A Whole Lotts SHAKING goind on???

[Anonymous]

I am looking for some input on some specific meds i am taking and the side effects.

Having been diagnosed with ADHD, Severe bouts of Depression and Bipolar.

My daily routine is Adderall and Welbutrin in the morning and Abilify and Cogentin at night and Xanax as needed.

Now, the adderall side effect is Tremors in my hands mainly. But it gets so bad i can barely keep my food on the fork when i try to eat and my penmanship has gone to hell. In order to avoid that, i take cogentin. But the cogentinside effects are Dry mouth (so bad i can;t swallow sometimes it’s like my saliva has turned to glue), sore throat, and decreased sweat. I have only been on the cogentin for 1 month.

I was wondering if anybody else has had thes side effects and how do you deal with them.

My work is mainly outside and is very physical. The only thing i can do for the dry mouth is to drink a ton of water and

suck on sugar free hard candy. As far as the inability to sweat, I don’t have a clue. Before the cogentin I would sweat

like a horse!!! I know that not sweating isn’t good for you, but it;s kind of nice not to be completely soaked down to my

underwear during the day.

I have an appointment tomorrow and will bring these issues up. I was just wondering if anyone here has or does

have any of these problems, and how do you and your dr. deal with them?

forgot to mention that with my mouth getting so dry, my throat feels raw and painful when i do swallow.

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[Anonymous]

Defiantly an issue best left for the Doc tomorrow.

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[Patte Rosebank]

You must discuss this with your doctor. It’s very serious.

What really concerns me is the issue of your not being able to sweat, despite your very physical, outdoor job. Not being able to sweat means you can’t regulate your core body temperature. On hot days, or when you’re doing strenuous work or exercise, your core temperature can quickly rise to very dangerous levels, and you wouldn’t know it until you collapsed from heat-stroke—which can be fatal.

As for chronic dry mouth, it will play havoc with your dental health. It will affect your gums and teeth, and it will affect your dental work. Those fillings and cements are designed for the moisture levels of a normal mouth. When you have a dry mouth, it renders those dental materials far more fragile, and prone to shrinkage. Result: Frequent visits to the dentist to repair chipped fillings, and re-cement crowns & bridgework.

I speak from experience on both counts, because I’m diabetic, and reduced sweating & chronic dry mouth are two of the “fun things” that go along with diabetes.

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[Anonymous]

Thaks for the responses.

I saw the Dr. and he decided that cutting the cogentin in halp and see if that helps.

It has been 4 days and am seeing no difference.

Realizing that even for the Dr., this is a learning process to see what works and

what doesn’t, it can be so frusterating. It has been years since my diagnosis and

I am still looking for the right combination of meds that works for me. Granted at

least one year is definitely my fault. I was too stubborn to take the meds on a regular

basis. But it just seems a bit odd to me that it has taken so long.

Is anyone else having difficulty zeroing in on their right combinations of med?

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[Anonymous]

You know some days, it probably feels like your docs are just chucking meds at a wall and seeing which one sticks and that is how they pick them. It is more rigorous than that but I share your frustration. We really try our best but picking meds still relies heavily on experience. This is art of psychiatry.

As I was reading your story, i thought the tremors were being caused by the Abilify often referred to as akathesia. Adderall can cause them too but not usually that severe. The other thought that I had was that your tremors might be a withdrawal effect of your Xanax which is a pretty potent benzo although they can actually make tremors better when they are working optimally.

Obviously, the best person to help make decisions with you is your doc who actually needs to do a physical exam and to figure out where the symptoms are coming from.

Always speak to your doctor before making any changes to medications. Dr. Jain provides advice generically and not for any one person. Advice does not constitute a therapeutic relationship or promise of care. Please consult the privacy policy for more information.

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