Will Posted November 21, 2020 Share Posted November 21, 2020 4 hours ago, T.Daniels said: Paying attention to all of this, my kidney functions got remarkably better the next time i went to the tests. I agreed with my doctor to not quit lithium even with the risks since Lithium has given me a lot of stability in my life and taken away any trace of suicidality. That's good. Lithium is still the gold standard for bipolar as far as I know. It does require careful monitoring but so do a lot of these drugs. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dancesintherain Posted November 27, 2020 Author Share Posted November 27, 2020 (edited) So we've learned through experimentation (isn't that fun?) that lowering the lithium to 600mg without adding something new is not enough. I started having pretty intense low mood w/ accompanying dysphoria, loss of interest in things, and difficulty with work. It was only 150mg, so I didn't think it would do that much. It was also still at a 0.6 level, so technically therapeutic. But apparently not good enough for me. I'm back on 750mg with a plan to see a nephrologist 12/15. I'm hoping that she won't say I have to come off the lithium, but if she does, I'm going to have to start on something else. Edited November 27, 2020 by dancesintherain Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Will Posted November 27, 2020 Share Posted November 27, 2020 Well, I'm sorry the reduced dosage didn't work. But at least the issue is identified and you're being followed by a nephrologist as part of your care team. I think that's super important. I'm in the same boat. I feel that I have been less stable since lithium discontinuance but I'm hopeful a depakote and lamictal combo will help. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jarn Posted November 27, 2020 Share Posted November 27, 2020 I didn't see that you'd tried lamotrigine? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dancesintherain Posted November 27, 2020 Author Share Posted November 27, 2020 Yes, twice. The second time I got hallucinations when I raised it to 250mg but not before that. I was on way too much medication, so it got cut without causing any problems. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jarn Posted November 27, 2020 Share Posted November 27, 2020 That's annoying! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dancesintherain Posted November 27, 2020 Author Share Posted November 27, 2020 Yes, it’s on the list of possible substitutes, but I’m leaning against it because we were able to remove it so easily. That makes me question what it was adding. thanks Will—I’m frustrated that I may have to go off lithium, but I’m trying to not resign myself to that. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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