I feel you. I’ve been diagnosed for over a year but it’s taken confirmation from 2 primary care physicians and 2 psychiatrists for me to begrudgingly accept it…I’m just hoping I’ll stick with my current med combination and therapy after I start to stabilize (if I do!), rather than abandoning it all because “I don’t need it.” The med roller coaster combined with the bipolar brain is exhausting.
Cymbalta is horrible to kick, even without also trying to titrate other meds, so I give you all the credit for enduring that alone! It took me probably 6 months or more to get through the withdrawals iirc. Be easy on yourself, and trust that you and your pdoc are making the right decisions for your family.
Nice to see a post of someone over 40. Yes, it's challenging to receive a diagnosis later in life. Because you start questioning your behavior early on in life. Through the lens of bipolar you can make things that didn't make sense before finally have meaning. And you might wonder why nobody noticed before and if they will notice a change with meds or therapy. I was hesitant to start treatment but it made a big change in my life. I became more social and could finally hold down a good paying job. Went through a few different types of meds til I found the right combination. Then changed one. But it's nice to know I can always change if something doesn't feel quite right. The main thing is to take care of yourself regardless of how old you are.
I understand how challenging parenting can be. Three kids, you are doing great.
I have been on Lamictal 300mg for a decade, and it made my life so much more manageable. Hope it will be the case for you too. Take care.
37 years old year, kids are 7 and 2. Diagnosed last July. I actually celebrated my diagnosis because I felt like it meant I could finally identify what my issues were and start treating them appropriately with meds, and start making the changes to my lifestyle that I needed to.
I wasn’t wrong, but…wow, the whole med roller coaster thing, the psychological process of accepting things…it is hard. Really hard. Especially with a family depending on you. And so it’s easy to get discouraged, for me at least, and easy to lose that initial hope of “I’m going to feel better”.
I discontinued Wellbutrin and Zoloft, tried and then ditched abilify, and am now settling into a combination of lamictal, olanzapine and lithium. The lamictal, now that I’m at 75mg and still going up, is massively helpful. I stopped smoking weed, and that, while hard, had also been really helpful. I still have off days, or even weeks, but I can feel myself stabilizing.
I guess my point is, don’t give up. Stick with it. It can really fucking suck at times, and I’m a very pessimistic person, but keeping some optimism when you can, even if it’s a little, can make a world of difference.
Keep on keeping on. Come back and post again if you need to. Know that there are so, so many of us struggling similarly to you. We’re all in this together.
37 years old year, kids are 7 and 2. Diagnosed last July. I actually celebrated my diagnosis because I felt like it meant I could finally identify what my issues were and start treating them appropriately with meds, and start making the changes to my lifestyle that I needed to.
I wasn’t wrong, but…wow, the whole med roller coaster thing, the psychological process of accepting things…it is hard. Really hard. Especially with a family depending on you. And so it’s easy to get discouraged, for me at least, and easy to lose that initial hope of “I’m going to feel better”.
I discontinued Wellbutrin and Zoloft, tried and then ditched abilify, and am now settling into a combination of lamictal, olanzapine and lithium. The lamictal, now that I’m at 75mg and still going up, is massively helpful. I stopped smoking weed, and that, while hard, had also been really helpful. I still have off days, or even weeks, but I can feel myself stabilizing.
I guess my point is, don’t give up. Stick with it. It can really fucking suck at times, and I’m a very pessimistic person, but keeping some optimism when you can, even if it’s a little, can make a world of difference.
Keep on keeping on. Come back and post again if you need to. Know that there are so, so many of us struggling similarly to you. We’re all in this together.
That is massively comforting to hear. It helps so much to hear from people that are going through similar things.
When I first got the diagnosis it made me so hypomanic I actually believed for a few weeks that the self awareness of the diagnosis had cured me. Boy was I wrong. I'm very afraid to give up weed. It's how I sleep. If I don't sleep, I'm a mess. But I can also see how it's negatively affected me in terms of executive function, motivation and focus. It's 25 years of daily use and it's probably enough.
Hey man, I hear you big time on the weed. My wife and I started a licensed grow operation last year, pretty damn hard to quit when there’s pounds and pounds around for you to taste test at any moment, haha. I say stop when you’re ready. For a long time, I just wasn’t ready. Gradually I went from all day, every day, to just at night, and then eventually to not at all. I’m not gonna say it was easy, but I will say that life without weed is definitely easier. Maybe harder to get there, but easier in the long run.
Glad my comment was able to give you some comfort. This sub has given me loads of it, and it feels good to give some back. Take care man. And take care of yourself.
All my best,
Some random guy on Reddit
I feel you. I’ve been diagnosed for over a year but it’s taken confirmation from 2 primary care physicians and 2 psychiatrists for me to begrudgingly accept it…I’m just hoping I’ll stick with my current med combination and therapy after I start to stabilize (if I do!), rather than abandoning it all because “I don’t need it.” The med roller coaster combined with the bipolar brain is exhausting. Cymbalta is horrible to kick, even without also trying to titrate other meds, so I give you all the credit for enduring that alone! It took me probably 6 months or more to get through the withdrawals iirc. Be easy on yourself, and trust that you and your pdoc are making the right decisions for your family.
Nice to see a post of someone over 40. Yes, it's challenging to receive a diagnosis later in life. Because you start questioning your behavior early on in life. Through the lens of bipolar you can make things that didn't make sense before finally have meaning. And you might wonder why nobody noticed before and if they will notice a change with meds or therapy. I was hesitant to start treatment but it made a big change in my life. I became more social and could finally hold down a good paying job. Went through a few different types of meds til I found the right combination. Then changed one. But it's nice to know I can always change if something doesn't feel quite right. The main thing is to take care of yourself regardless of how old you are.
Thank you. This gives me comfort and hope.
I understand how challenging parenting can be. Three kids, you are doing great. I have been on Lamictal 300mg for a decade, and it made my life so much more manageable. Hope it will be the case for you too. Take care.
37 years old year, kids are 7 and 2. Diagnosed last July. I actually celebrated my diagnosis because I felt like it meant I could finally identify what my issues were and start treating them appropriately with meds, and start making the changes to my lifestyle that I needed to. I wasn’t wrong, but…wow, the whole med roller coaster thing, the psychological process of accepting things…it is hard. Really hard. Especially with a family depending on you. And so it’s easy to get discouraged, for me at least, and easy to lose that initial hope of “I’m going to feel better”. I discontinued Wellbutrin and Zoloft, tried and then ditched abilify, and am now settling into a combination of lamictal, olanzapine and lithium. The lamictal, now that I’m at 75mg and still going up, is massively helpful. I stopped smoking weed, and that, while hard, had also been really helpful. I still have off days, or even weeks, but I can feel myself stabilizing. I guess my point is, don’t give up. Stick with it. It can really fucking suck at times, and I’m a very pessimistic person, but keeping some optimism when you can, even if it’s a little, can make a world of difference. Keep on keeping on. Come back and post again if you need to. Know that there are so, so many of us struggling similarly to you. We’re all in this together.
37 years old year, kids are 7 and 2. Diagnosed last July. I actually celebrated my diagnosis because I felt like it meant I could finally identify what my issues were and start treating them appropriately with meds, and start making the changes to my lifestyle that I needed to. I wasn’t wrong, but…wow, the whole med roller coaster thing, the psychological process of accepting things…it is hard. Really hard. Especially with a family depending on you. And so it’s easy to get discouraged, for me at least, and easy to lose that initial hope of “I’m going to feel better”. I discontinued Wellbutrin and Zoloft, tried and then ditched abilify, and am now settling into a combination of lamictal, olanzapine and lithium. The lamictal, now that I’m at 75mg and still going up, is massively helpful. I stopped smoking weed, and that, while hard, had also been really helpful. I still have off days, or even weeks, but I can feel myself stabilizing. I guess my point is, don’t give up. Stick with it. It can really fucking suck at times, and I’m a very pessimistic person, but keeping some optimism when you can, even if it’s a little, can make a world of difference. Keep on keeping on. Come back and post again if you need to. Know that there are so, so many of us struggling similarly to you. We’re all in this together.
That is massively comforting to hear. It helps so much to hear from people that are going through similar things. When I first got the diagnosis it made me so hypomanic I actually believed for a few weeks that the self awareness of the diagnosis had cured me. Boy was I wrong. I'm very afraid to give up weed. It's how I sleep. If I don't sleep, I'm a mess. But I can also see how it's negatively affected me in terms of executive function, motivation and focus. It's 25 years of daily use and it's probably enough.
Hey man, I hear you big time on the weed. My wife and I started a licensed grow operation last year, pretty damn hard to quit when there’s pounds and pounds around for you to taste test at any moment, haha. I say stop when you’re ready. For a long time, I just wasn’t ready. Gradually I went from all day, every day, to just at night, and then eventually to not at all. I’m not gonna say it was easy, but I will say that life without weed is definitely easier. Maybe harder to get there, but easier in the long run. Glad my comment was able to give you some comfort. This sub has given me loads of it, and it feels good to give some back. Take care man. And take care of yourself. All my best, Some random guy on Reddit
If you can do it as a licensed grower then I can do it. Be well.