Re: Zolof\\\\\Paxil

[Guest guest]

Kate, thanks, I think my husband and I may try the Paxil. He says the

Dexidrine is putting him to sleep. I need something more even than the ups

and downs of the ritalin. So far is alright with it. I'll go back and

reread some on it.

S.

Re: Zolof\\\\\Paxil

>From: Stacimom@...

>

>In a message dated 5/12/99 2:36:13 PM Pacific Daylight Time,

>lfitzger@... writes:

> -

> I take 10 mg of Paxil a day with no problems. It takes the edge off and I

am

>less likely to get really upset about things. It makes me more " normal " .

Now

>that is a scary word for a mitochondriac to use. Laurie

>

> wrote:

>I was just told by a child psychiatrist to try 5mg daily of liquid Paxil

for

>.

>snip>> If any of you know about this med. please share with me. S.

>>>

>

>Dear Laurie, , and anyone else who takes antidepressants,

> I have tried about 6 antidepressants over 3 years, and Paxil is the

>best for me--best oomph and least drowsy side-effects. By oomph I don't

mean

>hyperactivity, I mean being able to handle things in a calm, rational

manner.

> I am sure to take it after eating breakfast, and a few times have

forgotten

>to take it until later...I certainly can tell the difference in how I feel

>and think and even act.

> I am trying to clear out my mailbox, so unfortunately cleared out the

post

>re: why is on the Paxil. For depression and many other psych. info

on

>the web, I highly recommend www.pendulum.org. It is a lot of fun to surf,

is

>user friendly, and has many different areas.

> Hope this helps. Sincerely, Kate Echert Mom to Staci, RC Complex

II

>

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>------------------------------------------------------------------------

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affected by mitochondrial disease.

>

[Guest guest]

Merril,

Yest I got on the Paxil Q & A site and told my husband no way would I take

Paxil altho we had thought about it. Side effects are substantial weight

gain, loss of sexual drive, possible hair thinning...

I talked to my 26 yr old daughter about how she did on the Serzone and she

did well so we might give that a shot.

Thanks for your feedback. That must be so hard for you and your husband. If

he has Alz. how do you know he doesn't have mito? Since they feel Alz. is

the end effect of undiagnosed milder form of mito and in fact there are

studies going on to try and prove that. If other family members have mito

then why is that not a possibility? Just sharing what I have learned or

heard and wondering. We have quite a bit of Alz. in my family on my dad's

side and Parkinson's on my moms. Didn't you mention the depression in your

family also? The Alz. is on the family line with the depression and other

emotional problems. Love,

Re: Zolof\\\\\Paxil

>

>

>Hi, ..

>My husband is on Paxil for Alzheimer's. Makes him very sleepy by

>mid-afternoon. Strange sort of sleepy though. If he is involved in

>some activity, he does not feel sleepy or want to take a nap. But if he

>sits down in a chair after about 2-3 PM (he takes it in the morning) he

>will almost surely fall into a very very deep sleep. The first time it

>happened, I got very worried. It was very hard to wake him and he was

>somewhat confused for a few minutes afterwards. The reading I have

>done, the nurse practitioner in the doc's office and the AD doc all say

>this happens with some people; it has been reported before. They

>switched him to serzone and within days his cognitive abilities

>deteriorated significantly. Went back to Paxil and now things are

>almost OK again.....he is also taking Aricept and Prinivil among other

>things, so, while he is not mito at all, it may be a combo of drugs that

>produces the sleepiness.

>Merril

>

>

>------------------------------------------------------------------------

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>http://www.onelist.com

>Friends tell friends about ONElist!

>------------------------------------------------------------------------

>Brought to you by www.imdn.org - an on-line support group for those

affected by mitochondrial disease.

>

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 5/12/99 2:36:13 PM Pacific Daylight Time,

lfitzger@... writes:

-

I take 10 mg of Paxil a day with no problems. It takes the edge off and I am

less likely to get really upset about things. It makes me more " normal " . Now

that is a scary word for a mitochondriac to use. Laurie

wrote:

I was just told by a child psychiatrist to try 5mg daily of liquid Paxil for

.

snip>> If any of you know about this med. please share with me. S.

>>

Dear Laurie, , and anyone else who takes antidepressants,

I have tried about 6 antidepressants over 3 years, and Paxil is the

best for me--best oomph and least drowsy side-effects. By oomph I don't mean

hyperactivity, I mean being able to handle things in a calm, rational manner.

I am sure to take it after eating breakfast, and a few times have forgotten

to take it until later...I certainly can tell the difference in how I feel

and think and even act.

I am trying to clear out my mailbox, so unfortunately cleared out the post

re: why is on the Paxil. For depression and many other psych. info on

the web, I highly recommend www.pendulum.org. It is a lot of fun to surf, is

user friendly, and has many different areas.

Hope this helps. Sincerely, Kate Echert Mom to Staci, RC Complex II

[Guest guest]

Hi, ..

My husband is on Paxil for Alzheimer's. Makes him very sleepy by

mid-afternoon. Strange sort of sleepy though. If he is involved in

some activity, he does not feel sleepy or want to take a nap. But if he

sits down in a chair after about 2-3 PM (he takes it in the morning) he

will almost surely fall into a very very deep sleep. The first time it

happened, I got very worried. It was very hard to wake him and he was

somewhat confused for a few minutes afterwards. The reading I have

done, the nurse practitioner in the doc's office and the AD doc all say

this happens with some people; it has been reported before. They

switched him to serzone and within days his cognitive abilities

deteriorated significantly. Went back to Paxil and now things are

almost OK again.....he is also taking Aricept and Prinivil among other

things, so, while he is not mito at all, it may be a combo of drugs that

produces the sleepiness.

Merril

[Guest guest]

Hi, ..

My husband is on Paxil for Alzheimer's. Makes him very sleepy by

mid-afternoon. Strange sort of sleepy though. If he is involved in

some activity, he does not feel sleepy or want to take a nap. But if he

sits down in a chair after about 2-3 PM (he takes it in the morning) he

will almost surely fall into a very very deep sleep. The first time it

happened, I got very worried. It was very hard to wake him and he was

somewhat confused for a few minutes afterwards. The reading I have

done, the nurse practitioner in the doc's office and the AD doc all say

this happens with some people; it has been reported before. They

switched him to serzone and within days his cognitive abilities

deteriorated significantly. Went back to Paxil and now things are

almost OK again.....he is also taking Aricept and Prinivil among other

things, so, while he is not mito at all, it may be a combo of drugs that

produces the sleepiness.

Merril

[Guest guest]

>

>Dear Kate:

>

>Can you list other anti-depressants out there? Id Prozac one of them?

>

>Lynnie

There are three main Seratonin drugs: Paxil, Prozac and Zoloft. Paxil has

some pretty rough withdrawal if you stop it cold turkey and sometimes they

give you Prozac to get off Paxil. There are three other anti-depressants

that are pretty common - Wellbutrin, Seroquil and Celexa (the cheapest of

them all). There are also tricyclic antidepressants that also work on

compulsion and obsession (tend to dwell on things) - Anafranil

(clomipramine) and Pamelor (nortriptaline). Lithium and Depakote are used

for bipolar too. (Depakote is one you don't want to take if you suspect

mito).

I have been on Lithium/Paxil and Lithium/Prozac and was switched to a

tricyclic when I changed doctors. I really believe it has been the best

solution. I originally thought that my depression was due to circumstance

since it became difficult for me to control when my mom died, but I've since

noticed that there are days when everything was going ok that I just felt

sad

with really no focus to it. The lithium numbed me, and clouded my thinking

I think, and the Paxil and Prozac were part of that. When I felt like it

wasn't doing the job, I went and got the others and have been feeling normal

since. No more outbursts, no more irrational anger, no rage. And no

sadness unless there was something to really be sad about (like a sad

movie).

There are two things I would really stress about antidepressants: first,

you have to take them religiously. The right amount, every day.

Fluctuations in the levels hurt their effectiveness. It sometimes takes

several weeks to get fully up to theraputic levels, so you can't tryi it for

a week and expect results. And second: if one doesn't work that doesn't

mean none will. If you took it for the right time without good results, get

a different one. Change the dose (let the doctor change it that is).

In Colorado and many other states, depression and many other disorders have

been classified medical disorders, not mental health disorders. What that

means is that if your insurance pays for an office call, it doesn't have to

be a GP but can be a psychiatrist for the same amount of copay. Many many

more insurances cover mental health now since it's such a cause of real

medical problems. Also, the old idea that you do psychotherapy is not

really the case. Psychologists and psychotherapists *do* that if it truly

is something you need and want but most psychiatrists just determine your

medical (medicinal) needs and manage that and refer you to the others if

that's what you need/want.

I believe that everyone needs mental health support at sometime in their

lives. It's just that some of us realize it sooner than the others and get

help. Everyone I ever talked to about it in depth said the hardest thing

was going for help because they knew they should be able to deal with things

and knew how to....and just didn't. It's like being overweight - you know

what to do, it's just a matter of doing it. Well, this group more than any

other should understand just how untrue that is. Just as mito is a *real*

thing and can be treated or supported by knowing what it is, so is clinical

depression very real and controlable. It's *not* just in your head, or just

something you haven't " handled " that you need to work through, but can be a

real chemical deficit that can be corrected with proper treatment.

I'm not a doctor. Just a mom with a really screwed up physiology. My sons

show no signs of mito but they do show signs of having problems with anger

control, outbursts of frustration beyond what the rest of the world has, and

moodiness like I had as a younger person. I hope they don't try to " suffer

through it " like I did for 30+ years. There is no need to do that.

Good luck to all of you who are going through this, or have children going

through it - help is easy to find and makes all the difference in the world.

With love,

Kathy

[Guest guest]

>

>Dear Kate:

>

>Can you list other anti-depressants out there? Id Prozac one of them?

>

>Lynnie

There are three main Seratonin drugs: Paxil, Prozac and Zoloft. Paxil has

some pretty rough withdrawal if you stop it cold turkey and sometimes they

give you Prozac to get off Paxil. There are three other anti-depressants

that are pretty common - Wellbutrin, Seroquil and Celexa (the cheapest of

them all). There are also tricyclic antidepressants that also work on

compulsion and obsession (tend to dwell on things) - Anafranil

(clomipramine) and Pamelor (nortriptaline). Lithium and Depakote are used

for bipolar too. (Depakote is one you don't want to take if you suspect

mito).

I have been on Lithium/Paxil and Lithium/Prozac and was switched to a

tricyclic when I changed doctors. I really believe it has been the best

solution. I originally thought that my depression was due to circumstance

since it became difficult for me to control when my mom died, but I've since

noticed that there are days when everything was going ok that I just felt

sad

with really no focus to it. The lithium numbed me, and clouded my thinking

I think, and the Paxil and Prozac were part of that. When I felt like it

wasn't doing the job, I went and got the others and have been feeling normal

since. No more outbursts, no more irrational anger, no rage. And no

sadness unless there was something to really be sad about (like a sad

movie).

There are two things I would really stress about antidepressants: first,

you have to take them religiously. The right amount, every day.

Fluctuations in the levels hurt their effectiveness. It sometimes takes

several weeks to get fully up to theraputic levels, so you can't tryi it for

a week and expect results. And second: if one doesn't work that doesn't

mean none will. If you took it for the right time without good results, get

a different one. Change the dose (let the doctor change it that is).

In Colorado and many other states, depression and many other disorders have

been classified medical disorders, not mental health disorders. What that

means is that if your insurance pays for an office call, it doesn't have to

be a GP but can be a psychiatrist for the same amount of copay. Many many

more insurances cover mental health now since it's such a cause of real

medical problems. Also, the old idea that you do psychotherapy is not

really the case. Psychologists and psychotherapists *do* that if it truly

is something you need and want but most psychiatrists just determine your

medical (medicinal) needs and manage that and refer you to the others if

that's what you need/want.

I believe that everyone needs mental health support at sometime in their

lives. It's just that some of us realize it sooner than the others and get

help. Everyone I ever talked to about it in depth said the hardest thing

was going for help because they knew they should be able to deal with things

and knew how to....and just didn't. It's like being overweight - you know

what to do, it's just a matter of doing it. Well, this group more than any

other should understand just how untrue that is. Just as mito is a *real*

thing and can be treated or supported by knowing what it is, so is clinical

depression very real and controlable. It's *not* just in your head, or just

something you haven't " handled " that you need to work through, but can be a

real chemical deficit that can be corrected with proper treatment.

I'm not a doctor. Just a mom with a really screwed up physiology. My sons

show no signs of mito but they do show signs of having problems with anger

control, outbursts of frustration beyond what the rest of the world has, and

moodiness like I had as a younger person. I hope they don't try to " suffer

through it " like I did for 30+ years. There is no need to do that.

Good luck to all of you who are going through this, or have children going

through it - help is easy to find and makes all the difference in the world.

With love,

Kathy

[Guest guest]

....

No, no depression in family. Paxil was prescribed for Bill as an

adjunct to the Aricept that he takes for the Alzheimer's (AD).

It enhances cognition by acting on serotonin. I doubt that there is

mito in his family, although both he and one of his birth sons are

dyslexic. I read the info on Mito and AD and thought about that, so

thanks for passing your concern on. He experienced not only the extreme

sleepiness, but also some sexual dysfunction on Paxil and that is why we

tried the switch to Serzone. Unfortunately, his cognitive abilities

dropped very abruptly within a few days after the switch. We waited

several days to see if it was a matter of achieving a level, but things

got worse. So we (with the doc's permission) switched back to the

Paxil. It took more than a week before he seemed to regain some of the

ground we had lost and I am not sure that he is back to where he was

before we tried the Serzone. But again, this was done to enhance

cognitive abilities, not as a treatment for depression. And we always

have to remember that, even in non-mito people, individual metabolism

reigns. Good luck with Serzone. It must work very well for many people

or it would not be out there!!!

Merril