Medication?

Hey all!

I don't know if this is somewhere else :S I did do a search for medication posts but I couldn't find anything.

So I thought I would start a thread for everyone to share their experiences on meds etc. to try and learn for myself some stuff I can try. I know everyone is different so maybe we can talk about personal experiences and see how we go?

Bit of a history:
So I have tried a few medications, not for a DID dx as that is fairly recent. I have tried two SSRI's one made me super zombie like and wasn't good, one made me hyper and I spent lots of money :S. I have tried seroquel (atypical antipsychotic aka quietiapine) more recently and that was really good for sleep but I got off it because I thought it was making me crazy. Now I am on sodium valproate and have just started so unsure of it's reactions.

The problem I have is that I didn't know until quite recently, as I said about my DID and it's hard to know whether the meds were what messed with me or was it the switching?? Hmmm. I don't think I actually went crazy on the Seroquel, I think I went into denial as I had only just been diagnosed. It started with derealization SO BAD, as in didn't know if my entire existence was real and didn't know what was happening and it was just really horrible and confusing. Anyway, I think that might have just been the stress of the diagnosis that caused me to freak out as opposed to the seroquel. I have already swapped over to the sodium valproate so I'll just stick with that for now and see how we go.. I am sceptical though. I have struggled really bad with sleep over the last month which has never been an issue before, not that I've been aware of anyway haha.

The issue I have with meds is that they only really work on pervasive moods, as in ones that occur consistently. I don't have these, my moods can swing from despair to raging anger to ecstatic happiness in the space of five minutes and hundreds of times a day. It's not too bad because I can wait them out and I know they will switch but when I get the ones that maybe last a day or so or come with impulses to spend etc. I really need some help, also I can't discern the difference between impulses and things I genuinely need/want to do which makes for more anxiety. I have to write down what I am doing that day when I am not feeling this so that I know where I am is where I am supposed to be.

Has anyone had anything that has seemed to work?? Also, has anyone had anything that has helped with the derealization if they get it? This invokes horrendous amounts of anxiety for me. Just thinking about it now is stressing me haha. I know this isn't the derealization forum but I guess what meds have you had experiences with for any of the issues with DID?

Thanks for reading hope to find some help here

-- Sun May 24, 2015 10:03 am --

Quick note. I don't self medicate unless you can count caffeine. I used to drink heavily and have smoked marijuana heavily in the past but I haven't had marijuana for about four years now and I haven't had a drink in nearly six months as it is a trigger for terrible things for me, really self destructive things. I know some may self medicate and I totally understand that cause life really god damn sucks some of the time :'( just thought I would let you know a bit more

VikixxLouise wrote:The issue I have with meds is that they only really work on pervasive moods, as in ones that occur consistently. I don't have these, my moods can swing from despair to raging anger to ecstatic happiness in the space of five minutes and hundreds of times a day. It's not too bad because I can wait them out and I know they will switch but when I get the ones that maybe last a day or so or come with impulses to spend etc. I really need some help, also I can't discern the difference between impulses and things I genuinely need/want to do which makes for more anxiety. I have to write down what I am doing that day when I am not feeling this so that I know where I am is where I am supposed to be.

Have you spoken to your dr. about whether you might have bipolar disorder? There are a lot of mood stabilizers out there that are helpful for some people. Seroquel is one of them, actually, but if that doesn't work for you there are others. I don't have bipolar disorder myself, so I don't know the list of stabilizers as well as some people, but I am aware that there are lots of options.

VikixxLouise wrote:Also, has anyone had anything that has helped with the derealization if they get it? This invokes horrendous amounts of anxiety for me. Just thinking about it now is stressing me haha. I know this isn't the derealization forum but I guess what meds have you had experiences with for any of the issues with DID?

My psychiatrist just put me on a thing called Deplin, thinking it might help with derealization. The package says it's a "medical food" (what?), and theoretically it has antidepressant qualities. The dr. said that in my case, it might improve focus and memory, so that's the effect I'm hoping for. I have heard that some of the anti-anxiety meds prevent derealization episodes, but good luck finding anyone to prescribe those long-term. I found this list online as well:

http://www.newsmax.com/FastFeatures/depersonalizationdisorder-disorderpersonality-depersonalizationsymptoms-disordertreatment/2010/10/15/id/373836/

Geeky_of_Borg wrote:

VikixxLouise wrote:The issue I have with meds is that they only really work on pervasive moods, as in ones that occur consistently. I don't have these, my moods can swing from despair to raging anger to ecstatic happiness in the space of five minutes and hundreds of times a day. It's not too bad because I can wait them out and I know they will switch but when I get the ones that maybe last a day or so or come with impulses to spend etc. I really need some help, also I can't discern the difference between impulses and things I genuinely need/want to do which makes for more anxiety. I have to write down what I am doing that day when I am not feeling this so that I know where I am is where I am supposed to be.

Have you spoken to your dr. about whether you might have bipolar disorder? There are a lot of mood stabilizers out there that are helpful for some people. Seroquel is one of them, actually, but if that doesn't work for you there are others. I don't have bipolar disorder myself, so I don't know the list of stabilizers as well as some people, but I am aware that there are lots of options.

VikixxLouise wrote:Also, has anyone had anything that has helped with the derealization if they get it? This invokes horrendous amounts of anxiety for me. Just thinking about it now is stressing me haha. I know this isn't the derealization forum but I guess what meds have you had experiences with for any of the issues with DID?

My psychiatrist just put me on a thing called Deplin, thinking it might help with derealization. The package says it's a "medical food" (what?), and theoretically it has antidepressant qualities. The dr. said that in my case, it might improve focus and memory, so that's the effect I'm hoping for. I have heard that some of the anti-anxiety meds prevent derealization episodes, but good luck finding anyone to prescribe those long-term. I found this list online as well:

http://www.newsmax.com/FastFeatures/depersonalizationdisorder-disorderpersonality-depersonalizationsymptoms-disordertreatment/2010/10/15/id/373836/

Mmmm I am 95% sure I don't have bipolar. My symptoms really aren't anything like bipolar. The cycles are way too fast. People with bipolar or even cyclothymia won't usually cycle faster than a day minimum whereas I am cycling in the space of minutes. Plus I don't really get manic, it is more anxiety and emptiness, then confusion, despair and anger.

I will have a look at the deplin! Thanks My psychiatrist is pretty good and he'll prescribe most things but I don't know if I want to be on anti anxiety's for too long... I know they are very addictive and addiction has been an issue for me in the past. Thanks for your reply

medication is a weird thing.
it seems like anti depressants are simply not working for me. i must have tried more than 10 before the doctors gave up on it.
stuff like olanzapin is a nightmare. i can feel the emotions of alters trying to get thru but i cant hear them anymore. it causes a lot of emotional pain and pressure. i have tried seroquel but the side-effects drove me crazy and i avoid it.
my T found the perfect solution for me. my greatest trouble has been anxiety, extreme hyper-arousal/ hypervigilance and depersonalisation. i am taking pregabalin now. it helps a lot against moderate fear and helps my body to relax and its actually working. they are still trying to figure out if you can get addicted, pregabalin is pretty "new" on the market. so i am hoping this can be a long term solution but i am not sure.

Medication timeline


Later 2012
Anti Depressants Prozac- Hum, didn't stay on them long enough, my stance is I was too busy to be depressed I had so much on my plate my life I used my system hobbies etc to experience happiness.

Anti-Anxiety Clonzepam- Love them dearly, made a a difference in the anxiety symptoms , made me sleepy. Took them for about 6 months and then stopped because I went through a series of events to help also with anxiety reduction.

Early 2013
Anti Psychotic- Halodol Valopric Acid & something else, um that is when things got crazy with my life and instead of describing D.I.D my hearing and feeling the switching I describe the cult like stuff in my life. So it was prescribed for psychosis. Halodol is strong, causes sleepiness, agitation, and made me extremely depressed but seldom my system some, really vivid nightmares. I didn't like them that much. Stopped them around September 2013

December 2014
Anti Psychotic Resperdone etc in my sig....Absolutely no difference comparing to Halodol is like a vitamin, no good or bad side affects no difference any where else. I even tried to get back on Halodol insurance got canceled and priced over $100 couldn't afford them. I stopped around March 2015


I'm not going to go back on Anti Psychotic because I know and can manage without them. It is totally situational on what a person does on them. Everyone is different

I feel like a broken record, posting this, but here goes...

Download the PDF (English or French) at the link below, print it off, read it, and give a copy to any and every psychiatrist who prescribes you medications:

ISSTD: Guidelines for Treating Dissociative Identity Disorder in Adults (2011)

birdsong87 wrote:medication is a weird thing.
it seems like anti depressants are simply not working for me. i must have tried more than 10 before the doctors gave up on it.
stuff like olanzapin is a nightmare. i can feel the emotions of alters trying to get thru but i cant hear them anymore. it causes a lot of emotional pain and pressure. i have tried seroquel but the side-effects drove me crazy and i avoid it.
my T found the perfect solution for me. my greatest trouble has been anxiety, extreme hyper-arousal/ hypervigilance and depersonalisation. i am taking pregabalin now. it helps a lot against moderate fear and helps my body to relax and its actually working. they are still trying to figure out if you can get addicted, pregabalin is pretty "new" on the market. so i am hoping this can be a long term solution but i am not sure.

I will have a look at pregabalin Thanks! I have started back on the seroquel which helps with anxiety and a bit of irritability. Only issue is it makes my derealisation worse but that's ok, we will see how we go. It helps me sleep which is nice but I dream pretty bad on it. My psychiatrist thinks that maybe I would dream even if I wasn't on it but because I don't get far enough into my sleep rythm before I wake up when I am not on it I don't dream... Hope that makes sense.

buter8137 wrote:Medication timeline


Later 2012
Anti Depressants Prozac- Hum, didn't stay on them long enough, my stance is I was too busy to be depressed I had so much on my plate my life I used my system hobbies etc to experience happiness.

Anti-Anxiety Clonzepam- Love them dearly, made a a difference in the anxiety symptoms , made me sleepy. Took them for about 6 months and then stopped because I went through a series of events to help also with anxiety reduction.

Early 2013
Anti Psychotic- Halodol Valopric Acid & something else, um that is when things got crazy with my life and instead of describing D.I.D my hearing and feeling the switching I describe the cult like stuff in my life. So it was prescribed for psychosis. Halodol is strong, causes sleepiness, agitation, and made me extremely depressed but seldom my system some, really vivid nightmares. I didn't like them that much. Stopped them around September 2013

December 2014
Anti Psychotic Resperdone etc in my sig....Absolutely no difference comparing to Halodol is like a vitamin, no good or bad side affects no difference any where else. I even tried to get back on Halodol insurance got canceled and priced over $100 couldn't afford them. I stopped around March 2015


I'm not going to go back on Anti Psychotic because I know and can manage without them. It is totally situational on what a person does on them. Everyone is different

I haven't tried respiridone, if the seroquel gets bad with the derealisation I might try that... It's like playing a f**ked up game of tag hahaha

Una+ wrote:I feel like a broken record, posting this, but here goes...

Download the PDF (English or French) at the link below, print it off, read it, and give a copy to any and every psychiatrist who prescribes you medications:

ISSTD: Guidelines for Treating Dissociative Identity Disorder in Adults (2011)

Will have a read!! Thank you

Medication could work but I doubt it has the strength. Alcohol for me was never strong enough, and unless you want to be dangerously close to a coma, I am not sure psychiatric drugs have any effect, but of course it depends on the person. Personally I have tried mouthwash before, but it's pretty strong and can become addictive. In my mind the best thing is to rely on whatever faculties you have, but I understand people like to experiment, so whatever.

Short on words, but will answer any questions you may have. Abilify is the drug that has worked best for us (social anxiety, PTSD, GAD, OCD, etc). Ninchen benefitted most from prazosin (PTSD hyper-arousal, etc), and for depression wellbutrin is the 'fix' (seasonal affective disorder; it doesn't help with little n's depression though). We reacted adversely to risperdol, seroquel, adivan, effexor, paxil, and prozac (the serotonin drugs make our feelings go away, which is in itself a form of dissociation! the antipsychotics were WAY too sedating, and we had a paradoxical response to adivan).

Geeky_of_Borg wrote:Deplin, thinking it might help with derealization. The package says it's a "medical food" (what?), and theoretically it has antidepressant qualities.

That is what it was. I took Deplin 3-4 years ago when it was I think fairly new if not brand new. I remember the psych explaining it as being a food drug. It did nothing for me, but I am glad that you helped me remember what it was called.

I also tried welbutrin- gave me short term memory loss and I was doing things I didn't remember. Maybe I was switching? I doubt it though I heard it's a side effect. I knew nothing of my DiD at the time.

I tried Citolopram made me to tired and I only wanted to sleep all the time.

I took all those for being mildly depressed, nothing else.

Oh I did take this small pill that is usually for high blood pressure to help with my restless leg syndrome, worked wonders. Only thing that ever has.

Needless to say I don't like medications. And I have not tried many.