I think myself into these downward spirals, but I know that I can also think my way out. I always have. It's how I'm still alive to write this. It gets easier to spot warning signs, but it doesn't get any easier to arrest the progress once a downward-spiral starts. I've had a bad few days ( Read more... )

A psychosomatic illness is defined as a disorder having physical symptoms but having mental or emotional origins. In common usage, the word has come to mean "imaginary", synonymous with hypochondria (though hypochondria is in itself a serious mental illness.) This is misleading, since many psychosomatic symptoms can be substantiated through medical ( Read more... )

I haven't been very good about keeping up with these things, but I think I need to start paying more attention to my moods and thought processes. I've been slipping. Nothing catastrophic- no cutting, no detailed suicidal ideation, no hallucinations ( Read more... )

I haven't written much here in the last few months. The evils of Facebook have seduced me into laziness. (Yes, the link is to my page, if there's anyone reading this who wants to be, uh, "friends.") Status updates are useful, but they do not a journal entry make, nor do they allow me to practice my writing. I will attempt to be more diligent in my ( Read more... )

I've cycled back into a depressive state for the last week or so. I don't think it has anything to do with my meds. This is just how the chemicals work in my brain. There isn't much to do about it ( Read more... )

About a week ago, my illustrious practitioners added Trileptal to my medication regimen. I am now taking 40 mg of Lexapro in the morning and 300 mg of Trileptal at night. Trileptal, like Lamictal, is an anti-seizure drug that is sometimes used to treat the manic end of the bipolar spectrum. It was prescribed after I protested taking Lithium for ( Read more... )

No panic attacks, and I haven't taken any klonopin. I've felt on the verge a couple of times, but I've managed to stave it off. I think the weather has a LOT to do with it, as does the fact that I (painfully) gave up caffeine.

My shrink had her lackey call me for a second time to make sure I understood why she put me on lithium. "It's because of those, you know- ups and downs you've been feeling," she said ( Read more... )

OK. I've done some reading on Lexapro, and I'm willing to increase my dose, but not all at once. I'll start with 30 mg per day (up from 20 mg) for 2 weeks and then go to 40 mg ( Read more... )

My new shrink wants me to increase my dose of Lexapro to 40 mg. She wants me to stop taking buspirone (Buspar) and start taking lithium (Eskalith). All at once.At first, I was refreshed, because she actually wanted to know about my past symptoms, my history, et cetera. She asked lots of questions and seemed to be listening. What I wasn't expecting ( Read more... )