A timeline of my son's medication to date

3/1/2009 Depakote Geoden Concerta Welbutrin. Advent of JTs 18th bday (in February) and dorm change neccessitated by school re-org cause instability. JT convinced he can leave school since he is 18- partially true ! JT acts out violently against a therapist- claims fugue like symptoms and akathisia* he was experiencing preceded this un-premeditated attack. Note John's current diagnosis is more in the autism spectrum.
*akathisia while on Abilify- the event happened before he was put on Geoden.

2/3/2009 Depakote Abilify Concerta Welbutrin Inderal, Concerta 36 mg QAM; Abilify 5mg QAM/ 10 mg QAS; Depakote 500 mg QAM/ 1000 mg QAS; Inderal 240 mg QHS; Welbutrin 100 mg BID

1/1/2009 note JT's meds were pretty stable from 2007- 2009 though I kept up the questions to the docs about the purpose and efficacy of Abilify*. JT in out-of state residence- school- Sept 2007 thru Spring 2009 (that is 'the present' when doing this blog post) he is doing really well in this period when compared to the previous 2-3 years. Phone calls to him regulated to once-weekly after he acts out a lot on the phone about leaving school. Some or all of us up to see him every couple months. Several home visits too. Takes up guitar and fishing. I will probably always treasure memories of some of the happy days during this period that we spent with him.
* Why is JT prescribed antipsychotics ? He has never had a hallucination. He has never heard voices. UNBIASED research has never shown antipsychotics to be effective at reducing violence over the long term. There is a fair body of research literature that shows antipsychotics like Haldol increase violence, especially pointless, un- meditated violence. maybe the other ones do too, and unbiased research would show that. Meanwhile mental health workers are indoctrinated by Pharma-funded CME courses to believe that they are safer on the job if more patients take antipsychotics. When I ask this question, the docs usually answer with vague nice-ities such as : "It will help to clear up his thinking. " Huh ? Do they really believe that ? In what ways do a long -term doseage of antipsychotics clear up a non-schizophrenic individuals thinking ? How has that been measured ?

1/1/2007 Depakote Abilify Concerta Welbutrin Inderal Concerta 36 mg QAM; Abilify 5mg QAM/ 10 mg QAS; Depakote 500 mg QAM/ 1000 mg QAS; Inderal 240 mg QHS; Welbutrin 100 mg BID - Note- JT has been taking approx the same meds 2007- 2009. Welbutrin dosage may have varied slightly during this time.

11/15/2006 Tegretol Abilify Concerta Welbutrin (Bupropion) SR AND Depakote ! adding Zydis regular BID "Tegritol XR 200 MG at bedtime Depakote ER 750 MG AM-1000 MG PM Abilify 5 mg AM- 20 Mg PM Welbutrin 100 MG bid Concerta 27 mg one in AM Zyprexa 5 mg BID Inderal 60 Mg once a day."

12/1/2005 note Late 2005 they added Inderal 60 Mg 1 time a day

6/15/2005 some tweaking of dosages 2005-06. A bid by the treating doctor to put him on Haldol was dropped after Dad asked questions about Haldol and violence.

6/7/2005 note levothyroxine added for thyroid 0.05 mg at mid-day. Added B12 1000 mcg
6/7/2005 Tegretol Abilify Concerta Welbutrin (Bupropion) SR AND Depakote ! adding Zydis regular BID "Tegritol XR 400 BID and 200 BID and 100 BID so 700 in all 500 mg Depakote BID Abilify 15 mg Welbutrin 100 MG bid Concerta 27 mg one in AM Zyprexa 5 mg BID"

5/1/2005 Tegretol Abilify Concerta Welbutrin (Bupropion) SR adding Zydis as prn "Tegritol XR 400 BID and 200 BID and 100 BID so 700 in all. Abilify 15 mg Welbutrin 100 MG bid Concerta 27 mg one in AM"

5/1/2005 note increase of Tegritol in April- May 2005

4/26/2004 Tegretol Abilify Concerta Welbutrin (Bupropion) SR
2/1/2004 Straterra taken off after severe appetite loss- in 1 year JT goes from 85 lb here to back up to145 lbs ! The doc did not beieve at first that Staterra was the culprit.

9/10/2003 "Tegretol 600 AM & PM (7 am 6:30 PM)" Seroquel 150 AM & PM Welbutrin SR 150 AM & PM Straterra 60 MG AM , -- info is from VM team notes. DR MY

5/17/2003 5/17/03 5th hospitalization at SP _west. Seroquel titrated by 50 mg here
5/1/2003 "Tegritol XR 400 AM 600 PM" Seroquel 200 bid (400 daily total) Buspar Welbutrin 150 bid Eskalith 450 bid Straterra added _ for ADHD … titrating Buspar

4/8/2003 "Tegritol XR 400 AM 600 PM" Seroquel 200 bid Buspar 10 tid Welbutrin 150 bid Eskalith 450 bid, -- "4/8/03 4th hospitalization beginning (also had 1 day inpatient at G__C 4/7/03) after violent behavior towards family self- harm and property destruction"

3/23/2003 "Tegritol XR 400 AM 600 PM (at discharge)" Seroquel 200 bid (at discharge Buspar 10 tid Welbutrin 150 bid Eskalith 450 bid, -- 3/23 JT back in 3rd hospitalization SP after violent behavior towards family- Discharge 3/31/03

3/17/2003 Tegritol XR 400 bid Seroquel 100 tid Buspar 10 tid Welbutrin 150 bid Eskalith JT Discharge 3/17…
3/17/2003 note "After discharge Mom and Dad discuss possible titration of Tegritol (in favor of using Eskalith as the mood stabilizer… why have two major mood stabilizers along with all other meds and risk possible contraindications) unfortunately JT does not prove stabe enough to try any outpatient med changes"

3/11/2003 Tegritol XR Seroquel Buspar 10 tid Welbutrin 150 bid Eskalith "3/11 Dr. VM is repl Trileptal w another anti convulsant incr Seroquel."

3/7/2003 Trileptal Seroquel Buspar Welbutrin Eskalith added back in Another Hospitalization SP starting 3/7/03 (Friday)

2/25/2003 Trileptal Seroquel Buspar Welbutrin Hospitalized at SP adolescent unit for violent acting out towards Mom. - disch following Monday

1/22/2003 Eskalith Seroquel Buspar Welbutrin "Begin titrating Lithium- reason teacher (Ms. F) noted cognitive dulling also there are a few possible borderline thyroid readings in his recent history Dr H wants to try Trileptal add Trileptal. During this period dosages of Zydis( Zyprexa) were given as PRNs at Dr. H's direction."

1/20/2003 Eskalith 450 bid "Seroquel 100 bid 50 noon" Buspar Welbutrin Note 4 months with no hospitalizations !

9/14/2002 Eskalith 450 bid "Seroquel 100 bid 50 noon" Buspar Welbutrin "discharge post hosp seroquel- 100mg bid 50 mg noon buspar- eskalith- 450 mg bid welbutrin- (probably raised to 150 bid here) "

9/7/2002 Eskalith 450 bid "Seroquel 100 bid 50 noon" Buspar 7.5 tid Welbutrin 100 bid "pre hosp seroquel- 100mg bid 50 mg noon buspar- 7.5 mg tid eskalith- 450 mg bid welbutrin- 100 mg bid "

9/1/2002 Note 5+ months with no hospitalizations !
3/18/2002 Lithium Seroquel Buspar Welbutrin "Another hospitalization at SP. After addition of Welbutrin JT's self- harm statements became very rare virtually non- existent !"
2/1/2002 Lithium Seroquel Buspar Nortyptyline "JT readmitted SP for ~ 5 days another increase of Seroquel"

1/31/2002 Lithium Seroquel Buspar Nortyptyline "JT at SP - increase of Seroquel add Lithium"
9/1/2001 Depakote Seroquel Buspar Nortyptyline "JT is discharged from VM . The first month or two are pretty good a 'honeymoon period'"
9/30/2001 Depakote Seroquel Buspar Nortyptyline JT begins to have trouble with behavior at WO school. Mom is lobbying for his admission to full year program at (SP private) school
7/1/2001 Depakote Seroquel Buspar Nortyptyline JT vacation at beach with parents is overall pleasant

2/1/2001 Depakote Seroquel Buspar Nortyptyline "Titrated to 100 mg Seroquel again with no ill effects no overall increase in violent behavior."
11/1/2000 Depakote Seroquel Buspar Nortyptyline "Dr P begins to titrate off the Seroquel slowly from 150 to 125. JTs short term memory improves and he begins to talk more with his therapist"
7/1/2000 Depakote Seroquel Buspar add Nortyptyline "Dr P adds Nortryptyline since it is (at lease partially) an epinephrine antagonist and also an anti- depressant"
6/1/2000 Depakote Seroquel Buspar JT is home. Fairly sure at lease one hospitalization here. We re- apply for residential at VM

2/1/200 note Dad has a one time eonly consult with Dr Peter Breggin in Bethesda- who tells him he can do more good by staying with his family and asking intelligent questions about the meds. Good advice ! Dad pays for this out-of-pocket.

2/1/200 Depakote Seroquel Buspar "November 1999- February 2000 JT is in residential at SV residential. At some point here Zyprexa was replaced by Seroquel which was better for him since he didn’t gain as much weight (was getting grossly overweight on Zyprexa). Overall this is an unpleasant experience for the family. The staff at SV is not used to working with birth parents."

10/1/1999 Depakote Risperdol (removed and Zyprexa added ) "Continue Tenex add Effexor ? Antidepressant"
6/1/1999 Depakote Risperdol "remove Klonodine add Guaneficine Tenex) has similar anti-anxiety y properties"
5/1/1999 Depakote Risperedol Klonodine "250mg Depakote 2x day 0.5 mg Risperedol AM 1.5 Risperedol pm .05 Clonodine 2 x day"
5/1/1999 Depakote Risperedol Klonodine "Since addition of Klonodine and Risperedol JT is harder to wake up in AM but generally has a good AM. Behavior in school is still good unchanged. Still can keep awake at school. Some incidents of hitting his mother and sister at home. Overall affect at home in PM cycles with more ""dark"" periods. JT generally poops out at 7:30- 8:00 PM falling into a deep sleep. "
4/1/1999 Depakote Risperedol Klonodine "250mg Depakote 2x day 0.5 mg Risperedol AM 1.5 Risperedol pm .05 Clonodine 2 x da"
2/1/1999 Zoloft Depakote

1/1/1999 "Zoloft six day trial of Adorax" see comment >>> "JT tried on Adorax (anti-anxiety) for six days is taken off because of poor staff communication that he had a really bad weekend when it was just average problems. Dad feels trial of Adorax was not long enough"
12/1/1998 begin Zoloft (after ?) Adderall see comment >>> "JT is tried on Adderall (like Ritalin) - becomes very hyper and anxious also vomits at school- taken off after two days"
11/1/1998 No Meds
10/1/1998 Zoloft/ no meds no meds at all at VM !
9/1/1998 Zoloft Tegritol

8/1/1998 Zoloft Tegritol Neurontin Neurontin is titrated with no ill effects. Dad (with Mom's concurrence) request 'peeling off the layers of meds'
7/1/1998 Zoloft Tegritol Neurontin Risperedol "JT starts at local VM residence in July.
Risperdol is titrated with no ill effects. Mom and family visit at least twice a week. J is reading the Harry Potter books out thus far in 1998 I think 2 or 3"

5/1/1998 Zoloft Tegritol Neurontin Risperedol

3/1/1997 Nortryptyline "Depakote (briefly) then Tegritol" Neurontin "JT age 6 when psychoactive meds started- Dad objects to the meds Mom wants them. J's original diagnosis was Oppositional Defiant. The docs probably added a 'rule out something in the affective spectrum' after they started medicating him. Note here J is an early reader."

3/1/1997 note "After an anxious incident in his first day of a 'French Immersion Program ' full day kindergarten JT has a pretty normal year of kindergarten and attends regular Summer camp. Mom fights to get him in Special Ed over Dad's (and the regular school system's) objections"

3/1/1997 note "Mom and Dad disagree wrt whether JT presented any 'symptoms' of abnormality in toddler years. Dad agrees JT was a 'spirited child' who like riding bikes hiking playing ball and got into occasional mischief. The intent of this table is to show JTs meds not give his ENTIRE background which would create more contention from various stakeholders wrt the content."

11/18/1995 note JT's sister is born. Mom shows increasing signs of being unable to sleep while breastfeeding
2/9/1991 note JT is born

going to my happy place for a few moments before blogging again

Its been a while since I blogged here. Every new event in the unfolding pharmaceutical research, 'black bag payoffs' & marketing scandals : Charles Nemeroff, the Seroquel 'sex for favorable drug research' scandal*, the Zyprexa settlements, the alleged misdeeds of Dr Joseph Biederman-- all these have caused me to believe that the way we as a society approach child and adolescent mental health treatment is going to change. When mental health treatments really change, when unbiased research on psych meds is really done, I am hoping my son will be one of the benefactors.

*Not as well known as the Nemeroff and Biederman fiascos - so I am posting a small additional blurb here.. 'lest we forget too quickly' and the other links get taken down

     Former AstraZeneca U.S. medical director for Seroquel, Wayne MacFadden confessed his multiple sexual affairs, and his offer of drugs to one of the women he was sleeping with, to lawyers in December 2007.

The confessions include descriptions of sex in hotel rooms paid for by AstraZeneca, illicit distribution of Vicodin, and a kinky relationship in which one of his colleagues asked to be "punished" for looking at a study that had negative results for Seroquel.

      MacFadden told that woman: "You will be punished (in the usual fashion!) when I see you ... but perhaps more harshly this time!!!"

      He made the confession to the lawyers -- who are suing AstraZeneca for allegedly failing to warn patients that side effects of the drug include significant weight gain and diabetes -- as part of a deposition prior to the current litigation going on in Florida.

      Between 2002 and 2006, MacFadden said he had slept with two executives who worked for AstraZeneca or its research agencies. He offered Vicodin to one of them. He also attempted to get confidential information about Bristol-Myers Squibb's FDA filing for a bipolar depression approval for rival drug Abilify, via a woman he was sleeping with.

Mr  MacFadden- you make me want to puke !
 

Every week I still believe real change is 'right around the corner', so there will be no reason to dust off THIS blog. Plenty of other justly more famous bloggers are scooping me on each late breaking event in these scandals.

I remember Watergate. From my misty perspective here in 2009, seems like it only took a few months to round up the real culprits and serve justice, right ? Of course I know that's not true. deepthroat helped, so did the Post. John Dean cracked. Agnew flopped in his own mess. Incredibly, Tricky Dick gave us the tapes ! But it took over a year, even for the denouement.

So back to bloggery I go ! But first...
a cleansing breath
Om mani padme hummm... that's and old mantra my old friend Bill used to have on a record.
... will an angel of mercy ... look down on me .. and my family ?
In the 'happy place' I get to in meditation and dreams sometimes, I'm walking beside a robust creek on a warm May morning in the semi-Northern latitudes. The creek makes its own music, sings its own sagas on the stones beneath it. Dragonflies laze and skim. there is peace, and no particular place to go, since I am already there, with all my friends, safe inside the gates of eden, in the Dream-Time .