NAOMI, the Dual Diagnosis lady, who isn't medical (so I wasn't asking medical advice) rang me back about my risperidone problem. I am on 4mg daily. 4mg is half the usual maximum dose. The usual starting dose is 2mg according to the leaflet, but the dr. probably gave more as I was getting symptoms that were severe enough to be losing it pretty completely. I don't lose it every minute of every day even when I'm ill. Everything with me is episodic, variable and changeable, like tides of the sea. A hurricane doesn't last forever, neither do my mood swings. So you need to understand this if you think I'm calling myself "mad" then seem sane. This is the crux of the problem!
Anyway I was put on risperidone 2x 2mg pills at night for the first week (when they are strong enough to make you feel almost concussed, not inherently nice at all, but I was pretty manic so they made me sleep at night and slowed my body down daytimes. They cut out voices though I still hear the murmurs. They stop me pacing, dancing and acting hyper most of the time, even when my mind races and rushes. They also probably slow that down, though they were prescribed on the tail end of a mood swing and the dr. knew that.
From week 2 onwards they're to be taken 2mg by day, 2mg by night. It's the daytime one I had problems with. It gives what you might call drowsiness but it's not sleepiness (it feel way better with Valium on top and I don't want to be scoring Valium on a street corner because of antipsychotic side effects). So I didn't take it yesterday or today.
I said to Naomi I was going to take it nights only (ie 4mg at once) until my dr appointment on Feb 24th. I though this was the most responsible course of action.
I CAN make emergency appointments but don't want to be one of these neurotic complainers going through every single medication until I find one that satisfies my hypochondria. This ISN'T hypochondria. It's not a listed side effect. It feels like the brain-fog and photophobia (lights glare at me in a nasty way) from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and THAT is not something I would relive for anyone.
Another issue is if I do go cuckoo again I WILL go in hospital. Considering those nurses' bizarre idea of misbehaviour I can foresee if I'm a bit "manic" I could easily get into a situation where I get wrestled down and needled. (Not that there's not something secretly funky about that, but it's not really what I want. Y'know...?)
I NEED TO KNOW AN ANTIPSYCHOTIC THAT CAN BE GIVEN IN EMERGENCY HIGH DAYTIME DOSES THAT AGREES WITH ME.
If I left it until I did get needled in hospital, my complaints will be interpreted as insubordination. So I NEED to cross this side-effects bridge NOW.
Naomi has the ear of 3 psychiatrists who work in my area and will bring up my issue with one of them tomorrow. I see her at Nutter Club Thursday anyhow. But I have to sort this problem out. If you went as off the planet as I did NOT ON DRUGS you'd want something you could rely on to bring you down. Being "high" on a mood swing is not all hearts and flowers. It involves being extremely agitated, very volatile, unable to follow simple conversations (sometimes) and being incomprehensible to others (at times). I have to sort myself out. I absolutely have to.
I got a very pertinent comment about my search for a diagnosis yesterday pointing out that maybe I ought to be thinking on nicer things. Problem is I HAVE to answer to the government who are paying me money. They ask for a diagnosis. And my problems have gone extreme enough 1. to put me off heroin and drugs (the high, when it really gets going is WAY BETTER THAN ANY DRUG) and 2. I absolutely have to take responsibility for myself. If I don't, and follow my mood-induced whims I really could get in extreme trouble. I could do anything from chucking my possessions out the window and setting them on fire to... stuff I don't even want to think about.
So you see I'm dealing with what has turned into a serious problem here. And it has to be dealt with properly.
I have to ping out now. Take care everyone. I'm TRYING to take care of myself!
4 comments:
You sound as if you are taking care and thinking through all the medication and repercussions. I hope that you will talk to your doctor though and not change dosages, self-medicate, etc. That can be dangerous.
I can only hope they do listen to you. Could you do a paper type diary and use it to describe how you are feeling at various times of the day and then give it to your people to read? Would they?
Syd: I was going to take the entire lot nightly as I was directed to do in week 1. That way I'm showing I'm responsible and getting round a nasty side effect in the only practical way I can.
I mean this side effect is worse than hearing voices. My voices anyway. Far more distracting, far more upsetting than most of the "illness" I had. At least with mental illness you can go FUCK OFF to it and distract yourself with something else. The "manic" type at least. Depression is just living death. This is like living zombie-ism and as I say JUST like the worst symptoms of CFS. I have to get this sorted and as I said I NEED to know an antipsychotic that works for me because when I do go in hospital (and I'm not braving it outside if I go ill again I've really had enough of looking after a manic 3 year old ie me) then they'll write up something for "severe agitation" in otherwords daring to lose your temper while psychotic. Or just acting the way I feel, which might involve feeling like an aeroplane because I DID feel like I was flying.
This might sound all weird but it wasn't upsetting me the way you might think it would. Despite the irritation and agitation I had a lot of euphoria ~ more than ecstasy, crack or speed ~ and was exceedingly distractable. Being hyper is lots of fun and you can make new friends in the nuthouse. At least nutters aren't all uptight like "normal" people. Junkies are more uptight than anyone else, I find. So obsessed with acting like the smartest junkie when really they're all losers trying to appear like they're coping when they barely are.
In the nuthouse there were 3 strata of people. Level 1, the lowest is the not talking posse which is either severe depression, or some types of schizophrenia Level 2 is people who act bizarre but are talkable-to Level 3 the highest level is most manic people, the paranoia posse (who I got on with best), personality disorders, alcoholics, mild depression and people who were on levels 1 or 2 (you can change level) and are getting better. I was always level 3 in there. When I was in the worst states I've been in I never was in hospital. In depression you have to bear in mind you're seeing a Pure Reality, just as being high is a Pure Reality. So the depressed reality tells me antidepressants are a con. I cant take antidepressants anyhow they make me too hyper, agitated etc. From sleeping too long due to depression and the initial pill side effects sleep shrunk down to 4 hours then nothing for 4 days then last time I crashed so bad within just 1 week being hyper and high it was unreal and this was ON antidepressants AT THE PRESCRIBED DOSE. They should be illegal!
Jeannie: I might print out stuff from here and de-bloggify it with some slight editing. I don't have a printer though so maybe I'll be able to email the shrinko, if he gives me his email.
They don't have a lot of time to read but would read something brief and to the point.
I'm so glad to hear you're trying to take care of yourself Gleds.
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