new and trying to figure this out

[chcoty]

To: anyone
I am bi-polar and after strong consideration my doc she put me on adderall, so I could wake up during the day.. but with strong consideration mind you, and 4 years of being stable but it was still depressed but less depressed.. I had been on plenty of different meds and we found a combination that worked but barley..It was the best the docs  could do so I went on adderall to wake up the depression was low but my energy was severly low. My question to someone is : does adderall lose it's effectiveness over time? and what is the maximum dose you can take.. I don't see my doc for another month and I can't find any other answers on the internet.. I was taking 15 mg's a day and after a week that stopped working, now i am on 15 twice a day and that no longer works.. I am taking the instant release.. any ideas?..Also I have posted on other boards so I  don't know where to put myself so thank you all for being patient!.

[ILADVOCATE]

If you are just speaking about low energy levels from the sedative effects of medications (which would be different from depression lowering a person's energy levels which would be treated with an anti-depressent) you could ask your psychiatrist about Provigil which has been of help for some people and they could decide whether it was a workable idea. That was approved in the past few years for narcolepsy as well and is often used to help stop the sedative effects of medications, within a psychiatrist's discretion.

[chcoty]

Thank you for the reply, I am on 300 mgs of effexor in the am and 300 mgs of lamictal in the am both should be waking me up enough .. the only med I take for sleep is ambian but not all the time.. I do have klonapin that I use when I can't cope with certain things but I use it sparingly.. I did read up on the adderall and i think it is newly prescribed for narcolepticy but yes it's not common especially for bipolar persons.. I am at my witts end with no energy, I have tried supplements and have been working on this for 7 years now and I am at the end of my rope.. any suggestions is of great appreciation..

Thank you

Cindy

[ILADVOCATE]

Adderall is generally prescribed for ADHD. It generally would not be prescribed just to keep a person from experiencing the sedating effects of other medications (which should not be confused with the low energy levels of depression) because of the potential side effects (at least to my knowledge, you could ask your psychiatrist more about that). Adderrall does have somewhat of an antidepresent effect but generally standard anti-depressents would be tried first. Adderall does have a potential for a person to build up a tolerance to it but it shouldn't occur that rapidly. There should be other options and although anti-depressents are used with caution in a person with bipolar and can potentially worsen mania (Wellbutrin being the least likely to do this) Adderalll is generally used for ADHD and because its a stimulant and has a highly activating effect unless a person has ADHD as well it is rarely used for a person with bipolar but you could speak to your psychiatrist more about that, what are other available options and what they are specifically trying to treat. The low energy levels of depression should not be confused with the sedating effects of medications though both can co-exist.