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Honestly at 200 I don't notice a difference from when I wasn't on it. I've never even been manic just had borderline for years and figured I'd try it just in case the BPD was a misdiagnosis but it hasn't really made a difference. It has the least incidence of side effects of pretty much any mood stabilizer, including being less sedating. It can cause SJS but that's so rare that I've never personally seen it and if you get it you might make it into a medical journal. Some patients who have experienced mania will say they feel worse on it because it doesn't feel as good as being manic, the same way patients who've been hyperglycemic or hypertensive for an extended period will be hungry or dizzy while their glucose or blood pressure comes back down from orbit. It's also possible that you're a bipolar type 2 which tends to get depression way worse and might benefit from a low dose antidepressant or an adjunct 3rd gen antipsychotic like abilify or latuda. Last time I tried to give proper info on something like this somebody accused me of spam though so enjoy my word vomit.
Lol I won't accuse you of spam. Don't worry.
Do you take anything now?
I was initially on an SSRI but it didn't help with that sort of thing either for me and I was also wondering if I was making me worse. :( The psych provider switched me to lamotrigine because I was still struggling and it was failing to alleviate that, but I'm not sure if this is harming my brain. I'm probably just some science experiment where they are fucking my brain up for fun.
Lamotrigine is actually specifically for the depressive part of bipolar disorder is the thing tho. I don't have that...but if I did, it's designed to help it.
I'm still on the lamictal I figured I should give it a fair shot and like I said I don't feel like it does anything but it's not hurting me and the doctor keeps prescribing it. I also currently take a low dose seroquel as a sleep aid. More importantly the one chemical imbalance I definitely do have is ADHD, for which I take clonidine at bedtime and strattera when I wake up. I also take a variety of supplements, in particular magnesium for mood / sleep and NAC for dermatillomania.