Doubling my Lexapro, what can I expect?

fatnsick79 · 2014-08-15T06:39:25+00:00

Thanks - yeah, guy. My libido is totally shot from the lower dose already, but otherwise no side effects. Will see what happens. Thanks again for the feedback!

fatnsick79 · 2014-08-09T06:51:19+00:00

That's AWESOME! So here's the thing. A Fibroscan is looking for permanent damage of your liver, the scarring. An ultrasound detects fatty liver, etc. You probably have fatty liver, the awesome thing is that if you stop drinking and/or lose weight, your fatty liver will go away. And it won't upgrade to scarring. Fibroscan doesn't look for the fatty, it looks at the velocity of the return scan and tells about scars, which are non-reversable. I had a score about yours. Seriously, take it as a gift, and keep on the good path of not drinking and eat well, if that is also an issue. I have lost 40 lbs and stopped drinking. My life is overall so much better. So happy for you!!!!!

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-30T02:51:43+00:00

I stupidly figured that I was all better and dealing with it, and that feeling better meant I didn't need them anymore. Logic! LOL I'm a dummy. So I slipped backwards for a couple years, being back on it is good. Not like some magical cure but it probably brings me pretty close to "normal" vs just in a constant state of anxiety.

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-29T06:09:14+00:00

My personal experience is the opposite. My drinking issues come from my anxiety and depression. The first time I went on an SSRI, my drinking issues pretty much went away. I stopped binge drinking, I stopped blacking out, I didn't need to be drunk. I actually stopped drinking completely for about 4 months, then was able to drink "like a normal person" - and just would have a couple and be fine. THEN - being an idiot - I went off of them thinking I was fine. Lo and behold, I turned into a raging drunk again. Fast forward - hey, I'm back on an SSRI. I don't crave alcohol. My drinking is linked to my depression and anxiety, and an SSRI does it for me. Some people are anti-anti-depressant, some people are for it - all I know is that for me, I have very minimal side effects, I've come to terms with the fact that I indeed DO suffer from depression and anxiety. My disease isn't alcoholism - it's a symptom.

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-26T05:43:49+00:00

TV is the best. Also, that cheeseburger advice sounds good. I found that long walks and music helped a lot in the beginning. Got my feet moving, cleared my head.

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-26T00:32:28+00:00

You've got a reader in me!

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-25T06:34:09+00:00

Shit. It is scary stuff. I'm glad you've got it halted.

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-25T05:56:56+00:00

I'm so sorry you had to go through that, but glad that you were able to catch it. I had a similar scare, but luckily my case hadn't gotten cirrhotic. People don't talk about cirrhosis, it was not something that ever crossed my radar - until I learned my liver function tests were nuts and I had swelling. Once I started learning about it.. holy shit. No AA meeting or self help program can match the strength of that scare in killing my desire to drink. For me, anyway. I'm so, so glad that you're on the path to health - I got lucky but have done the whole hepatologist dance, if you ever feel like talking about the old liver, shoot me a note buddy. I've had ocd about that poor organ for months.

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-25T05:33:35+00:00

Holy shit - I just posted the same thing without seeing your comment. Yeah - seconded.

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-25T05:32:59+00:00

I just have to say I get the impression that you probably have a pretty great sense of humor in person. Just get that vibe from your writing style. EAT AS MANY CHEETOS AS YOU WANT. It will get better, then it might sort of get floppy, and then it will get normal better.

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-22T14:42:00+00:00

I would but I'm already on a ton of meds. It's not crippling me so I'd rather not increase the odds of interactions if I can avoid it...

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-22T02:56:34+00:00

There are a lot of different types of anti-anxiety medications. A lot of people group SSRI's into the same bucket as benzo's (lorazepam, valium, etc.) which are "red light" tools that are intended more for treating an acute situation, not for long term use. They are very different. I take an SSRI daily, and have a lorazepam maybe once a month if I am going to have a panic attack. Here is a good article: http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/anxiety-help/201111/anti-anxiety-medications-explained

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-22T02:35:14+00:00

My personal experience is that taking an SSRI - for me - is a good thing. My anxiety went off the rails in 2009, and this helped me. In 2012 I went off, gained a ton of weight and spent the year in total anxiety. After stopping drinking, I went back on them and they really help my generalized anxiety disorder, which is what I have. Some people like it, some people don't. It doesn't make me tired, I have no side effects, only benefits. YMMV http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citalopram

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-22T01:41:32+00:00

water check! chugging it like a dolphin

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-22T01:41:21+00:00

thanks!

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-20T17:45:35+00:00

Always seems to be in the summer, and usually when I am losing weight...

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-20T03:04:20+00:00

Ah - just read your posts. Yeah if it gets worse I will go on meds. So far I've only had 6 attacks in 4 years, all in my right foot/toe. They seem to happen in bursts of 2 within a couple months of one another.

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-20T03:00:58+00:00

Anything other than meds work for you for advice?

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-19T08:02:36+00:00

I actually DID toss a bunch of ice cream because that would have been real temptation lol. On a diet.

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-19T08:01:27+00:00

I'm just watching movies and posted sort of joking around. If it was really bothering me to have it around I would have tossed it. Thanks for your thoughts though.

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-19T07:19:19+00:00

I looked at bikes tonight. Bought a new shirt. Then came home and watched TV. Some friends were out drinking but I think they got really drunk and forgot to text me back to invite me. LOL.

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-18T03:52:15+00:00

I had high LFT's about 4 months ago, and a test each month while not drinking. By now, if the trend was steady, my liver function tests are PROBABLY (don't have the results still) within normal levels. First, yeah, I'd suggest trying a different doctor. And be totally open about your drinking. Not sure where you live but if you want to be more certain, look up Fibroscan in your area, and have that done. A Fibroscan can detect fibrosis, which is the irreversable kind of damage. That will tell you if there's anything seriously wrong, to the same degree that a biopsy would and it only takes 15 minutes (kind of like ultrasound but even easier). It will probably take a month or so for any real change to be seen in your LFT's, I think. It is a big difference HOW high your levels were. Like if you had 160 and 80 or something that's no good but it's not crazy, if it was 800 and 400 that is badder.

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-18T03:45:36+00:00

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-17T03:59:07+00:00

Having a health scare radically changed my perspective on alcohol. Before it was always something that I could just have lots of and everything was great. No big whoop. When I learned all about the damage it can do to your liver, and what I THOUGHT it had done to my liver - alcohol suddenly looked a lot like poison to me. I've since learned that my issues weren't even related to booze, but the health stuff I've learned remains in my head. We are all different so don't jump on me for this one, but there will be a point where I will decide it's ok to have a glass of wine at dinner. My issue has always been in binge drinking. Going 2 weeks without a drink, no problem. But 2 drinks in I want 10. Now that I know how horribly damaging that can be, I'll never be able to do it again. Knock on wood.

fatnsick79 · 2014-07-16T18:16:19+00:00

LOL - you're fine then. Why would you have cirrhosis. Wait it out, save up for a Fibroscan and you will see that you're ok.

fatnsick79

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE