Re: Anyone have any advice\experience??? Please help!

[Guest guest]

So sorry, Suzy. My kid is having a paradoxical reaction to SSRI's so his doctor

wants to start him on Trileptil. It is used as a mood stabilizer but tends to

run cleaner than Lamictil and some of the other ones. You don't need to have

the hepatic monitoring and it supposedly does not have as many of the metabolic

side effects either. I guess it is really about cost/benefit for your child. It

is really important to work with a doctor who sees this as a family issue

though..we went to one doctor and felt it was really her way or no way and left.

We love our doctor now who really tries to come up with a treatment plan that we

can all work feel OK about.

>

> Hi there.....

>

> I have 5 children, all with some form of OCD, depression, and anxiety

disorders... But my youngest, 15 now, has the Ocd, anxiety, and some form of a

mood disorder by far worse than the others... We've had her on every SSRI there

is. All make her more aggressive as soon as we get to a level where it starts to

help with her OCD. Her mood is outrageous, to the point of fit throwing,

screaming, going from sweet to aggresive...Mind you, this is not just in her

teen years, her moods have always been very prominent, just so must worse the

last couple of years. We've added Risperdal (helped her mood, and her ocd, but

started not working so we upped the dose which caused side effects, and then

movements,tics, when she fell asleep... Dr wanted to try Lamictal, but I read up

on it and it scared me because of the side effects (rash, and possibly rare

meningitis) so I asked for another choice. Mind you, I'm not thrilled with her

Dr. because instead of addressing my concerns, she actually became rude and said

" well then, what do YOU want to do??? " I am now in the midst of changing to a

different clinic (this hasn't been the first time the Dr has treated us like

this, and is not concerned my daughter won't speak to her directly at all) but

in the meantime, we tried Abilify. It made my Daughters OCD and anxiety almost

unbearable at 1mg... Sigh

> We now go back one more time on Monday, (We can't get switched till next year)

> Does anyone have symptoms close to my daughters and have any ideas of things

that might help with mood and OCD? Shes on Lexapro 10mg, Xanax 0.25 once a day,

and Trazadone to sleep.She's very petite 5'2 and 90lbs.

> I feel as if I'm going to have to go into the Drs with what I want to try next

if its at all like our last Drs appt, and this is ridiculous.

> Am I wrong to be so afraid of the Lamictal?

>

> Any advice would be so appreciated ...I don't want my daughter to suffer with

not trying anything just because this Dr is angry at me!

>

> SuzyQsoblue

>

[Guest guest]

What dose are they going to give your son? My son takes Trileptal because he had

a seizure a few years ago and his EEG still isn't normal. He's never had a

seizure since but he did develop OCD a few months ago. We are trying inositol

and we are on our 3rd week of full dose (6g, he is 8). Trileptal doesn't seem to

affect his mood at all. He does have to have his blood drawn to check levels

because the medicine can do something to his electrolytes.

Sent from my iPad

[Guest guest]

The rash in Lamictal happened much more frequently when pdoc's raised doses too

fast. Now a starter pack is used and you increase very slowly at very specific

times to lessen greatly the chance of getting the rash. My dd's pdoc hasn't seen

anyone have the rash using the starter pack. He really likes Lamictal because it

is rare that he has a patient who gets any side effects from it. My dd has taken

it for years but she has to use multiple mood stabilizers due to her bipolar

because it isn't strong enough by itself. Just so you know, that same rash has

even been caused by Tylenol. Abilify, also increased my dd's symptoms greatly

all 3 times she tried it. We were not able to get my dd stable at all as long

as there was an SSRI on board no matter how many mood stabilizers she was on. I

wonder if the Lexapro is adding to your dd's problems. Stormy

Sent from my iPad

>

> Am I wrong to be so afraid of the Lamictal?

>

> Any advice would be so appreciated ...I don't want my daughter to suffer with

not trying anything just because this Dr is angry at me!

>

> SuzyQsoblue

>

>

[Guest guest]

Thanks for all your replies... As I sat here thinking, and reading some of the

other posts, I wonder if others have any experience with adding Zyprexa or

Serequel (?) to augment the Lexapro since Risperdal really did help her.. The

odd thing was, she didn't get the twitches from the risperdal until 2 things.

She moved up in dose, so we stopped it, THEN the twitches started, when we

stopped? and she would drift off to sleep, and suddenly she would just start. It

was unnerving.

Sorry, but I am sooo overwhelmed, as I said she's my 5th child all with one form

or the other of OCD, depression, tourettes, one has mild Autistic tendencies...

Does anyone else feel like geez, if you try the wrong med, make the wrong

move...You'll ruin your childs life? Maybe it's because she's my youngest, and

no support from her Doc (We can't switch until Jan 31st)Single Mom for the last

10 yrs and sometimes feel like I need to BE the Dr...

Sorry to ramble, just needed to vent, thanks for any suggestions : )

>

> Hi there.....

>

> I have 5 children, all with some form of OCD, depression, and anxiety

disorders... But my youngest, 15 now, has the Ocd, anxiety, and some form of a

mood disorder by far worse than the others... We've had her on every SSRI there

is. All make her more aggressive as soon as we get to a level where it starts to

help with her OCD. Her mood is outrageous, to the point of fit throwing,

screaming, going from sweet to aggresive...Mind you, this is not just in her

teen years, her moods have always been very prominent, just so must worse the

last couple of years. We've added Risperdal (helped her mood, and her ocd, but

started not working so we upped the dose which caused side effects, and then

movements,tics, when she fell asleep... Dr wanted to try Lamictal, but I read up

on it and it scared me because of the side effects (rash, and possibly rare

meningitis) so I asked for another choice. Mind you, I'm not thrilled with her

Dr. because instead of addressing my concerns, she actually became rude and said

" well then, what do YOU want to do??? " I am now in the midst of changing to a

different clinic (this hasn't been the first time the Dr has treated us like

this, and is not concerned my daughter won't speak to her directly at all) but

in the meantime, we tried Abilify. It made my Daughters OCD and anxiety almost

unbearable at 1mg... Sigh

> We now go back one more time on Monday, (We can't get switched till next year)

> Does anyone have symptoms close to my daughters and have any ideas of things

that might help with mood and OCD? Shes on Lexapro 10mg, Xanax 0.25 once a day,

and Trazadone to sleep.She's very petite 5'2 and 90lbs.

> I feel as if I'm going to have to go into the Drs with what I want to try next

if its at all like our last Drs appt, and this is ridiculous.

> Am I wrong to be so afraid of the Lamictal?

>

> Any advice would be so appreciated ...I don't want my daughter to suffer with

not trying anything just because this Dr is angry at me!

>

> SuzyQsoblue

>

[Guest guest]

Thanks for all your replies... As I sat here thinking, and reading some of the

other posts, I wonder if others have any experience with adding Zyprexa or

Serequel (?) to augment the Lexapro since Risperdal really did help her.. The

odd thing was, she didn't get the twitches from the risperdal until 2 things.

She moved up in dose, so we stopped it, THEN the twitches started, when we

stopped? and she would drift off to sleep, and suddenly she would just start. It

was unnerving.

Sorry, but I am sooo overwhelmed, as I said she's my 5th child all with one form

or the other of OCD, depression, tourettes, one has mild Autistic tendencies...

Does anyone else feel like geez, if you try the wrong med, make the wrong

move...You'll ruin your childs life? Maybe it's because she's my youngest, and

no support from her Doc (We can't switch until Jan 31st)Single Mom for the last

10 yrs and sometimes feel like I need to BE the Dr...

Sorry to ramble, just needed to vent, thanks for any suggestions : )

>

> Hi there.....

>

> I have 5 children, all with some form of OCD, depression, and anxiety

disorders... But my youngest, 15 now, has the Ocd, anxiety, and some form of a

mood disorder by far worse than the others... We've had her on every SSRI there

is. All make her more aggressive as soon as we get to a level where it starts to

help with her OCD. Her mood is outrageous, to the point of fit throwing,

screaming, going from sweet to aggresive...Mind you, this is not just in her

teen years, her moods have always been very prominent, just so must worse the

last couple of years. We've added Risperdal (helped her mood, and her ocd, but

started not working so we upped the dose which caused side effects, and then

movements,tics, when she fell asleep... Dr wanted to try Lamictal, but I read up

on it and it scared me because of the side effects (rash, and possibly rare

meningitis) so I asked for another choice. Mind you, I'm not thrilled with her

Dr. because instead of addressing my concerns, she actually became rude and said

" well then, what do YOU want to do??? " I am now in the midst of changing to a

different clinic (this hasn't been the first time the Dr has treated us like

this, and is not concerned my daughter won't speak to her directly at all) but

in the meantime, we tried Abilify. It made my Daughters OCD and anxiety almost

unbearable at 1mg... Sigh

> We now go back one more time on Monday, (We can't get switched till next year)

> Does anyone have symptoms close to my daughters and have any ideas of things

that might help with mood and OCD? Shes on Lexapro 10mg, Xanax 0.25 once a day,

and Trazadone to sleep.She's very petite 5'2 and 90lbs.

> I feel as if I'm going to have to go into the Drs with what I want to try next

if its at all like our last Drs appt, and this is ridiculous.

> Am I wrong to be so afraid of the Lamictal?

>

> Any advice would be so appreciated ...I don't want my daughter to suffer with

not trying anything just because this Dr is angry at me!

>

> SuzyQsoblue

>

[Guest guest]

Am I wrong to be so afraid of the Lamictal?

Just an FYI -

I am somewhere between worship and love for Lamictal. Lamictal saved my husband

and brought him " back " to us. He has severe Bipolar depression. Before

Lamictal he was on so many medications, none which worked. He is now on

Lamictal and Abilify and he has been stable for one year. I know when they

started him on it, they started at 25mg for one week to see if rash followed.

then they go to 50mg for 1 week. He was on 50 mg for a few months and then he

needed an increase. As long as the medication is titrated carefully, the risk

is decreased greatly is my understanding. We were leery as well when we first

heard about the rash. So thankful for Lamictal though.

Jen C

(forwarded to group by moderator; Jen having trouble being able to do replies to

posts)

[Guest guest]

I remember when 's OCD began that first year, I saw a few things in his

sleep, movements, but they were also ones I saw some when he was awake. I

remember thinking, poor guy can't even get away from it in his sleep! Little

hand movements, etc. Stopped eventually as OCD got better. Maybe she'll be the

same?

>

>

>

> Thanks for all your replies... As I sat here thinking, and reading some of the

other posts, I wonder if others have any experience with adding Zyprexa or

Serequel (?) to augment the Lexapro since Risperdal really did help her.. The

odd thing was, she didn't get the twitches from the risperdal until 2 things.

She moved up in dose, so we stopped it, THEN the twitches started, when we

stopped? and she would drift off to sleep, and suddenly she would just start. It

was unnerving.

[Guest guest]

I remember when 's OCD began that first year, I saw a few things in his

sleep, movements, but they were also ones I saw some when he was awake. I

remember thinking, poor guy can't even get away from it in his sleep! Little

hand movements, etc. Stopped eventually as OCD got better. Maybe she'll be the

same?

>

>

>

> Thanks for all your replies... As I sat here thinking, and reading some of the

other posts, I wonder if others have any experience with adding Zyprexa or

Serequel (?) to augment the Lexapro since Risperdal really did help her.. The

odd thing was, she didn't get the twitches from the risperdal until 2 things.

She moved up in dose, so we stopped it, THEN the twitches started, when we

stopped? and she would drift off to sleep, and suddenly she would just start. It

was unnerving.

[Guest guest]

When it comes to the OCD/mood combo, you have to treat mood first. My son took

lamictal for some time and he did ok on it. Many find it really helps. Yes,

you have to watch for a rash, but the risk is less when you start at low doses.

A lot of times it takes a combo of meds to help without side effects that you

might get from a high dose of a single med.

Another thing to think about is that often, people with a mood disorder cannot

tolerate SSRI's. I'm not sure how long your dd has been on Lexapro or how it

has worked , but it's something to think about. If you have been dealing with

the mood issues for some time, I would wonder if her OCD anxiety is more a part

of a mood disorder?

Her age makes this a more difficult time too and I wonder if it will get better

over time. Have you read the Explosive Child? It has helped us in the past.

Another thing to consider is if there are any developmental concerns? Poor

social skills, learning disabilities, autism spectrum? These are things that

pretty much lend themselves to mood and anxiety issues, and they are hard to

manage because some kids with other concerns don't necessarily respond to meds

and therapy in the same manner.

Lastly, it goes without saying, that school is a big part of any kid's life and

when ther's trouble ther, it affects all of the rest of their lives. School has

been the single most effective change we have made in my son's life so far. he

has accomplished more this year than ever....

So, I think it's a combination fo intervention (meds, home, therapy, school

support) thAt makes a difference. Figuring out what needs to change to offer

the best result is tough and takes much thought....use your intiition to guide

you.

Wish you the best

Bonnie

Wish you all the best

>

> Hi there.....

>

> I have 5 children, all with some form of OCD, depression, and anxiety

disorders... But my youngest, 15 now, has the Ocd, anxiety, and some form of a

mood disorder by far worse than the others... We've had her on every SSRI there

is. All make her more aggressive as soon as we get to a level where it starts to

help with her OCD. Her mood is outrageous, to the point of fit throwing,

screaming, going from sweet to aggresive...Mind you, this is not just in her

teen years, her moods have always been very prominent, just so must worse the

last couple of years. We've added Risperdal (helped her mood, and her ocd, but

started not working so we upped the dose which caused side effects, and then

movements,tics, when she fell asleep... Dr wanted to try Lamictal, but I read up

on it and it scared me because of the side effects (rash, and possibly rare

meningitis) so I asked for another choice. Mind you, I'm not thrilled with her

Dr. because instead of addressing my concerns, she actually became rude and said

" well then, what do YOU want to do??? " I am now in the midst of changing to a

different clinic (this hasn't been the first time the Dr has treated us like

this, and is not concerned my daughter won't speak to her directly at all) but

in the meantime, we tried Abilify. It made my Daughters OCD and anxiety almost

unbearable at 1mg... Sigh

> We now go back one more time on Monday, (We can't get switched till next year)

> Does anyone have symptoms close to my daughters and have any ideas of things

that might help with mood and OCD? Shes on Lexapro 10mg, Xanax 0.25 once a day,

and Trazadone to sleep.She's very petite 5'2 and 90lbs.

> I feel as if I'm going to have to go into the Drs with what I want to try next

if its at all like our last Drs appt, and this is ridiculous.

> Am I wrong to be so afraid of the Lamictal?

>

> Any advice would be so appreciated ...I don't want my daughter to suffer with

not trying anything just because this Dr is angry at me!

>

> SuzyQsoblue

>

[Guest guest]

When it comes to the OCD/mood combo, you have to treat mood first. My son took

lamictal for some time and he did ok on it. Many find it really helps. Yes,

you have to watch for a rash, but the risk is less when you start at low doses.

A lot of times it takes a combo of meds to help without side effects that you

might get from a high dose of a single med.

Another thing to think about is that often, people with a mood disorder cannot

tolerate SSRI's. I'm not sure how long your dd has been on Lexapro or how it

has worked , but it's something to think about. If you have been dealing with

the mood issues for some time, I would wonder if her OCD anxiety is more a part

of a mood disorder?

Her age makes this a more difficult time too and I wonder if it will get better

over time. Have you read the Explosive Child? It has helped us in the past.

Another thing to consider is if there are any developmental concerns? Poor

social skills, learning disabilities, autism spectrum? These are things that

pretty much lend themselves to mood and anxiety issues, and they are hard to

manage because some kids with other concerns don't necessarily respond to meds

and therapy in the same manner.

Lastly, it goes without saying, that school is a big part of any kid's life and

when ther's trouble ther, it affects all of the rest of their lives. School has

been the single most effective change we have made in my son's life so far. he

has accomplished more this year than ever....

So, I think it's a combination fo intervention (meds, home, therapy, school

support) thAt makes a difference. Figuring out what needs to change to offer

the best result is tough and takes much thought....use your intiition to guide

you.

Wish you the best

Bonnie

Wish you all the best

>

> Hi there.....

>

> I have 5 children, all with some form of OCD, depression, and anxiety

disorders... But my youngest, 15 now, has the Ocd, anxiety, and some form of a

mood disorder by far worse than the others... We've had her on every SSRI there

is. All make her more aggressive as soon as we get to a level where it starts to

help with her OCD. Her mood is outrageous, to the point of fit throwing,

screaming, going from sweet to aggresive...Mind you, this is not just in her

teen years, her moods have always been very prominent, just so must worse the

last couple of years. We've added Risperdal (helped her mood, and her ocd, but

started not working so we upped the dose which caused side effects, and then

movements,tics, when she fell asleep... Dr wanted to try Lamictal, but I read up

on it and it scared me because of the side effects (rash, and possibly rare

meningitis) so I asked for another choice. Mind you, I'm not thrilled with her

Dr. because instead of addressing my concerns, she actually became rude and said

" well then, what do YOU want to do??? " I am now in the midst of changing to a

different clinic (this hasn't been the first time the Dr has treated us like

this, and is not concerned my daughter won't speak to her directly at all) but

in the meantime, we tried Abilify. It made my Daughters OCD and anxiety almost

unbearable at 1mg... Sigh

> We now go back one more time on Monday, (We can't get switched till next year)

> Does anyone have symptoms close to my daughters and have any ideas of things

that might help with mood and OCD? Shes on Lexapro 10mg, Xanax 0.25 once a day,

and Trazadone to sleep.She's very petite 5'2 and 90lbs.

> I feel as if I'm going to have to go into the Drs with what I want to try next

if its at all like our last Drs appt, and this is ridiculous.

> Am I wrong to be so afraid of the Lamictal?

>

> Any advice would be so appreciated ...I don't want my daughter to suffer with

not trying anything just because this Dr is angry at me!

>

> SuzyQsoblue

>

[Guest guest]

Other ideas are:

1) Try prozac (instead of zoloft, lexapro). She may metobolize

prozac better than the other two SSRI's that are

in the same liver metabolize enzyme class.

2) Abilify is metabolized by the same liver enzymes as zoloft and lexapro (p450

class CD9). Rispedone is metabolized by the same liver

enzymes as prozac (p450 class CD6).

Perhaps rispedone (at the dose where she was not having

tics) and prozac would be a better combination for her,

with increasing prozac levels.

You can have a DNA drug sensitivity test done if you

want to see if this is the issue. But you can also just

try the medication change. Since there is not much

proven facts that the DNA testing is worth the cost.

In your case she responded to risperdone well and

Abilify she did not. It may very well be that she

is a good CD6 metabolizer and not a good CD19

see table lists the medications and the p450 class they

are in.

http://medicine.iupui.edu/clinpharm/ddis/table.aspx

It probably is not worth the cost of the DNA test to test

for Cd6 versus C19. We did send our daughters blood

same to Cincinnati and she was an excellent Cd6 metabolizer

and we do use that information for drug choices. But

my daughter is highly resistent to any medication changes

it was easier to get the blood sample than have a

bad reaction to medication.

You already have a lot of information that suggests she too

may be a better p450 Cd6 metabolizer.

Is there anything predictable about the triggers of

explosive behavior?

We have our daughter stable on medication and with

school accomodations and a very small private school but as soon as the stress

gets high she starts yelling at me.

I have had to call the police for her aggressive behavior

that is just toward me. It did scare her enough

to stop with pulling my hair and biting me. I had to make sure the police

understood she had issues. It is tricky getting the police

involved, I wouldn't do it again. But it did prove for

me she could control her aggression at me. She can

control it with other people. Is this true for your daughter

too? A forsenic psychologist may be able to talk to her

about how regardless of her condition she is not allowed

to be aggressive. This is better than the police. But my

daughter would not go to the therapist at all.

I also got help from a Dialetrical Behavioral Therapy training

on how to not escalate my daughter's outbursts. This was

helpful too.

My daughter is 14.

Pam

http://www.cincinnatichildrens.org/service/g/genetic-pharmacology/faq/

>

> Hi there.....

>

> I have 5 children, all with some form of OCD, depression, and anxiety

disorders... But my youngest, 15 now, has the Ocd, anxiety, and some form of a

mood disorder by far worse than the others... We've had her on every SSRI there

is. All make her more aggressive as soon as we get to a level where it starts to

help with her OCD. Her mood is outrageous, to the point of fit throwing,

screaming, going from sweet to aggresive...Mind you, this is not just in her

teen years, her moods have always been very prominent, just so must worse the

last couple of years. We've added Risperdal (helped her mood, and her ocd, but

started not working so we upped the dose which caused side effects, and then

movements,tics, when she fell asleep... Dr wanted to try Lamictal, but I read up

on it and it scared me because of the side effects (rash, and possibly rare

meningitis) so I asked for another choice. Mind you, I'm not thrilled with her

Dr. because instead of addressing my concerns, she actually became rude and said

" well then, what do YOU want to do??? " I am now in the midst of changing to a

different clinic (this hasn't been the first time the Dr has treated us like

this, and is not concerned my daughter won't speak to her directly at all) but

in the meantime, we tried Abilify. It made my Daughters OCD and anxiety almost

unbearable at 1mg... Sigh

> We now go back one more time on Monday, (We can't get switched till next year)

> Does anyone have symptoms close to my daughters and have any ideas of things

that might help with mood and OCD? Shes on Lexapro 10mg, Xanax 0.25 once a day,

and Trazadone to sleep.She's very petite 5'2 and 90lbs.

> I feel as if I'm going to have to go into the Drs with what I want to try next

if its at all like our last Drs appt, and this is ridiculous.

> Am I wrong to be so afraid of the Lamictal?

>

> Any advice would be so appreciated ...I don't want my daughter to suffer with

not trying anything just because this Dr is angry at me!

>

> SuzyQsoblue

>

[Guest guest]

Gosh,

It seems that the Dr should appreciate a parent that is trying to be educated &

an advocate for your child - thats your job! I would definately look around for

another MD -

Best of Luck

>

> Hi there.....

>

> I have 5 children, all with some form of OCD, depression, and anxiety

disorders... But my youngest, 15 now, has the Ocd, anxiety, and some form of a

mood disorder by far worse than the others... We've had her on every SSRI there

is. All make her more aggressive as soon as we get to a level where it starts to

help with her OCD. Her mood is outrageous, to the point of fit throwing,

screaming, going from sweet to aggresive...Mind you, this is not just in her

teen years, her moods have always been very prominent, just so must worse the

last couple of years. We've added Risperdal (helped her mood, and her ocd, but

started not working so we upped the dose which caused side effects, and then

movements,tics, when she fell asleep... Dr wanted to try Lamictal, but I read up

on it and it scared me because of the side effects (rash, and possibly rare

meningitis) so I asked for another choice. Mind you, I'm not thrilled with her

Dr. because instead of addressing my concerns, she actually became rude and said

" well then, what do YOU want to do??? " I am now in the midst of changing to a

different clinic (this hasn't been the first time the Dr has treated us like

this, and is not concerned my daughter won't speak to her directly at all) but

in the meantime, we tried Abilify. It made my Daughters OCD and anxiety almost

unbearable at 1mg... Sigh

> We now go back one more time on Monday, (We can't get switched till next year)

> Does anyone have symptoms close to my daughters and have any ideas of things

that might help with mood and OCD? Shes on Lexapro 10mg, Xanax 0.25 once a day,

and Trazadone to sleep.She's very petite 5'2 and 90lbs.

> I feel as if I'm going to have to go into the Drs with what I want to try next

if its at all like our last Drs appt, and this is ridiculous.

> Am I wrong to be so afraid of the Lamictal?

>

> Any advice would be so appreciated ...I don't want my daughter to suffer with

not trying anything just because this Dr is angry at me!

>

> SuzyQsoblue

>