[julie4470]

I know this is really the wrong forum but the depression forum is not very active. I also know that many of you guys deal with depression also. I am at least on the road to somewhere with my neuro I suppose. Testing has begun but as you know it is a slow process. My next appointment to discuss results thus far is in May. My biggest problem right now is this unrelenting depression. I take an anti depressant but it doesn't seem to help much. At my next appt I plan to try and pen her down on what she is thinking. If this is not a neurological problem then fine. Point me in the right direction. Do I need a psychiatrist? Do I need a chiropractor? Just tell me SOMETHING. Anyway, after all that rambling my question to you is, has your neuro helped with your depression? If so, how? If not, has anything helped? I desperately want to wake up in the morning and enjoy life again.

[SallyC]

My Neuro happened to be a Neuro/Psych. so yes. he
told me that depression is sometimes caused by the
demylination of nerves in MS. He gave me Paxil,
which saved my life.

I'm on Prozac now and my PCP gives me that.
The Paxil finally stopped working, so PCP switched
me to Prozac. I works great. I never want to go
back to that black hole of despair.

I hope your Doc can help you out..

[julie4470]

Thank you Sally. I too, took paxil for years until it finally "pooped out". Now I take Viibryd which I think is fairly new. It helped at first but not sure anymore.

[Snoopy]

Originally Posted by julie4470

my question to you is, has your neuro helped with your depression?

Depression is best treated by a Psychiatrist. A Psychiatrist is a MD and the medications used in the treatment of depression and other mental health issues is their specialty.

[kicker]

I do not suffer depression, but taught as a Special Education teacher with Emotionsally Disturbed Teens for years and saw combined medication and "talk" therapy have some success.

[KittyLady]

My neuro put me on amitriptyline for break thru pain, but it also helps me with my depression as amitriptyline is also an anti depressant. We talked about my depression and my neuro is working with me on my dosages for the med.

[tkrik]

I go to a neuropsychiatrist as well. I get the best of both combined in one. I was on Paxil and it worked great for about a year and then I ended up with a flat affect. I was switched to Celexa which I have been on for several years. However, I started on the AD as a pain management regime and am on a small dose. I will say that over the years I have felt some depression but it has usually been situational - death in the family, steroids, ending a relationship, etc. But the depression was mild. Steroids will really get me going down that slippery slope and when I went to the neuro after having them last September, they had me increase the Celexa to 20 mg for a week to help me through that steroid related depression. It really did help.

Finding something that works for you is a trial and error kind of thing. If your neuro is not a neuropsychiatrist, then seeing a regular psychiatrist is a great idea. They will be able to help you with the right medication and at the right dosage for you. Not all ADs are the same and they work differently on different people as well as some lose their effectiveness over time.

[NurseNancy]

when my depression was 1st dx'd i saw a psychologist who did cognitive therapy; talk and changing your thinking a bit.

then i started on meds. i've been thru at least 6 med switches in my life. it can take several tries until you find 1 that works for you. initially i saw a psychiatrist for the meds, then it was managed by my pcp. i con't with the psychologist and that therapy changed my life.

i owe him my sanity and the peaceful life i have now. i've been in the proverbial black hole and know what it's like. please also talk to your pcp. if your neuro isn't addressing this problem find someone else. don't give up. there is help for you. it will get better.

it also helped me to journal about my feelings.
please let us know how you are.

[julie4470]

Thanks so much for the replies. I plan on calling my neuro Monday as my first step. I am still a really new patient and doubt she even knows who I am but would think she could review my chart and at least make a suggestion. If that does not pan out, I will call my PCP who DOES know me well and see about a referral to a psychiatrist. Does this sound reasonable to you? Sometimes these days I feel like I have all these docs but yet no one is really doing anything. It is difficult to wait around when you are so desperately needing to find that light at the end of the tunnel. Another thing I am jus t curious about is this: Over the last couple years I have been prescribed Lortab for pain (like after dental work). I sort of accidentally discovered that while it was meant for the pain, it completely made me feel like a new person mentally. It lifted that black cloud. Now don't worry, I know this is an opiate and don't ever plan to abuse it, but I am just really curious if anyone else has experienced this? It is the only thing that has ever touched my depression and I find it interesting. It does not make me feel"high" or sleepy either. It makes me feel "normal", or what I think normal must feel like.

[marion06095]

I’ve been on Prozac for years. About two years ago it wasn’t working so well, so I was given Bupropion along with the Prozac. The combination works well for me. Though having MS is still a depressing thing to live with, with medication I can always see the sunny side of my world.

I went back into talk therapy when they decided to give me the additional drug, but now I just check in with the shrink every six months. In my opinion the nicest thing that medical science has done for me is to invent anti depressant drugs. It makes a big difference for me.