Hi everybody!
I wanted to introduce myself. I have been reading this board for support for the last several months. I guess I just wanted to share my story. I was always care free, happy, and a free spirit, until my early 20's. I was sheltered as a child, and the adjustment to adulthood was difficult. I suffered from bouts of depression and anxiety (panic attacks) off and on for a while. Over the years my depression has been mostly off and I have lived a fufilling life..ie. successful career, marriage, (which had some issues), nice house, friends, etc. I figured the depression was gone for good. Two years ago, I gave birth to my first child. For 6 months after that, I was the happiest person in the world! I was a stay at home mom and loving it. Out of nowhere, my thyroid crashed. It was off the charts. I was feeling very sick and new something was wrong. I got it regulated through meds. Anyway, since that time, my depression and anxiety has been at an all time high! It comes and goes. I was diagnosed with depression and soft bipolar tendancies. I am on lamictal and xanax as needed which has worked really well. I feel so much better overall, but not great..still lots of ups and downs. there's a part of me that wonders if I can ever get that old girl back. The one who was laid back and fun all the time. Maybe it's not possible as an adult to have that with the responsibilities of job, family, etc. I have good days and bad days and am blessed with so many great things! I just feel like this is going to be a life long struggle for me of ups and downs.
Anyway, thanks for listening!

Hi so glad that you posted your story... welcome to a warm and supportive site.....

Caren

Hi, from a fellow newbie.

Hello,

Welcome to the board.

I would suggest that you may need your meds tweaked a bit if you are not yet feeling more or less like your "old" self. You may need another mood stabilizer in addition to Lamictal. The meds all work in slightly different ways on slightly different parts of the brain. My 25-year old son takes 3 mood stabilizers. This is what he needs to feel well and to remain stable and free from any episodes. When he was taking lithium and tegretol, he felt about 90% better. Then his pdoc added Lamictal and that was just what he needed to really feel well again.

I know there is research ongoing to learn more about the connection of thyroid and the mood disorders. Hopefully one of these days they will figure it all out!!

xxTsohl

Thank you everybody for your warm welcomes! I do feel like I may need to add an antidepressant to the mix or maybe another mood stabilizer. I just hate all the side effects. I am going to talk to my pdoc next week at my appointment. I don't feel bad all the time, but an having more mood swings the usual.
Anyway, thanks again for the support!

Another thing I didn't mention earlier was that I recently returned to work (part time only), in a field that I was immensly successful with before my daughter was born and before my major depression set in. I am eager to prove myself once again, yet I fear the meds will make me lethargic or off course a little. Between my 2 year old and work I need all the focus I can get! My doctor tells me that it much worse to have the anger, depression, and anxiety then the side effects of meds. He said the depression will harm my goals more so then the meds. And I believe him 100%. I just want to avoid an AD if I can. I have tried so many and have had side effects. The Lamical, xanax, and provigil are the only things that have worked well with minimal effects. I also just lost 60 pounds of baby weight. The side effect of weight gain scares me. I am hoping that after I adjust to the new job and things calm down, the meds I am on right now will be enough to stabilize me. Any thoughts? Thanks!

Just wanted to extend a warm welcome to you. Wow.....you have been through so much but seem to have handled things quite well. Seems that between your hormonal changes as well as your thyroid problems that your brain chemistry went a little off there.

As far as getting that fun and happy girl back it will come in time. My daughter is 16 and it took some time for her to get back to her old self....it took us about a year of finding the right meds and adjustments to that happening. So with a little patience and insight into how the meds are working, you and your doctor should come to the right combo for you as well.

For my daughter Lamictal and Seroquel seem to work. Good news is that the Lamictal is weight neutral so you shouldn't have any problem there and the other meds you are on also shouldn't pose a problem in terms of weight gain. Everybody is different and what causes weight gain for one may not for another. Seroquel is one of those that can put on the weight but that wasn't the case at all for my daughter. So, don't eliminate trying a med because of that.

It sounds like your going back to work may be a good thing....just try not to take on too much since adding too much in terms of stress to your life could cause some setbacks even when on the right meds. Make sure that you have enough stressbusters in place and come up with some coping skills that will prevent things from worsening.

I wish you luck on this venture....how things go is all up to how proactive you are in terms of woking with your doctor in finding the right meds and keeping the stress levels down, eating right avoiding sugars and caffeine, getting a good amount of exercise and most importantly enough sleep.

Keep posting and let us know how things are going. Did you see your pdoc again and what did he say???

Looking forward to seeing more of you around here.

((((HUGS)))) ~ Goody:angel: :wave:

Hi Loufrank,

I wanted to welcome you, too. I agree with the others that you might want to try another mood stabilizer. That may work better for you than adding the anti-depressant. I wouldn't worry too much about the side effects for now. Your doctor is right - the side effects of not feeling well far outweigh the side effects of the meds.

Lamictal and Seroquel are working well fof my 16 year old son, too, but others have tried a combination of Lamictal with Lithium and/or Tegretol. See what your doctors say. Although everyone is different in terms of the weight gain, I believe Depakote and Zyprexa are two of the major culprits but, again, not for everyone and possibly not in low doses combined with other meds.

Express your concerns about weight to your doctor. It sounds like you trust him and that's a great thing - work together to find the right meds and soon you'll be finding the old you again!

Good luck and welcome to the board,

Hope

Thank you everybody! It's nice to have a place to vent and receive good advice. I appreciate all the responses. I haven't been to my therapist in a long time. Things have been so busy. I am going to start fitting in regular visits. I know the medication is only part of the solution. I have been not fitting in time for me. I need to change that.