Depakote For Mood Stabilizer Information

Depakote For Mood Stabilizer Resource

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Depakote (mood stabilizer) & Weight gain...? I know that weight gain is a common side effect of many mood stabilizers, including Depakote... I take 1000 mg/day. Since November I've gained about 30-40 pounds (the weight gain took place between Nov and Feb)... Has anyone that gained weight due to any meds been able to get if back off? Is it harder than losing weight that you put on due to lack of exercise/poor diet? I feel like it might be harder to get this off because I'm still taking the medication that put it on in the first place. Did you gain weight with meds? How much? Could you get it off? All of it, or only some? What worked best? **If anyone is on a mood stabilizer that didn't cause any weight gain, that's another thing i'm curious about... I asked my doctor and she said its different for everyone- i just wanted anyone else's experiences. Thanks in advance! Skye, thanks for your awesome answer. Unfortunately I don't have prescription insurance so I need to be on something inexpensive... Abilify's not an option for me (not yet, anyway... we'll see after I graduate college this year, and get a job, maybe i'll have good insurance). :)

hope replied: "The side effects are different for everyone. For me personally, I have not gained weight on any medication that I've taken. Some of them include: cymbalta, wellbutrin, lamictal, buspar, lexapro, zyprexa, symbiax, klonopin"

Skye replied: "I spent 9 years on depakote! when I first when on it I gained about 30 pounds. however once the gain stabilized I was able to lose the weight through careful diet and moderate exercise. (I did end up gaining some weight back, but that had more to do with ice cream and cake then the meds, in my opinion!) When I reached the point that Depakote was no longer as effective for me, my next drug was Tegratol, (sp?) I gained about 10 pounds when I first went on this medication, however after a few weeks the weigh gain stopped. This has proven to be an effective drug for me. The downside to this medication is it has weird interactions with other medications so things like infections, colds, and other medical conditions can be a problem for your doctor find drugs to give you. For this reason many MD's prefer not to use it. Litihum (sp?) is the worst I've ever heard of for weigh gain. Fortunately I have a atypical form of bipolar disorder so this is not an option for me. I have read of weight gains of between 50 to 100 pounds. of the 4 most used mood stabilizers for manic depression the only one, that I am aware of, that is weight neutral is Abilify. this may or may not be an option for you, you would need to discuss that with your shrink. Be aware that if you do not have Rx insurance, Abilify is the most expensive option currently on the market. Like outrageously expensive."

arkansas girl replied: "lithium is great and cheap its on the 4.00 plan but there is zoloft to"

YA Junkie replied: "I sympathize with your plight, since I gained 30 pounds with Seroquel in just two months! Fortunately, I stopped the med and subsequently lost the 30 pounds. I go to a support group for people with depression and bipolar disorder, and I know about weight gain from mood stabilizers. You might consider Lamictal. Since I started taking it, I have lost about 20 pounds. Some people on Lamictal tend to lose weight, while probably the majority have little change in weight gain or loss. Finally, Abilify is an option for you. I have been getting it totally free through the company's Patient Assistance Program. Almost all companies have these programs. Some companies ask for lots of paper work to get the med, while other companies ask for little. I got on Abilify for free with very little hassle. I wish you well. "

Have you had any side effects from the anticonvulsant/mood stabilizer Depakote and how have you coped with it? Also please tell me how much you are taking and for how long. Thanks!

Sam K replied: "As with all drugs, it depends on the dosage. However, a dosage of any medicine in any dose can have side effects. Depakote has been around a long time. The longer a medication has been out on the market, theroretically, you can tell more about its safety and effectiveness record. Compared to my experiences with antipsychotics, which can cause (according to some people at BipolarAware forums) secondary side effects of suicide or self-injury, Depakote and any medicine in its class (anticonvulsants) are safer for treating mental illness. I am not going to tell you what my side effects were, because side effects vary, and if you expect certain side effects, they are more likely to happen. (psychosomatism.) If you are experiencing side effects while on the drug, please feel free to e-mail me or post at one of the Livejournal communities such as crazymeds or one specific to epilepsy. There is also where you can post your experiences. It is important that you get a dose that is right for your weight, and that puts you in the middle of the therapeutic range. A good doctor should get blood tests to confirm that it is working as intended. This is true for any mood stabilizer. It is also very important that you share your attitude towards medication with your psychiatrist, as well as any cultural factors (like religion, your parents' use of medication whether liberal or conservative), your tolerance of side effects.. things of that nature. If your doctor doesn't allow you to discuss these things, or doesn't appear to be listening, ask him/her why. Have a dialouge! Good luck. --Sam P.S If you have a mental illness, and are good at doing research, you may wish to join my research-based information site at."

theresa4104 replied: "I've taken 1500 mg of depakote daily for a while. I'm not sure the exact time as we've been experimenting with doseages/meds for 14 months (since my diagnosis). I currently take 500mg morning, noon, and night. the three doses really help with stability and side effects. I have also taken 1000mg (no effect for me), 1250 mg (made me cycle rapidly), and 1750 (made me depressed) in the past 14 months. Side effects: I had stomach irritation and headaches (not severe) the first few weeks while first starting the medication. I also experienced weight gain right away, but I can't accurately tell how much. I started Depakote the same time as Zyprexa (big weight gainer) and gained a dozen pounds the first week. After the first few weeks on this drug (and Zyprexa) the weight gain stopped, but I was not able to lose it even with diet/exercise. It took getting rid of the Zyprexa to be able to actually lose a little of the weight, but it was hard. Check out it has a great collection of people's experiences with different drugs"

I am taking Depakote as a mood stabilizer? Does anyone know if you have withdrawals from this med when you stop taking it?

Kazz replied: "I dont know that drug - your Dr or pharmasist would be the best one to tell you about that.. I have taken a different mood stabilising drug before (I cant remember the name though it was a few years ago) I think it was recommended that you not stop cold turkey but I did and had no adverse reactions"

rachelgypsy replied: "it depends, that is why they tell you to not go off it without the Dr knowing. the Dr can tell you how to wean off slowly, so you will not get withdrawls"

Valerie M replied: "I took that for about 5 years, for epilepsy. I switched to a different med when I was 16. While I was switching I was a wreck! Really depressed and crying over nothing, angry, mean, definetly not myself. It took about 4 weeks before I felt normal again. The side effects from Depakote are horrible. If you are thinking about stopping it, I don't blame you. I gained about 70 pounds during the first year taking that. Also, I slept most of the day and my hair started falling out. It's bad stuff. Be careful with it."

Bradley'sMoM replied: "Not very much. I took it for a while for migraines. It makes you gain weight like crazy!!!!!!"

zen replied: "Do you like Depakote? The first doc I saw for my anxiety/depression gave me that. I felt like a human stoned, luded out slug! I changed meds, so I didn't get withdrawals, just a sense of clarity back."

I take depakote, which is a mood stabilizer. Someone please answer these questions! PLEASE!? Ok. I started taking this about 4.5 months ago because I was diagnosed w/ bipolar disorder. Since then, I've lost extreme interest in just about everything. I'm only casually interested in everything now. 1) Can this drug or mood stabilizers in general suppress your emotions to the point where you don't get really excited or you dont care as much about things? I'm convinced that it's done that to me but who knows... maybe i'm depressed? but i've been depressed before and it wasnt like this... someone help cause i feel like i'm trapped in a cage! it's like i cant get passionate about ANYTHING one way or another. it's just all chill. btw, i take 500 mg, am a male 17 years old and weigh 180 lbs. if that helps. i was perscribed 1000 but take 500 a night because it gave me BAD diahrea. please help.

Cassie T replied: "Yes, it's probably the Depakote. Those types of drugs really tend to destroy your ability to feel anything. It's been long enough. It's not going to go away. Ask your doctor about switching to something less extreme."

EiNST3iN replied: "I have been extreme Bipolar for 5 years now. I have been through so many medications, pretty much everything possible out there, I have tried. There is one medication that has worked WONDERS for me called Lamictal. Ask your Doctor about putting you on that, because it is an awesome medicine! Goodluck to you and stay calm. It gets better over time, I promise. I take Lamictal (200mg) for my mood stabilizer and 10mg of Lexapro for anti-depressant. Together they work great! But with Lexapro you gotta watch your weight."

im1grlegrl replied: "The first question I would ask you is what kind of Dr. prescribed this med for you? If it was a Psychiatrist then I would call the office and see if they can switch your med to a similar medication called Neurontin which is a drug that works in the same way without all the side effects. Depakote over time will make you gain weight, move slower and lose interest meaning you can only get so excited about anything. As you can probably tell I am not a fan of this med at all. If this med was prescribed by a family dr then I would make an appt with a therapist as it is my personal belief that only a specialist should be prescribing speciality drugs. This is in part why we have so many kids on ADHD meds. By the way, Depakote was only approved for use in depression and bipolar disorder within the last several years. Depakote is not actually a mood stablizer it is an anti-seizure medication. For some people it works well with depression but for others the side effects are too much. If you are having the big "D" on the prescribed dosage then that is a red flag to me that this may not be the right med for you. Now, having said all of that, Bipolar Disorder is a disorder of mood swings in simple terms. You cycle from one extreme to the other and to varying degrees. So that is what your brain is used to and part of this could be that you are missing the "highs and lows" of the disorder so you would naturally feeling like you are "not feeling". That part will go away with time and therapy once you are seeing the right dr. and on the right meds. 4 months is long enough for a try out so I would call the psychiatrist."

amg7613 replied: "To guy who takes Lamictal/Lexapro---yes, with both of those even, you have got to watch your weight! I gained like 20 lbs. in 6 months with Lexapro. Another thing with Lamictal: You've got to taper onto it---otherwise you could end up with a horrible rash. I have a client who had strokes--and Lamictal/Lexapro was prescribed by her neurologist (seems to help her calm down and bring her back to "her" normal). Yes...Depakote can make you very "numb" to the world, however it's there to help you not be so "manic" with the bipolar. Be careful with Depakote and the diarrhea (because it can make you very constipated--diarrhea can also happen when you are constipated and really backed up). It sounds gross but I have a lot of clients who take both Lamictal and Depakote (for behavior-related conditions and seizures)...and have these issues. You need to talk to your doctor about how you've been feeling with the Depakote. If you've been "flat" for too long, your doctor may look into an anti-depressant (like Lexapro) that will help you have feelings again. Worth looking into at least."

TomT replied: "While it is critical to your mental health that you be on medication, there are a number of stabilizers that might allow for better results. I think you should discuss the matter with your mental health professional and suggest the possibility that they allow for trying a different medication. My wife, who is also bi-polar, was highly stable on Lithium for many years then switched to Lamictal because of accumulative side effects with Lithium. She has never experienced what you describe under either medication. Best of luck to you!"

cheapy replied: "Hi, sorry to hear of your situation. It is hellish. I have bipolar and am currently in a down phase. In the past when I was depressed I was prescribed depakote to stabilise me, but I found it useless in helping my depressive side. It gave me diahrea and hair loss too. I switched to lamatical which is also supposed to help with depression, i'm not convinced it does that much really, except perhaps I can say my depression isn't as bad this time around. I am now thanks to this site considering taking Lexapro or Fluoxetine to lift me abit."

If I already take precription medications, would I still be eligible to have a sleep study done? I am a 14 year old male, I very recently have been prescribed (and have been taking) Syroquel (mood stabilizer), Depakote (mood stabilizer), and Adderall (ADHD medication). I have a sleep study coming up on May 30th. When it was scheduled I was not on any medication. Since the medication interferes with the brain, is it possible they will not accept me because I am on medication?

michele replied: "The best course of action here is to phone the sleep study center and ask them specifically. Best of luck in your treatment, ~M~"

Just Thinking replied: "Its shouldnt make any difference but you need to be honest and upfront with them because it might and they need to have this information to make correct diagnosis etc"

cella replied: "They probably want people that are not on meds. If someone was on meds it wouldn't show there natural sleeping habits."

I have a question about Depakote 250 mg? I just started taking Depakote for a mood stabilizer (for anger). I am not bipolar nor do I have seizures. I have been sleeping a lot more but I feel very wierd ain a discomforting way. Does anyone have any comment on Depakotes effectiveness? I really would like to feel better but not by screwing up my brain and making me feel shitty and zombie-like.

Amelia replied: "I have bipolar moods and took depakote, but it didn't help stabalize my moods. Depakote can have some tough side effects and if it isn't working, see if you can switch ASAP. I gained a lot of weight and had some pretty big cognitive problems and was still unstable - talk about insult to injury! For some, depakote is an actual life saver and the tradeoff with the crappy side effects are worth it. My advice to you is let your body get used to it for a month or two. If you don't see improvement push hard to try something else."

Personal experience with these medications: Welbutrin, Depakote? I have a friend who's afraid depakote for example is slowing down his ability to think and focus. He wants to look into possible new and better medications for his manic depression. Welbutrin is his antidepressant and they prescribe him depakote as a mood stabilizer. On top of personal side effects you've experienced, can someone suggest possible new and better drugs for mood stabilizing manics?

Bippy McBipperson replied: "Thats the trick to get the right mix of meds for U. It is a time consuming process and at times very frustrating. Most of the mood stablizers have side effects that would challenge the most patient people. My only suggestion would be to try another med to see if it might be better. I have heard good things about lamictal but not for everyone. Lithium has been around for ages and time tested. Abilify is a new drug that has some success. But as I stated before everyone is different and you have to see which one is good for you. Good luck and I wish you the best."

SP Life replied: "When I had to take Welbutrin it made me nauseas and I'd throw up within three hours of taking it. Never even heard of Depakote. I don't know if it is prescribed to manic patients, but I had Zoloft and it helped."

norm replied: "Hi! I do not have depression but my g-friend has been battling it for years(her whole life). She has been on so many meds it's not even funny. I will tell you the ones that she is on and have been working for her somewhat. 1)Escitalopram oxalate (depression) and 2)Carbamazepine for mood stabilizer. She doesn't seem to have a whole lot of side effects to these where she has on a lot of the other meds out there."

deshane2530 replied: "Depakote works well I think, but it caused me to gain weight. So I no longer take it. Welbutrin did nothing for me. It was like taking a placebo."

What is the Best Mood Stabilizer? I've tried Lithium, Depakote, Trileptal, and Neurontin.

knowitall replied: "How about Bio-feedback and attitude adjustment? Have you tried those? It may not be chemically caused."

serina replied: "Seroquel."

Toss that Yeyo and Run replied: "Lamictal is very popular and it works for many people without too many side effects."

Syd replied: "To be honest, you have to keep experiementing. Im on Trileptal already for my seizures. Ive tried Seroquel, which did nothing but make me gain weight. There are sites online that list the mood stabilizers and what they treat specifically. This might help at your next doctors appointment, to give you some direction. Im currently on Lamictal. I have depression with Bipolar I and Borderline symptoms. Good luck!"

Yahnswers Guru replied: ""Best" depends on the person and the metric. There is no overall mood stabilizer, except for death, but I fear the costs outweigh the benefits in that case. imho..."

My son is 7 years old. He has Aspergers Syndrome and does alot of stimming and pacing. ? He's on the mood stabilizer Depakote and she wants to put him on Ritalin next. I've heard alot of bad things about Ritalin and wanted to know if I could get some feedback from people who have actually had to give this to their child.

rollystrambolly replied: "drink sunny d my wife had the same thing drink a full cup of sunny d and he wont stop"

Its Me! replied: "Ritalin only works for a while it stops having such a strong effect then they have to put him on a stronger dose. I personally don't think that drugging children up to control their behavior issues."

Alpha WolfPup replied: "I have asperger's too so if you want to contact me you can. I have never been on Ritalin but I have heard that many times Ritalin has the opposite affect then it is supposed to with people on the autistic spectrum."

DEPAKOTE. I've done enough research in the past day to understand that individual results vary in re: weight gain, but this is the medication that will be prescribed to my daughter (psych said in "low dose" once daily at bedtime - mg unknown to me right now) for an undiagnosed mental disorder (i.e., could either be bipolar, anxiety, aggression, etc. but bottomline teenager whose anxiety can get the better of her and cause crisis intervention from psych hospitals). She is already overweight and not convinced meds is the way to go. QUESTION - is Depakote the best mood stabilizer out there for adolescents with anxiety problems? QUESTION - when will the weight gain start to show itself - is there a correlation with dosage - and is it a function of the increased appetite and/or metabolism change? Thank you - Additional information - body image and self esteem are very low in my 14 yo daughter. This weight gain component when combined with her resistance to taking meds will convince her not to continue. Pyschiatrist is not really "ours" but assigned by the hospital and does not recognize the concern by us (no not divorced) and the therapists as to the potential counterproductivity of the weight gain in a big picture sense. Psych is only focused on the behavior that got her there. So, I really want to offer some alternatives when I go in today and before my daughter starts Depakote tonight - if there are good alternatives out there.

here_nor_there replied: "I really understand how hard you are working to help your daughter. My daughter has been on depakene for seizures since she was 15 months old. It is a mood stabilizer. My daughter is also autistic and suffers from intense anxiety. However, since she was so young when she started, I don't know if the meds helped to decrease the anxiety, maybe it would have been even worse without the meds? I can tell you that she is not overweight. In fact, we are always concerned about her needing to gain weight. (She's 9 yrs old now). She's very thin. She always craves carbs voraciously, but seems to be unable to eat a lot of food in one sitting. The best thing I've ever used to decrease her anxiety was TMG. You can buy it OTC and it's very inexpensive. I gave it to her twice a day. It's derived from sugar beets and very safe. She still takes her meds, but the TMG was almost miraculous in reducing her anxiety. It took about 2 weeks for it to take effect, but when it did, it was as different as night and day. It helps reduce homocysteine by overcoming a methylation block."

crystal w replied: "my son takes depokate because he has serious and he has lost weight taken the medince . i guess it depends on the person and why they take it.my son takes 2 pills at night for his serious he takes 2 500 mg pills at night.i guess my son also has deperisson plus adhd and my son takes for his deperisson is lithium for his depersion and it works wonders. he also takes sequal to help him sleep.have a child that has deperisoon it is not easy and i feel for u. the best thing u can do is be their for your daugter and support help and also have her in counsling and have your self in counsling to help deal with your stress and to help you deal with stress of have a child that has deperison it is hard and i feel for u know where u coming fromi have been their and i have had my son in the hospital to and he is only 10.are u divorced? i am asking because i am divorced mother of 2 and the divorce really took a toll on my son"

pointless74 replied: "Ask about Lamictal. It is a newer seizure med/mood stabilizer. Almost every med has a weight oss/gain componet to them."

socratesmanx replied: "Hi I was finally diagnosed with Bi-Polar, Depression, and Anxiety back in 1999 and I'm now 40 years old, I have a huge issue with my weight, i was put on Depakote and I started to gain weight within about two weeks time and I went from about 115 to 160 in about 2 months, I could have died!! I went into further depression, it was terrible for me, I'm a border line Anorex they have found out and all of the Depakote didn't help me at all, I really don't think that it will be a good idea for your daughter to be on it, I'm now on Topmax and it is a wonder drug!! It actually curbs your appeitite, it has made me loose weight and I';ve never been happier and more stable in my entire life, I wish my parents would've taken me to the Dr's. when I was younger than your daughter, she is very lucky!!! Please check out Topamax and for Depression Cymbalta is also great, it also is for weight too. I hope this helps ya sweets!!! Have a really blessed day!!!!"

clgirl replied: "everyone is different but when i took Depakote my weight was about 120 I'm 5'9 i blew up to 200lbs in a matter of months"

paintergal73 replied: "Depakote is mainly for bipolars isn't it? I took it 8 ys ago for bipolar and it made me believe people were after me, I heard people talking when they were not there. There are SO many meds out there, and they chose depakote? I would not give that to anyone except those with seizures. Oh honey, I dunno your daughter, but weight is a bad issue for kids, if it causes weight issues get something else. Because if it does to her like it did to me...whether she is over wieght or not, she will think she is...crazy stuff."

More Sites

Mood stabilizer - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For other uses, see stabilizer. ... acid (Depakene), divalproex sodium (Depakote), and sodium valproate (Depacon, ... Lithium is the 'classic' mood stabilizer. ...

Bipolar Meds - The Mood Stabilizers
For depression, a small study found no difference between the Depakote and ... Topamax (topiramate) is a newer mood stabilizer that is receiving notice for its ...

Mood Stabilizers
Lithium was the most important mood stabilizer for many years, but another mood stabilizer?Depakote (divalproex)?has since surpassed lithium ...

Depakene/Depakote/ Depakote-ER (divalproex sodium)
Drug class: Anticonvulsant/mood stabilizer. General Information ... When Depakote and other anticonvulsants are used for treat ... MOOD STABILIZERS ...

mood stabilizers for bipolar disorder
(not "mood stabilizers": no anti-manic effects) valproate, divalproex (Depakote) topiramate ... This leaves no mood stabilizer clearly safe for use while ...

Depakote - What is Depakote
Depakote - generic divalproex sodium or sodium valproate - is an anticonvulsant (anti-seizure) medication used as a mood stabilizer in the treatment of bipolar ...

Depakote
Depakote (generic name valproic acid) is an anticonvulsant often prescribed as a mood stabilizer for those with bipolar disorder (manic depression). Found here are ...

Mood Stabilizers as Medications divalproex, Depakote
Here you will find information on Mood Stabilizers as Medications divalproex, Depakote, side effects,Bipolar Disorder, Manic Depression, bipolar disorder, ...

The Bipolar Child
... mood stabilizer , and then, the anticonvulsant drugs, Tegretol, Depakote, ... Prozac in combination with mood stabilizers for children and adolescents ages 8-18. ...

NSLIJ - Mood Stabilizers
... mood stabilizers are well-established: Tegretol (carbamazepine) and Depakote (Valproic acid) ... also monitored with these anticonvulsant mood stabilizers. ...

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