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Another one of them boring medication posts

04:34 / 13.09.02

Ok, I'm having problems again. Here's a run down.

-I annoy the fuck out of people. I go on and on and on and on. Sometimes it's impossible to shut me up. I overwhelm everyone who crosses my path with my excessive energy. I'm constantly being told to "relax" and "chill out." Pot helps, most of the time, but sometimes it makes me even more manic.

-I'm considered a manic depressive, but mood stabilizers make me feel blahhhh tired headached blahhhh so I only take antidepressants. I know people who have been said to have "seretonin imbalances" that have corrected these issues with their own thoughts, and I'm wondering if I'm now at the point where I can do this. What the Thinker thinks the Prover proves, right? So can't I just think that manic depression is a bullshit psychiatric term used to pigeonhole The Passionate and that my emotions are all in my head? (which I'm beautifully aware of when I'm tripping anyway)

04:35 / 13.09.02

-I was just given some samples of Effexor today, and was wondering if I should give them a try. They're supposed to keep me happy and calm me down. If I was happy and chill, everything would be peachy. I'm curious as to how Effexor interacts with MDMA and LSD, btw.

-Basically, I want to -feel good- and -stop annoying the hell out of people-. What is this best way to do this? Should I try going off everything entirely, stay with my Zoloft, or switch to Effexor?

The Return Of Rothkoid

05:42 / 13.09.02

Speaking as someone with no experience of med prescriptions, I've heard sometimes that pumpkin seeds are meant to contain serotonin, and can help out...

05:49 / 13.09.02

-I annoy the fuck out of people. I go on and on and on and on. Sometimes it's impossible to shut me up. I overwhelm everyone who crosses my path with my excessive energy. I'm constantly being told to "relax" and "chill out." Pot helps, most of the time, but sometimes it makes me even more manic.

Seriously, try tai chi. Helps control your energy. Calms you down, is very relaxing. Makes you less dependent on external remedies.

STOATIE LIEKS CHOCOLATE MILK

06:57 / 13.09.02

I tend to find SSRIs neither shut me up or stop me annoying people. I just don't get maudlin at them.

We're The Great Old Ones Now

07:17 / 13.09.02

Rage.

Bluntly, it all depends on what else you're taking right now.

There's absolutely no point taking stabilisers or any other damn thing if you're stuffing your bloodstream with recreational/lifetstyle illegals.

07:34 / 13.09.02

I have trouble meditating. Clearing my mind is nearly impossible.

And all I do is smoke pot these days.

Less searchable M0rd4nt

07:58 / 13.09.02

Pot isn't a non-drug, though. It's a pretty meaty pscyhoactive. It might be a good idea if you laid off the recreationals for a while, and gave your meds a bit of a chance.

If you have trouble clearing your mind for meditation, then maybe you could try one of the more active forms such as walking meditation. Tai Chi is an excellent suggestion.

How's your diet? Bad diet can have a mighty effect on your mood. Eat plenty of fresh fruit and veg, and try adding more nuts and seeds to your daily intake. Make sure you're getting plenty of omega-3 rich foods. Take supplements if you can't manage to change your food intake.

Above all, get professional advice.

08:11 / 13.09.02

Anyone have a "Tai Chi for beginners" link?

08:14 / 13.09.02

(I thought that was just meditation. I don't know very much.)

08:38 / 13.09.02

I was put on Effexor XR when I grew tired of the side-effects of Paroxetine and Fluoxetine. I think Vanlafaxine (Effexor) inhibibits the reabsorption of nor-adrenalin as well as serotonin, although I'm not quite sure why this is supposed to be a benefit.
In my experience Rage, Effexor goes together with the drugs you mention like Jack and Sarah, but combines with alcohol more like Jack and Tyler.
And I tend to side with the Chairman on this one. I was far more annoying when I was using SSRIs. But maybe that was me.
To answer your question, I'd recommend you switch purely because I have fonder memories of Effexor than I do of Prozac or Seroxat. But that's probably because I came off SSRIs while I was taking Effexor.

Sorry if that's not much help.

08:43 / 13.09.02

That was actually pretty helpful, except for the Sarah part. Who's Sarah? And are you saying that alcohol is in Effexor's head? I'm a little confused here.

I don't drink. I smoke and trip. And I wouldn't mind rolling again, which I've been unable to do since Zoloft.

To those inclined to make "you're a druggie" comments, keep in mind that I'm a 19 (not even) year old kiddie.

09:12 / 13.09.02

Jack and Sarah is a bad film about (to begin with at least) a perfect marriage. And alcohol did feel a lot like it released a demonic alter-ego from inside my effexorated brain. You're right, the analogy could be better - but fuck it. It's early.
I really don't want to recommend what you should or shouldn't combine with what medication because I'm no doctor and everyone's brain chemistry is different. But my instincts say that if mania is the problem, then stimulants are possibly best treated with caution.

Have you considered that perhaps people don't find you as annoying as you fear they do?

We're The Great Old Ones Now

10:01 / 13.09.02

[shrug]

You can be a druggie at any age. I'm not knocking recreational drugs - at least, not right now - but if you're taking prescription meds to sort out wonky brain chemistry, then you need to be off psychoactives which may or may not have a combined effect. Effects of drug combination is a dark art of medicine - it's probably not the best notion if you're wanting predictable mood-control from your prescription meds.

Tai Chi is good for meditation, but actually, you probably want something a bit meatier than most Tai Chi practices. Unless you get lucky with Tai Chi, you'll end up waving your hands like a street mime for an hour and being told to feel the spirit moving through your toes. Very annoying. Not that good Tai Chi isn't amazing, just that bad Tai Chi is much easier to find. So may I suggest Aikido instead? Robust, spiritual, fun. And Aikidoka are often very dishy.

You might also try carpentry, pottery, or something where you actually get an end product from your efforts. One of the weird things about the world we live in is that we very rarely get to make anything concrete. It's wonderfully relaxing and rewarding to see a thing taking shape under your hands.

12:22 / 13.09.02

Do you smoke tobacco? You realize nicotine's a stimulant, right? I used to chew nicotine gum when I felt in danger of falling asleep in the office after lunch. I'd sometimes chew too much and I'd end up dancing around the office. Although my productivity shot up and I got a 25% pay rise, I was in a crazy work group where wildly yelling things like "shutupshutupshutupshutup" (mainly at me) was considered funny and cool.

I'd say if you annoy people by incessant chatter, cut the stimulants like nicotine for a start.

15:09 / 13.09.02

I'm with Nick on the aikido.
Actually, if you're really manic-manic, go all out for tae kwon doe or something like that. Well, that does involve more in-your-face combat than aikido, so you might not get into it.
Bear in mind also that most good dojos (martial arts schools) will have a very respect-based protocol, so chatting to your classmates will likely tick both them and the teacher off.

On the tai chi thing, I've reviewed a fair number of "tai chi workout" videos, and I like these the best.
Once you get the hang of a couple basic movements, you can basically do those as fast or as slow as you like and get roughly the same calming benefit as you would from doing a whole form.
The advantage of videos is that you can do as much or as little as you like and don't have to worry about exasperating your teacher. It might be a good way to start, anyway.

I don't know anything about aikido videos, but there are some out there. I'd imagine they'd be available from the county library, as well, if you don't want to buy them.

Tryphena Absent

00:20 / 14.09.02

LSD and effexor, take a look here for some information.