right before bed and woke up slightly sedated, but not manic. Today is a better day. I only had to take 100mg Seroquel prn. I am going to continue to take Gabapentin in this way until things quiet down more.

I spent 7-8yrs snowed on heavy meds and time went by quickly. I watched a lot of TV and did a little bit of this or that in between. And that became acceptable. I expect I'll be doing the same again, but it will be a heavier level of sedation with Seroquel. At least it won't be an everyday occurrence.

For the first time I think I was on too much med.

The 600mg dose of Gabapentin shut the mania down fast and the amount of Seroquel I needed during the day dropped off quickly after that. I haven't needed any prn Seroquel for 2 days. I started waking up sedated again despite pushing the dose back 3hrs before bedtime. I think once I came down, it became too much med for me.

Last night I took 450mg (3/4 of a 600mg tablet) at bedtime. I didn't wake up sedated and haven't had to take a prn yet. I'm feeling pretty good today.

I see my pdoc Friday. She lets me play with Seroquel, why not Gabapentin? I figured it was worth a shot. I won't make anymore changes without discussing it with her though.

kay I think you are amazing!
bizi

I'm looking forward to reporting good news to my pdoc for the first time in a long time on Friday. I saw her a week ago today. Usually by this time I've escalated again, but I've had no signs of hypomania again this morning and that is significant progress.

The Seroquel was obviously helping control my anxiety a lot. The Xanax is doing nothing again this morning now that the prns are gone. But I have to put it in perspective: it's an easier issue to address when compared to finding the right maintenance dosing. And I'm not going to let this take anything away from the progress I've made there.

Kay,

I hope that the Fri appt goes well.
You have made great progress.

Mari

It's strange to have to kind of ask myself- or make myself do something again. I was right to question my judgement... I must have been higher than I thought I was much of the time.

how did it go?
bizi

It takes a lot to self regulate.

We get can get pretty good at it once we are in a comfortable range, but we need an MD we love who is watching out for us.


M