Expert: Ivan Goldberg, M.D. - 3/9/2007

Question
Hi, I have ADHD and Bi-polar and few other things to boot. I have not taken my Depakote b/c it is expensive and I'm a student, and the side effects (weight gain, liver damage). Most of the time I can feel the cycle coming and kind of brace myself and keep from slipping too far too fast...but not always. I also think I suffer from anxiety and I think that may get my depressive cycle going full force. What can I do to minimize this? I want to try and start a family in the next couple of years and do not want to endanger my future child. I just don't know what to do or take...and no one understands what I'm talking about. I can't get my assignments done, or anything else for that matter. I'm to the point now where I am afraid to even have children for fear of passing on my curse to them. I can feel myself start to loose control and I can't stop it. Do you have any advice? Please help.

Answer
I will not prescribe Depakote for women who think they might want to have children some day in the future. This is because of the detrimental effects of Depakote on the ovaries. Please see:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed

Tegretol, Trileptal, lithium or Lamictal often do a good job of stabilizing the moods of women with bipolar disorder.

Best regards . . .

Ivan
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