Having a lot of trouble convincing myself to stay on medication.

[paintedfish]

I guess I just need some moral support, or maybe horror stories right now... I hate taking my medication and if I dont keep on a regular schedule they wont work.

[hiphop3]

why do you hate taking your meds? wouldn't you rather have your head more level than feeling outline line when not on them?

i don't know..i don't think it's ever a good idea to just stop taking medication. especially if you have underlying issues that haven't been addressed, or a condition like bipolar and schizophrenia.

[paintedfish]

Well my meds are for bipolar. But today I felt completely numb, and then because of that, i realized it was the meds, and I went off the wall angry. When Im on them Im mad because Im not myself, when Im off Im mad because I need pills to stabilize me. I dont know what to do.

[hiphop3]

feeling completely numb? i think you should look into switching meds maybe. not all medications make you a zombie. it takes some experimentation (believe me i know). meds can make you feel more 'normal' and help you think more logically i have found. i really struggled with accepting that i needed meds to be a healthy person for a long time. i felt a lot of shame in it. but the fact is, some times your brain chemicals are not balanced, and that's all it is. do you have any one to talk to about medications? can you go to your doctor or a psychiatrist? i think you'd regret going of meds, the consequences can be pretty bad.

[paintedfish]

Yeah.... bleh youre right, I just needed to get past my bad mood till the meds kicked in.

 

 

Thank you so much.

[waveseer]

I didn't used to believe in psych meds but now that I'm feeling better I do. Whenever I don't take them for a few days in a row I suffer. I am done sufferring for something so easily remedied, so now I take them daily without fail.

[NJRon]

Getting the right combination of medication is quite difficult and can take a long time... and I'm not just talking a few months here. It is important that you take the meds as prescribed and then report your feelings/symptoms back to the doctor so that they can adjust. If something is tough for you to live with, like numbed emotions, you need to make sur eyou can describe it properly... for bipolar, it is important to numb a bit... stabilize.

 

Are you keeping a mood journal? Something you can track your moods in from day to day? It's often tough with bipolar to separate the effects of the meds from the effects of the bipolar, so you may need to track it over a decent course of time.

 

All I can say is that when you do hit the proper medication, the effects will be well worth it.

[Fitchik]

paintedfish...I too take several med's a day. And I'll give you best advice I ever heard, when I was in a place of not wanting to take the med's anymore...

 

If you were a diabetic, or had a thryroid issue, or high blood pressure... would you ever consider not taking your med's? Of course not!

 

bi-polar, depression, anxiety....what ever...it's all the same. It's part of who you are, just like it's a part of who I am. Talk to your dr's until you find the right med's for you..and there are many options out there.

 

Best of luck to you, sweetie.

[3boys]

Yes, you definitely need to keep taking them regularly. If you go off and on, the levels in your blood keep fluctuating and that makes it worse when you do start taking them, hence the "numb" feeling when you start again. I get that even when I forget to take mine for a day

[paintedfish]

She just increased my dosage!!! I told her I didnt want to and she said then she couldnt help me... so basically its either shove pills down my throat or get dropped on my toosh in the cold world.

 

Thanks so much for everyones encouragement... this is such an icky situation and to hear everyone say that I should stay on straightens out my judgement... Im going to keep taking it for now but if this increased dose does funny things Im going to stop seeing this psychiatrist. The problem is that she's free through my university.