:) hi everyone, just want to let you know that things are looking up. after a years struggle with ajusting my meds, i think that we finally have it under control. i am now taking 100mg lamictal, 1000mg depakote, and 150mg wellbutrin. what a great combination this is for me. i finally feel like my normal self again, i never thought i'd get here. hopefully my pdoc agrees that i'm doing well. i'll be seeing him next week.

:blob_fire I have also started doing some vollenteer work at a hospital working in a gift shop. i'm doing it twice a week and love it. it's been a really long time since i've had a job, so i figured this was a good place to start.

;) i just wanted to let everyone know that there are better day's comming. sooner or later you'll find the right combination of meds that will work for you. just hang in there.

wish you all the very best :angel:

harmony

Hello Harmony,

What wonderful news.:blob_fire :blob_fire Thanks for stopping by to tell us. Lots of this disorder is learning how to live with it and manage it. When you find the right meds, it makes such a difference. I am really so happy for you.

Getting outside yourself by doing volunteer work is great therapy too. I think when we're sick with anything, be it BP or a bad back, it is so easy to become isolated and spend most of the time thinking about our health!!

Keep up the good work!!

Cheers!!
:wave: Tsohl

So happy for you Harmony!
So many posts on the board are about problems. It's good to hear success stories too. I have been doing better than usual lately too. Still need a med adjustment but will take it in stride till then. I see my pdoc on Monday and I'll make it till then!
Bravo for you for posting some good news!:blob_fire
Hope you enjoy the job and things stay steady for you for a long while this time.
:wave:

Harmony, I am really happy for you. It must of been a struggle to get the right meds and you stuck it out. I am so proud of you. I just wish my husband would get on meds maybe then we would have a marriage. I respect what you did so much.

:blob_fire thank you all for responding to my post, i just wanted to let everyone know that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. i to hope that i feel well for a long time, i was really sick and tired of being so depressed, it's a terrible feeling. i truely hope that you all find the right med combinations that are right for you. i know their out there, its just a matter of time before you and your pdoc find it.

:cool: tsohl, i really wanted to thank you for all your help. i don't know how i could have gotten through the worse part if not for your help. you always seem to know what to say.

:wave: i hope that things get better for you marshmellow, it must be the hardest thing on earth to see a loved one go through this. sometimes i think that it's harder on a loved one then it is for us, because they want to help and are at a loss as to what to do. there are no easy answers. i truely hope that things get better.

:) greenidme, i'm glad things are looking up for you also. like you said, if people hear about some of the successes then it makes it more encouraging for them to hang in there.

please everyone, even though at times it may seem helpless there is help comming your way. continue seeing your pdoc and taking your meds. that is the best advice that i can give you. aslo keep on posting, it helps getting the advice from people that are going through the same thing as you. sometimes i think that we sometimes think that the pdocs don't understand, but when you here it from the ones who truely do it makes a difference.

good luck to all of you

harmony :angel:

Thanks for taking the time to write to us Harmony ...

Your wonderful words are what I needed to hear.

I have a rough weekend ahead ... general doctor couldn't fit me in this past week and I ran out of meds as of Friday. Called to have him/them/whoever call the pharmacy ... as of 5pm they never called. :blob_fire My appointment is Monday morning. I think this is the first night in two weeks that I've been up past 11pm!

I'm so sick of waiting. Don't see the CP nurse until the first week of May. That same week, on Monday April 30th I see the psychologist for the first time too. From a visit with the psychiatrist back in March I'm just working my way up to 200mg Seroquel. I was up to 125mg.

I hate how slow things are going here in the UK. I'm a bit scared at the moment. Just feel so hopeless and frustrated. It was good to read (and re-read) your words. I'm just so scared that my academic life here in England is ruined and that when the time comes to renew my student visa that Home Office will deny me and I'll get kicked out of the country. Holy run-on sentence there! At least my college is understanding.

Hi Peike,

I'm curious about something and would like your opinion. Do you think mental illness, and BP specifically is regarded differently in the UK than here in the US? It seems like it is handled differently -- like there is a much longer "wait and see" period, slower to switch meds, etc. I just wondered what your perspective was on this??

Seems like you've been waiting forever for that appointment. Guess you have to hang in there a bit longer.

:wave: Tsohl

Well I think the NHS run mental healthcare system is uber slow (slow for even UK NHS health services) due to a big price cut a year or so ago? Also there are current problems in regards to health laws. The police often throw troubled people that should be in jail (and are treatment resistent) into mental health hospitals. This creates an unsafe atmosphere, a waste of funds, a lack of help for those that could become better. I'll write more later on the matter because I can't currently think too well. My GP never called for the refill prescription so now I'm cold turkey off of Seroquel.

As for the view on BP, I do think it's a bit different here. Majority of docs seem to use the ICD 10 scale and not the DSM IV used in the states. It seems like unless you are homeless or a threat to others due to your illness then they don't take you seriously. But I'm just currently a bit bitter, so we'll see what I think in a while ...

Well I got the first appointment over a month ago ... it averages a month and one week waiting for appointments. I would go private but the one private mental health service here is very slow too! It's basically a postal code lottery of the type of service you get. I'm sure if I was in London it would be much faster.

:blob_fire hi peike. i'm glad to here that my words did someone some good. for a while i felt like i was taking the boards for granted because i was always depressed and in need of a little pick me up. hang in there and keep posting and reading other post because it truely helps. sometimes just writing itself helps whether or not you expect a response, it helps to get it out of your system and to know that other people who are going through the same things are listening to you. by posting not only are you receiving help but you are also helping others see that they are also not alone. i know that you will make it, you are a strong person, i could tell from your post. :)

:wave: keep us posted, i'm looking forward to hearing from you again. take care

harmony