Anonymous
01/06/2025 21:34
Subject: Anyone else’s parent on happy drugs?
SSRI and bipolar are often an unhappy mix.
Lithium.
Lithium.
Anonymous
01/06/2025 21:23
Subject: Re:Anyone else’s parent on happy drugs?
Anonymous wrote:a friend of mine had the experience of a mother who was mentally unwell (i think bipolar) most of her life. toward the end she found the right drugs and was happy and stable --and then she got cancer and died like 2 years later. It was so sad.
My mom is on a cocktail of things now for dementia agitation, paranoia and aggression--buspar, risperidone, zoloft. None of it seems to help. She has always had anxiety and depression and its like it just increased 25 fold, with nothing to tether her to reality. we are trying seroquel next.
I hope they find a good combo that works. Zoloft and maybe Ativan has worked well for mine. There’s a third drug for dementia, but I’m skeptical any dementia drug really does anything.
Anonymous
01/06/2025 21:22
Subject: Anyone else’s parent on happy drugs?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:My now deceased mother was prescribed an SSRI. She took it when she remembered -so sporadically- then up and stopped taking it but didn’t disclose these facts until she had a horrible constellation of mental, physical and psychological problems.
It was too little, too late. I believe she lived her life with untreated bipolar disorder.
That's really sad. I wonder if people with bipolar might be more inclined to stop taking medicine because they think they are "better" when they are on the upswing?
OP
PP and yes - this is definitely a thing. My mom was extremely hesitant to take most all meds and was distrustful of doctors. So she reluctantly took SSRIs and we all held our breath.
Barely gave meds time to work before she just stopped.
Ugh. I’m sorry.
OP
Anonymous
01/06/2025 12:01
Subject: Re:Anyone else’s parent on happy drugs?
a friend of mine had the experience of a mother who was mentally unwell (i think bipolar) most of her life. toward the end she found the right drugs and was happy and stable --and then she got cancer and died like 2 years later. It was so sad.
My mom is on a cocktail of things now for dementia agitation, paranoia and aggression--buspar, risperidone, zoloft. None of it seems to help. She has always had anxiety and depression and its like it just increased 25 fold, with nothing to tether her to reality. we are trying seroquel next.
My mom is on a cocktail of things now for dementia agitation, paranoia and aggression--buspar, risperidone, zoloft. None of it seems to help. She has always had anxiety and depression and its like it just increased 25 fold, with nothing to tether her to reality. we are trying seroquel next.
Anonymous
01/05/2025 17:41
Subject: Anyone else’s parent on happy drugs?
PP and elderly need supervision and med management.
My mom would forget one or two days, maybe have short term memory loss and be unable to remember she’d already taken a dose and she’d double dose.
Her geriatrician said this was a common problem and got increasingly difficult for her to be responsible for taking the right meds at the right time and dose. Scary.
Eventually skilled nursing was the answer and later, 24/7 med management.
My mom would forget one or two days, maybe have short term memory loss and be unable to remember she’d already taken a dose and she’d double dose.
Her geriatrician said this was a common problem and got increasingly difficult for her to be responsible for taking the right meds at the right time and dose. Scary.
Eventually skilled nursing was the answer and later, 24/7 med management.
Anonymous
01/05/2025 17:41
Subject: Anyone else’s parent on happy drugs?
I wonder if my sibling wrote this post. This describes my mom. My childhood was difficult at times, her mental health issues made her emotionally abusive at the worst times and just mean and difficult at the best times. The manipulation I experienced as a child was unreal. She went on anti depressants after my dad died 5 years ago as well as anti anxiety meds and saw a therapist. She's a changed person.
I honestly was angry for a little bit. I was angry that it took her that long to get help. I'm 38. We have an ok relationship. We talk, we can spend a few days together, and she has a good relationship with DS. But we will never be close. She will never be on my immediate list to call with good news or for advice or just to talk to. And I think back and wonder if she'd gotten help when I was a kid if we could have had that kind of relationship.
I honestly was angry for a little bit. I was angry that it took her that long to get help. I'm 38. We have an ok relationship. We talk, we can spend a few days together, and she has a good relationship with DS. But we will never be close. She will never be on my immediate list to call with good news or for advice or just to talk to. And I think back and wonder if she'd gotten help when I was a kid if we could have had that kind of relationship.
Anonymous
01/05/2025 17:36
Subject: Anyone else’s parent on happy drugs?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:My now deceased mother was prescribed an SSRI. She took it when she remembered -so sporadically- then up and stopped taking it but didn’t disclose these facts until she had a horrible constellation of mental, physical and psychological problems.
It was too little, too late. I believe she lived her life with untreated bipolar disorder.
That's really sad. I wonder if people with bipolar might be more inclined to stop taking medicine because they think they are "better" when they are on the upswing?
OP
PP and yes - this is definitely a thing. My mom was extremely hesitant to take most all meds and was distrustful of doctors. So she reluctantly took SSRIs and we all held our breath.
Barely gave meds time to work before she just stopped.
Anonymous
01/05/2025 17:33
Subject: Anyone else’s parent on happy drugs?
Anonymous wrote:My FIL finally got on an antidepressant. He is still a horrible, horrible father and person. Hard to tell if it really helped when his baseline behavior is so horrendous, but I guess he is not worse and perhaps, a bit peppier now that he is convinced the pills are reversing this odd neurological disorder where you're unhappy all the time and yell at people and can't sleep and ruminate a lot over how he's retired and it turns out his horrible behavior means that nobody cares about him anymore except his family who he never cared about and in fact was an abusive horrible jackass to forever and ever continuing to today.
(God bless that neurologist who convinced him to take the pills, because he sure was never going to take mental health medication otherwise despite many, many doctors recommending psychiatric treatment as he trundled from one to the next, convinced that regular signs of aging = imminent death despite extensive, extensive testing showing he was...just old. and in great [phsysical] shape for his age.)
That sounds awful. I'm sorry you all have to deal with that behavior.
OP
Anonymous
01/05/2025 17:32
Subject: Anyone else’s parent on happy drugs?
Anonymous wrote:My now deceased mother was prescribed an SSRI. She took it when she remembered -so sporadically- then up and stopped taking it but didn’t disclose these facts until she had a horrible constellation of mental, physical and psychological problems.
It was too little, too late. I believe she lived her life with untreated bipolar disorder.
That's really sad. I wonder if people with bipolar might be more inclined to stop taking medicine because they think they are "better" when they are on the upswing?
OP
Anonymous
01/05/2025 10:22
Subject: Anyone else’s parent on happy drugs?
My now deceased mother was prescribed an SSRI. She took it when she remembered -so sporadically- then up and stopped taking it but didn’t disclose these facts until she had a horrible constellation of mental, physical and psychological problems.
It was too little, too late. I believe she lived her life with untreated bipolar disorder.
It was too little, too late. I believe she lived her life with untreated bipolar disorder.
Anonymous
01/05/2025 09:21
Subject: Anyone else’s parent on happy drugs?
My FIL finally got on an antidepressant. He is still a horrible, horrible father and person. Hard to tell if it really helped when his baseline behavior is so horrendous, but I guess he is not worse and perhaps, a bit peppier now that he is convinced the pills are reversing this odd neurological disorder where you're unhappy all the time and yell at people and can't sleep and ruminate a lot over how he's retired and it turns out his horrible behavior means that nobody cares about him anymore except his family who he never cared about and in fact was an abusive horrible jackass to forever and ever continuing to today.
(God bless that neurologist who convinced him to take the pills, because he sure was never going to take mental health medication otherwise despite many, many doctors recommending psychiatric treatment as he trundled from one to the next, convinced that regular signs of aging = imminent death despite extensive, extensive testing showing he was...just old. and in great [phsysical] shape for his age.)
(God bless that neurologist who convinced him to take the pills, because he sure was never going to take mental health medication otherwise despite many, many doctors recommending psychiatric treatment as he trundled from one to the next, convinced that regular signs of aging = imminent death despite extensive, extensive testing showing he was...just old. and in great [phsysical] shape for his age.)
Anonymous
01/05/2025 08:27
Subject: Anyone else’s parent on happy drugs?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:My elderly parent has depressive disorder and anxiety and this turned into belittling and criticizing us nonstop our whole lives.
After MANY years, my parent’s doctor somehow got them on antidepressants.
They are a new person. The anxiety is still there at times as is the manipulation, but the screaming is reduced. They seem happy finally.
At times, I feel mad they didn’t go on these drugs ages ago and spare me the years of verbal abuse.
Anyone else have a similar thing happen?
Yes. I wonder if my whole childhood could have different.
I’m sorry that is the case for you and hope you find peace. It’s mind boggling how different and less damaging life could have been.
OP
Anonymous
01/04/2025 21:48
Subject: Anyone else’s parent on happy drugs?
Anonymous wrote:My elderly parent has depressive disorder and anxiety and this turned into belittling and criticizing us nonstop our whole lives.
After MANY years, my parent’s doctor somehow got them on antidepressants.
They are a new person. The anxiety is still there at times as is the manipulation, but the screaming is reduced. They seem happy finally.
At times, I feel mad they didn’t go on these drugs ages ago and spare me the years of verbal abuse.
Anyone else have a similar thing happen?
Yes. I wonder if my whole childhood could have different.
Anonymous
01/04/2025 15:23
Subject: Anyone else’s parent on happy drugs?
What drug? I should go on it 
Anonymous
01/04/2025 15:17
Subject: Anyone else’s parent on happy drugs?
My elderly parent has depressive disorder and anxiety and this turned into belittling and criticizing us nonstop our whole lives.
After MANY years, my parent’s doctor somehow got them on antidepressants.
They are a new person. The anxiety is still there at times as is the manipulation, but the screaming is reduced. They seem happy finally.
At times, I feel mad they didn’t go on these drugs ages ago and spare me the years of verbal abuse.
Anyone else have a similar thing happen?
After MANY years, my parent’s doctor somehow got them on antidepressants.
They are a new person. The anxiety is still there at times as is the manipulation, but the screaming is reduced. They seem happy finally.
At times, I feel mad they didn’t go on these drugs ages ago and spare me the years of verbal abuse.
Anyone else have a similar thing happen?