Posted by Sulpicia on May 31, 2001, at 16:52:17
In reply to Re: Redirected: Seroquel/Wellbutrin/Clonidine, posted by mdemaio5602 on May 31, 2001, at 1:09:36
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> My son has not stabalized as of yet, at least it doesn't seem that way to me. I guess the big question is: what are reasonable expectations! He has a short fuse, and has trouble keeping still. He has been crying lately but I am presuming it is because the Wellbutrin did not kick in yet.
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It took my daughter 6 months to stabilize. A short fuse and hyperactivity and tears may drive all concerned nuts but he's not in danger of killing himself -- be grateful. :) Ok, now that you've sworn at me in your head,
it goes without saying that you should have a good enough relationship with the pdoc to question stuff. If he's been on wellbutrin for x number of weeks and shows no improvement, speak up. If a higher dose or a longer trial
is recommended, find out why. Many pdocs go slow the AD meds for fear of setting off mania, but if your kid is horribly depressed you probably need to push a bit. Close communication with the pdoc is also essential. Weekly [or
more frequent as warranted] appts prior to stabilization worked well for us, as did planned phone calls 2 and 4 days after any med changes. When things were *really* hairy he gave us his home phone #, tho no doubt all pdocs
have coverage.
> I imagine that you've found some sort of talking therapist too? It's essential for ADHD and bipolar, especially when it includes education and specifically learning how to recognize mood shifts and triggers thereof.
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> You are right about going. We have not been seeing a talking therapist but I know we should. As of lately his condition has been stressing me out so much that I have getting ill and I never get sick. My insurance allows me to go to one group in town and I had so much trouble with them, they were so incompetent. I will have to find someone else and pay the 40% out of pocket.
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The most important thing that talking therapy did for her was to begin the educational process of what bipolar is and how to live with it. We can't get inside her head and see when she's slipping off: she is learning to recognize
some of the triggers and more importantly, she's learning how to deal with her unique needs for sleep and nutrition. It also helped US too to have the pdoc's reassurance that things were going well. The fact that he respected
her and validated her efforts to deal with her disorder really made a difference.
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I can recommend a few if you're interested.
I know the woman who runs this board and she's fabulous.
Ask all the questions you want.
>http://www.angelfire.com/wa/support/bipolar.html
NAMI is essential reading
http://bipolar.nami.org/helpline/bipolar-child.html
Take what you find on the forum here with a grain of salt; the home
page articles are reliable.
http://bipolar.about.com/health/bipolar/cs/menu_kids/index.htm
This site will also lead you to support groups, all dedicated to BP kids
http://www.bpkids.org/
Select bipolar forum here. An excellent online support forum.
http://neuro-mancer.mgh.harvard.eduhttp://www.ndmda.org/
scroll down [left side] to support groups: they are listed by state
and have parent contacts.Last point: as far as I can tell, no pdocs of any worth will work with our
*behavioral health provider* where I live. If I had followed their instructions
my child would be dead now. As soon as I realized what a worthless option this was I
simply found the best pdoc and paid him. Ouch, but worth it.
40% sounds good to me....
> Hang in there! It does get better. BTW, is he able to go to school?
S.
poster:Sulpicia
thread:201
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/child/20000813/msgs/207.html