Klonopin as a Mood Stabilizer - Bipolar Disorder Message Board

dreams in neon · 05-06-2009, 05:34 PM

Hi everyone,

On another bipolar message board, someone's pdoc told them Klonopin is a mood stabilizer.

When I did an Internet search, I found out that this is true and is something I never knew.

Then again, when you think about the way this med works, it makes perfect sense.

With this being the case, I'm on 4 mood stabilizers. (Depakote, Risperdal, Topamax and Klonopin)

This just goes to show that you learn something new every day!

BipolarPrincess · 05-06-2009, 07:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dreams in neon

Hi everyone,

On another bipolar message board, someone's pdoc told them Klonopin is a mood stabilizer.

When I did an Internet search, I found out that this is true and is something I never knew.

Then again, when you think about the way this med works, it makes perfect sense.

With this being the case, I'm on 4 mood stabilizers. (Depakote, Risperdal, Topamax and Klonopin)

This just goes to show that you learn something new every day!

Hm..Interesting. I was on Klonopin before for anxiety. 1 mg 4x's a day. I have a HIGH tolerance - not sure why. Might have to google that. My therapist I met with today thinks I'm a drug seeker which is BS. I am angry at that. My "mood stablizer" is Neurontin, which doesn't do anything for me.

dreams in neon · 05-06-2009, 07:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BipolarPrincess

Hm..Interesting. I was on Klonopin before for anxiety. 1 mg 4x's a day. I have a HIGH tolerance - not sure why. Might have to google that. My therapist I met with today thinks I'm a drug seeker which is BS. I am angry at that. My "mood stablizer" is Neurontin, which doesn't do anything for me.

You're not alone. Yesterday my pdoc told me I require a much higher dose of meds than alot of people. For example, my Depakote is 1500mg which is on the higher end (maximum dose is 2500mg). My PRN dose of Trazodone is 300mg (maximum dose is 400mg) and my 6mg/day of Risperdal is the most that can be prescribed unless you're IP in which case you can be given up to 16mg.

If Neurontin isn't helping to improve your mood, you might want to think about Lamictal or Lithium. Both of them are excellent for treating depression.

katlin09 · 05-06-2009, 07:29 PM

I have a high tolerance to meds also and generally have to take large amounts, some of us are just like that.

I had asked my pdoc about Klonopin being used as a mood stabilizer last week when I saw him, and he said they've been doing studies on that for a couple years now, so it's not a new thing, they just haven't gotten FDA approval to label it as such. He also gave me a new timeframe for taking it, becasue it takes a while to kick in and wasn't making me tirred until 2 or 3 in the morning. So now I take 1 at dinnertime (7ish) and the second at 9 and this seems to work better, when I go to bed I take my Trazadone and I fall asleep after an hour or so.

kat

dreams in neon · 05-06-2009, 07:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by katlin09

I have a high tolerance to meds also and generally have to take large amounts, some of us are just like that.

I had asked my pdoc about Klonopin being used as a mood stabilizer last week when I saw him, and he said they've been doing studies on that for a couple years now, so it's not a new thing, they just haven't gotten FDA approval to label it as such. He also gave me a new timeframe for taking it, becasue it takes a while to kick in and wasn't making me tirred until 2 or 3 in the morning. So now I take 1 at dinnertime (7ish) and the second at 9 and this seems to work better, when I go to bed I take my Trazadone and I fall asleep after an hour or so.

kat

When I'm manic (as I am now), Klonopin takes a much longer time to work.

However, when I'm feeling level, it works in about 20 minutes.

I went to the drugstore to pick up my prescription for Klonopin. The prescription says 1 tablet 3-4x/day.

We'll see how well this works in continuing to reduce my mania and improve sleep. If it doesn't help tonight, I'm calling my pdoc and giving him permission to raise my dose to 2mg.