Recently, John M. Grohol, Psy.D., CEO & Publisher of PsychCentral.com, generously offered us our own space on Psych Central to blog about topics of interest to those in the bipolar community – people with bipolar disorder and their loved ones, physicians, psychiatrists, therapists, and anyone else who’s interested in learning more about bipolar disorder.
Today, we’re happy to announce the birth of our new blog, Bipolar Beat, where we will be supplying syndicated content from our Bipolar Blog along with original new material. We invite you to check out our new digs and the other valuable offerings on Psych Central.
If you’re a fan of the Bipolar Blog, don’t worry. Bipolar Beat is not replacing our Bipolar Blog. It’s complementing it and providing us with yet another platform for spreading the word about bipolar disorder and helping those who have the disorder and their circle of support live well with bipolar disorder.
We appreciate your support and believe that our new partnership with Psych Central will inspire us to deliver even more valuable information and insights to the bipolar community.
i was wondering if anyone knows of the dangers of prescribing a 38 year old man with severe bipolar disorder ritalin. I feel that the addition of this drug has pushed my husband into a paranoid state and ruined our family. Now protective orders are in place and he is taking about 150 of these pills a month. All prescribed by a psychiatrist that knows his history and substance abuse problems. Please help.
I’m no doctor, but prescribing anyone who has bipolar Ritalin seems to be very dangerous. At one time when he was in junior high, our son (who also may have bipolar disorder) was diagnosed as possibly having ADHD and placed on Adderall – a medication in the same class as Ritalin. His moods improved alright but for only a couple days, after which he would cycle from ecstasy to fury and back, over and over throughout the day, sometimes changing from one to the other in a matter of seconds. The doctor then prescribed Paxil, which made it even worse.
Our son ended up in a mental health facility, at which time, the doctor added Tegretol and Imipramine to the mix, never weaning our son off the Adderall and Paxil. We had to do that ourselves. Our son is now very much opposed to seeking professional help, even though he could probably benefit greatly from it.
Ritalin, like Adderall, is an amphetamine, an upper. Prescribing it to someone who’s known to have bipolar disorder seems inconceivable to me. It’s like spraying napalm on a burning house.
But like I said, I’m no doctor. Maybe Dr. Fink will weigh in on this and provide some explanation why your husband’s doctor thought this might be a good idea.
Hi Rachael –
Stimulant medications such as methylphenidate (Ritalin) can trigger agitation and other negative mood effects – therefore we often avoid these medications in people with bipolar disorder. That being said, it is thought that some people with bipolar disorder also have ADHD and careful use of stimulants can sometimes be extremely helpful. It is an extremely individualized decision – and not so common – but it is done.
IIn this case however, whatever the thinking behind the prescription, it certainly seems that your husband’s mood symptoms have worsened with the stimulant treatment – and the doctor prescribing should be made aware of this effect. The doctor may not be getting accurate reporting from your husband – and giving the doctor information is a reasonable thing to do – even if you do not have permission to get info from her. However the doc may feel an obligation to tell your husband that you gave her the information – so that is something to consider before you call. But the doc can’t make good decisions without accurate input about how the meds are working or not.
It is probably worth a phone call to your husband’s doc to see what information can be shared.
Candida Fink MD