ManiaMan

I was just wondering what everyone's experience is in recovering and whether or not medication is completely neccesary. I binge drink from Thursday-Sunday heavily at college. Usually on Monday I have some DT experiences but by Tuesday I'm completely fine. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday(during the day) I am completely normal and fine. Thursday-Monday forget about it. I've heard people that experience DT's have really high blood pressure and medication is neccesary. I plan on seeing a doctor on campus and letting him know what is up. Another reason why I bring this up is what type of meds do they put you on and what are the effects? I read a lot about the DT's and I see people are getting sedatives as meds. Isn't that just creating a whole other problem getting happy pills when someone already has a substance problem to begin with?

I'd like to hear some thoughts...

SaTiT

yes, it dose create another problem.
and you shouldn't throw a planket over everyone.
and it depends if a doctor is pusher becuase bi -polar is an epidemic
all of a sudden, now. CNN say.
I find it hard to belive that more of our children suffers from bi-polar, now.
10 years ago most of our children suffers from ADD and prozac was the pill
of the day. it say something about our society that the US are pumping
up our children with drugs at a very young age. And there's experts up
the waa zoo. Will, you know about the experts..it depends who's righting
their check.

single parents trying to make ends meet or both parents working to make morage payments..
who's raising the children ?

give me a break..do you thing other countries in this world with children,
have the same problems with children having bi-polar.
and if they do...how come it's not an epidemic there and where the hell
are all the experts from those country ?lol


Talking to a doctor helps and there's such a thing as a second doctor's opinion.

in earily recovery..most people will go trhough emotional roller coasters.
if I go see a doctor and is not honest or up front about my drinking probelms.
then most likely then I'll be dianose with bi -polar. Some doctors hates
working with alcoholic becuase...of the dis honesty and not following instructions.


think about it...was there blood sample being taken, did the doctor actaully
stuck a prob or drilled a hole into my brain and pull out some brain cells
to run a test ?

you, yourself knows how your body is reacting. Detoxing can be dangerous
for some people, but not for everyone.

Medication do help if taken properly with therapy. if your doctor
has the same goal as you do ...is to live a drugs/alcohol free live.
it will give a person time to stabalize and hopefully start sometype
of a living program or a healthier life style.

My ESH...detoxing from alcohol was bad...
Detoxing from prozac...totally sucked, but it brought me enough time
to learn and get involve in recovery program.

Afraid2Succeed

anecdotal evidence from those who responded to your earlier post about DT's should not, in any way, replace medical advice from a doctor.

i appreciate your inquisitiveness about your condition, but you should really see the university's med clinic to get sound advice.

keep posting mm.

nandm

I agree that nothing should replace following your MD's advice.

That said, I do agree that many in the U.S. are overmedicated. This comes from someone who has been a nurse for over 20 years. When a person is on 3 or more meds, the likelyhood of the meds reacting to each other increases substantially. I have seen elderly people who take over 15 different meds in a day. It is not uncommon for them to be taking >6 meds per day. One has to wonder if one med is treating the side of effects of another and if further problems that will require meds are being created from the combination of the medications.

One way to head off an over medication problem though is to make sure you are completely honest with your doctor, make a list of all questions or problems you are having prior to going in for a doctors appointment, and do not be afraid to call the doctor if you have any questions after starting a new medication. The doctor is only as good as the information he/she gets from you. Yes, they can take lab work, look at symptoms, but a significant part of any diagnosis is the medical/personal history. It becomes even more important in a person who has abused drugs or alcohol at any point in their life. I can not stress enough the importance of being completely honest with your doctor.

Off the initial subject but to respond to the previous post that addresses Bi-Polar disorder. It is a very real problem for many people. I have been treated for depression for over 10 years now off and on. I have fought with depression since early childhood. Yes, some of that depression is related to the PTSD from my childhood/adolescent years but I truely believe there is a chemical component to my depression. I can tell the difference between when my chemicals are out of wack and when I am just having a rough time with life. There is a difference in the depression. After I got sober, I began to wonder why every time I had been treated for depression the medications only worked a little or only a short time. Why I would sometimes easily go for weeks with minimal sleep and still function fine. At one point I was working 3 jobs (2 full time) and one 32 hours a week. I did that for over a month. I also wondered why I would suddenly have a serious bout of depression out of the blue, suicidal type depression. Very serious suicidal depression. Several times I had backup suicide plans made just in case the first way or second way did not work. It was like living in a black hole and being sucked down further with each breath.

What finally helped me was a doctor listened to my symptoms, I was completely honest with her, and she diagnosed me as bi-polar. I have been treated for the bi-polar disorder for nearly 4 years now. Yes, it was difficult at first to get the medications at theraputic levels but my quality of life has been changed significantly for the better since I was diagnosed. Unless someone has dealt with bi-polar personally, such as a close family member or themselves it is easy to look in from the outside and make judgement regarding whether it is real or not. I am guilty of the same thing. Before I was diagnosed, my thought was only someone really crazy could be bi-polar. I guess it still could be true but oh well, I guess I am crazy then. At least I have a quality of life now between working the program of A.A. and taking the medications to treat my disease of bi-polar.

SaTiT

my gf is bi polar.
And she's gone through so many doctors or therapist.
as i said some doctor are just pushers in a white over coat.

it took going through three different doctors this time around
and thanks fully, a decent doctor came into her life.
Even so, it took months and months of runing tests and trying different
type and level medications that could help her..
her medications cost over $1000 a month..you do the numbers...

signs to look for...if you don't get blood test and get dianose as bi polar
and get a perciption..you''re being pushed

after a year of being on her meds...will she's pretty much addicted to them
and can't function without them. She pretty much gose into old behavior patterns
as if she was still drinking and usung dope.

another part is..she has thyriods problem...will..she gose into a deep depression
if her thyriods is not correct. when she's in that mode..you can easily say she's bi polar

Harley3801

Can't say anything about the meds but I can comment on Thurs-Sun binge drinking . . . . . .

Within a few years after college binge drinking on Thurs-Sun, I drank to get drunk on Sun, Mon, Tues, Wed, Thurs, Fri & Sat. I did that for 15 years cause I couldn't stop. I pray that doesn't happen to you cause it is h#ll on earth.:cage

ManiaMan

Yeah Harley, I plan on not going down that brutal path. These first few weeks have been interesting. My physical addiction to alcohol is slowly going away but being around my friends binging on the weekends is a great test to not drink. I have been going to parties and not drinking. A lot of people would vote against that idea, but with my personality, I need to face something right in the face to overcome it. I get some sort of weird pleasure being around alcohol knowing I don't have to drink and knowing I won't drink it. Call me crazy, but it works for me.

thelagio22

I do think that medications have an appropriate place in our society and they do help a lot of people. There are FDA approved drugs to treat addiction but there is no cure. There needs to be a continuing counseling and or support groups. But when it comes down to it yoour physician must make the final recommendation.

Doug

Not all blood pressure meds are sedatives, or addicting. Though it does seem common to use sedatives to get off of something, and of course this will just cause a new bunch of problems.

It looks to me like you may be putting the cart before the horse, by trying to determine side effects and what not, before you've even seen the doctor.

But let's just keep this real simple; professional problems require professional help.

Let us know how your doctor visit goes.