Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with tegretol

Any recommendations for a helpful mental health practitioner person in the area of Portland, Oregon?

brisquette — Thu, 21 May 2009 13:25:55 -0800

Any recommendations for a helpful mental health practitioner person in the area of Portland, Oregon? After a few stressful months of medication issues, my boyfriend and I have lost a lot of faith in our psychiatrist, and are looking for additional forms of help and advice, whether a therapist, counselor, or even just a different psychiatrist. We'd both been on ADD medication for a while (I'm on Adderall, he was taking Vyvanse) when my boyfriend (Charles) began to feel that maybe he was depressed. So in January, on the next trip to the psychiatrist, the doctor gave him a prescription for Zoloft. That seemed to be going pretty well, but I didn't ask too many questions about it because I didn't want him to feel weird about being on anti-depressants.

A month later, his prescription ran out right as we were leaving on a 2 week vacation to the other side of the country, and my kind and funny boyfriend started acting like a manic irritable whackjob who saw mystical signs everywhere.

Once we got back to Portland, I managed to get him into the doctor's office again after a week or so, and by the end of the session the doctor was worried enough to put Charles on Zoloft for a little longer, but had him taper down over about a week. The doctor also sent home a sample bottle of Zyprexa, with vague instructions ("take this if stuff gets too much, or if you get too irritable.). This curbed the manic behaviour, and things settled down for a while, but he was still acting weird and saying weird things, and our friends started to notice and get concerned.

This gets us to the beginning of April, when I get a call from Charles' work, since I'm his emergency contact. They think it's best if I come pick him up. They had a meeting to discuss his erratic behaviour, and it became obvious he wasn't in a mental state to talk about it. So another round of calls and doctors appointments and now meetings with human resource folks follows. The doctor now decides that mood stabilizers are in order. Hellooo, Tegretol.

Life has calmed down a bit. My boyfriend's on meds, he's back at work, and we can talk and hang out and be a couple again. Although his work and his union has been really great about all of this, it's been a downer for our relationship and our friendship. Walking down the street can be overwhelming for him. After months of coping with all the ups and downs, I'm starting to get exasperated, even though I know better.

We both are carrying a grudge against our doctor, for various reasons. Neither of us feel that he gives enough practical information about the medication he dispenses. The recent incidents surrounding the antidepressants made me remember how little info I got when the same doctor first put me on Adderall. I used the internet like crazy, but it feels like I had to dig up my own solutions, even though this guy is supposed to be really good at ADD stuff.

My impression is that the doctor didn't give my partner enough warning about how anti-depressants are sort of a big deal, and the last thing you want to do is go off of them suddenly.

Our doctor also seems too willing to indulge philosophical meanderings, which is fine when you're feeling normal, but even when Charles was getting over the paranoid, manic episodes, the doctor didn't tone down the philosophy, and it left Charles feeling weird.

The last time we saw the doctor together, the doctor said that the episodes and behavior were signs of something that probably would have come out anyway, in a couple years. After spending the last couple months scouring the Psych/Disorders section at the bookstore, I do see his point, but it's also really hard not to have him even even acknowledge that maybe none of this would have happened if my partner had just stayed on the medication. I have close friends who've given me way better practical advice than our doctor has, and that's disappointing.

So I'd like to go see a new doctor, psychiatrist or otherwise . Charles is a little burnt out on meds and doctors right now, but accepts that after the last couple of months, it's important to have someone sane to check in with every now and then. He's still on the Tegretol, but is disgruntled about the apparent complications that medication has brought into his life.

I don't know enough about the big wide world of mental health people to know exactly the term for what I'm looking for. Someone who can be practical about real life, someone who will help us find our personal goals and then follow through with them. Someone who's good at talking to a couple of ADD twentysomethings.

Carbamazepine/Tegretol for bipolar disorder?

Anonymous — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 14:55:28 -0800

What should I expect when taking Carbamazepine/Tegretol for bipolar disorder? Should I expect it to do something clear in regard to the depression? I've been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and that's explained quite a number of things. Generally, I've been told I have unipolar depression, but after a period of pretty much going batshit taking Effexor, I was told this (among a number of other i-thought-unrelated problems) is a clear sign of bipolar disorder and was prescribed Tegretol. What should I expect? There's supposed to be a "mild" antidepressant effect, but how long should I wait until it happens? I've only taken it for a day so far, and it seems to have quelled the noise in my head quite a bit, at the least setting a speed limit on my thoughts, helping me function with average situations without getting anxiety attacks from being immediately overloaded with emotions. Should I hold out for a boost in my mood? I'm still feeling pretty grey, but it's not as bad and while I'm functioning I think I could be doing better. My psychiatrist said that a low dose of Welbutrin (as "regular" doses send me into mania) will be the next step if my mood doesn't pick up, and I know I have all sorts of personal tells in re: my mood, but I want to know some of the hivemind's experiences.

Are generic and brand name drugs exactly the same?

samh23 — Wed, 13 Jun 2007 13:05:17 -0800

Is it possible for me to experience different side effects on a generic drug vs. its brand name equivalent? The drug in question is neurological. I take Tegretol for epilepisy (siezure control), 200mg twice a day. Yesterday my doctor gave me a new writ, and I took it to a new pharmacy. I didn't realize they gave me the genetic Carbamazepine until I got home. Figuring it was exactly the same, I didn't worry about it.

Now I feel tired, somewhat out of it, and most humorously, I am slightly slurring my words. It's like I'm on a bit of cold medication. None of these side effects are uncommon for the drug. But I've been taking Tegretol for 20 years -- I'm very familiar with it. I didn't experience these effects (or experience them to this degree) on the brand name. That said, I could just be tired, sick, stressed, etc.

Is it possible that Carbamazepine is the culprit? Shouldn't the two drugs be exactly the same? I mean, a chemical is a chemical...right?