NERVOUS about new pdoc appt & new meds..HELP?

So I have a psychiatrist appt. tomorrow to get started on meds. I was diagnosed 6 months ago but was trying 'other things' and just therapy for awhile. I finally have realized that a mood stabilizer would be a good idea.
However, I don't know what to do to prepare for my appt. Should I list my symptoms? Should I bring my mood chart? I'm just so scared of leaving something important out.
I want a med that will not make me gain weight, not make me "zombielike" (I'm a teacher), and not make me pee too much (I've heard of this happening and I already have interstitial cystitis). Is that even possible? My therapist said she thinks I will be fine. I have the next two weeks off work so I thought it would be a good time to adjust to the new meds.

I have been soooo happy lately. Like euphorically happy. And I haven't even really been that irritable, I'm usually irritable when I'm 'up.' And I've been sleeping, (ok, sleeping less), but sleeping well. I just feel so good I hate to 'lose it' on a med. But I know that the terrible depression comes every Jan-Feb. So I need to be proactive. I also know that when I feel this good, it can go south really quick.
Any experiences, comments, advice, you have would be grealy appreciated!

I'd answer "yes" to all of your questions. What you are considering bringing is great. I'd also bring a bit of a history on when you started experiencing episodes and what any of the ramifications were. Have you ever taken any psychotropic meds (even antidepressants)? If so, I'd list these somewhere and mention the results.

I do take Lithium, which makes me pee a lot, but I also take plenty of other meds which are nearly side effect free (at the doses I take). I say nearly, because I do have some side effects, but I have learned to live with them. To me, stability is worth more than the bother of the side effects I experience. As for weight, I am just about normal weight. I used to be 30 lbs more, but med changes, diet and some exercise helped me reverse that. I consider all of my meds to be weight friendly. I have to keep in mind that I used to be overweight even when I had no bipolar diagnosis. I weight less now.

If you are euphorically happy then the question is whether it is hypomania or just the feeling a person has when they are just happily married or had a baby. If hypomania, then keep in mind that what goes up will likely go down. We are allowed to be very happy in baseline mood. Good meds that down sedate too much shouldn't prevent feeling good. If they do, then you need to talk to the pdoc pronto.

Best of luck with your new pdoc and any meds you might start. I also wish you many more months and years of feeling "soooo happy".

Tell your pdoc about your irritability, although you're not feeling it right now. That is very important. Just show up telling your pdoc what you feel, i.e. depression, manic attacks, whatever you've been going through, it is all important to convey that. And let your pdoc know that you don't want to gain weight (Depokote makes you gain weight), and not zombie like because you have a job as a teacher and need to be alert. Yes this is a good time to see what works for you during the 2 weeks off.

Sounds like you could be experiencing a hypomania with being sooooo happy, that doesn't sound right to me. Be careful with the highs we experience.

My experience with Bipolar has been rough, and I know you're feeling good right now, but it isn't going to last, I hate to tell you that, but its true, you will crash and become depressed. At least that is what happens to me when I'm not on meds. I found Geodon to be a life saver, I have no more voices in my head and it keeps my irritability in check.

I only took a list of past medications Id been on when I saw my new pdoc - and she asked all the questions that made me answer with my symptoms.

As for a mood stabilizer that doesnt make you gain weight / pee / be zombie like etc - maybe Lamictal? Though it does make you feel a bit dumbed down for a while, but I hear that goes away.

Good luck!

I'm having a pretty decent experience with Trileptal (oxcarbazepine) as my mood stabilizer. It's weight-neutral, available as a generic, and I've had no bad side effects except when I was on a much higher dosage than I'm on now. One thing I have to watch out for is being out in the sun too long. It lessens the body's ability to cool itself in extreme heat. But! I haven't had a single manic episode since I started taking it in 2002. Just thought I'd mention it as one of the options that's out there.

Lamotrigine (lamictal) is the mood stabilizer I'm on. I don't remember being dumbed out or tired at the beginning. It's a gread med if your main concern is depression. I switched from Depakote to Lamotrigine and I lost 20 lbs in less than a month. I've had no side effects from lamotrigine.

At my first appt with my current pdoc she had my records there and had read them all before I went in. I brought my list of current meds (all of them, not just psych meds) and my mood chart. She took a detailed history.

Thanks everyone for your input! My appt. went well. I was really thankful to find a pdoc so willing to listen and so caring. He prescribed 5mg of Abilify which I start tonight.

The only thing that left me a little confused is he said that "although I display lots of symptoms" he's just "not sure at this point if he can say bipolar." That left me with some type of identity confusion lol. I have educated myself on this illness a ton the past 6 months and although I know I have never had a full blown manic episode, I do know that I have many recurrent hypomanic episodes and many bouts of mild depression. He then mentioned the other types of bipolar and decided that a mood stabilizer would help me. He then said "Abilify is actually not just a med for depression, it is widely used for schizophrenia and bipolar." So he must be suggesting I am bipolar? I was just really confused about that.

The pdoc I saw at the hospital plus my other therapists suggested bipolar this summer.
Oh well, the main thing is I now have a med! Good bye rage attacks (I hope, lol).

That's good that you finally got a med that will help you. I took Abilify in the past along with a Cogentin to kill off any side effects, but it didn't work for me, had me pacing the floor. Its good your doctor didn't diagnose you so soon, because he need to see more of you, at least once a month to check your progress and then I believe he will be able to draw a conclusion on what mental illness you actually have.