Posted by ronaldo on November 13, 2006, at 11:07:37
In reply to Doc wants to try Lithium but nervous!!!, posted by Rani on November 13, 2006, at 5:07:15
> Finally got to a Psych this week after waiting 4 months. Since taking SSRI's for one year I noticed that my mood swings were worse. Started Lexapro 4 months ago and have had incredibly great weeks where I feel sooooooOOOO good (not to the extent of doing inappropriate things).
> He has not given me a diagnosis but I am assuming I am somewhere in the BPII zone.
> I just cant cope with the highs and lows and find it hard to plan my life in advance (eg, want to go back to uni next year but worried I will hit a low)
> I wonder if I should just stop demanding so much of myself, stop feeling so 'driven' and relax and just live with the highs and lows or I should try some mood stabilizers and see how I go.
> I am a bit scared of the lithium thing.
> Anyone out there who can offer some advice?Firstly there is nothing to be afraid of with Lithium. The only thing to be afraid of is a wrong diagnosis. You don't want to spend your life taking drugs that you don't need to take.
I have taken Lithium for about 25 years. I didn't notice any bad side effects except perhaps flat/blunted affect - your emotions get stuck in the neutral zone.
I take 900 mg at night, used to be 800 mg but I needed more stability so I increased it to 900. My Lithium blood levels are 0.8 mMol/L, within the therapeutic window (0.7 to 1.0). I could still use alcohol while on Lithium. All in all it is a pretty user-friendly drug.
poster:ronaldo
thread:703040
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20061110/msgs/703111.html