CEW Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 Just wanting to know how it's going for you. Just started. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tryp Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 Moved to "Mood Stabilizers" since the topic is mainly about Lithium. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calypte Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 Well, I tried, but it didn't do anything for me, unfortunately. Bad luck, I suppose. How long have you been on the lithium, and what's your current blood level? What are your other meds? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CEW Posted June 22, 2011 Author Share Posted June 22, 2011 I am not on any other meds. AD's give me crazy anxiety that does not quite. Taking 1800mgs of lithium. blood levels checked yesterday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goodoldneon Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 We haven’t quite pinned down my dx yet - Dysthymia with BP II tendencies, just BP II – or some sort of mutant variant. Like you, I just started taking lithium (unlike you, I’m taking 300 mg) - it will be a week tomorrow. As of today, I haven’t experienced any side effects – well, with one exception, I’ve been a little bit thirstier as of late – but then I never drink enough water. I'll keep you posted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calypte Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 1800 mg should usually put you well into the therapeutic zone (my blood level was 0.7 at 1200 mg), but people do vary. According to my pdoc and from anecdotal evidence, you should know very quickly whether the lithium is working -- like within the space of a week at the right dosage. So do you feel like it is working? Also, I have not heard of unipolar people taking lithium without having an AD aboard. I don't think this is usually done. Obviously I know nothing about your medication history, but when you say that ADs make you crazy anxious, I wonder if you have tried multiple classes of ADs (e.g. SSRIs, SNRIs, TCAs, Remeron, Wellbutrin, Valdoxan if you're in Europe, and finally the MAOIs, might be some others that aren't very common too)? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anna Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 Lower dose lithium is typical for treating unipolar depression than for treating Bp. You may not need a "therapeutic" blood level, most docs using lith for this do check but go by sx a lot too.... i've heard of people trying just lithium for unipolar depression, but I can't remember what happened and if it was good or bad.... keep in mind, with some lith on board, you might be able to tolerate some Ads without mad anxiety or whatever.... lith is a mood stabilizer, so if you go up high enough on it, you may find your reactions to ADs slightly different. There is also the lith/activating AAP combo. That works for some folks, Anna Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CEW Posted June 23, 2011 Author Share Posted June 23, 2011 "There is also the lith/activating AAP combo" what is this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calypte Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 "There is also the lith/activating AAP combo" what is this? Using lithium in combination with an activating atypical antipsychotic, like Abilify. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hollywoodfreaks Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 Good luck! I might use lith as an adjunct for my MDD at some point in the future. Right now I'm trying stims. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cetkat Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 I was rx'd it for MDD. Was suicidal at the time, the Lithium stopped that within a week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CEW Posted June 29, 2011 Author Share Posted June 29, 2011 My pdoc thinks I'm bipolar?????????????????????????? I've had other pdocs say I'm not. I was on Prozac for four years and then weaned off with my Docs help. Two weeks after my last liquid dose my depression returned and now every antidepressant I try, plus lamictal, abilify and seroquel all drive me crazy with anxiety. I've recently done some researching and have come to believe that my problem is akathesia with antidepressants and antipsychotics. We are giving this lithium a month trial and then I have an apt with a neuropsychiatrist. Ive been trying things like vyvanse, (drove me f'ing nuts) and now Abilify which dose not seem to do much at all, kinda brings me down. I have some concerta to try as well. I went cold turkey (no stims) today on the lithium and was functional until about 11 and then I started having extreme anxiety, which later turned into suicidal depression. I have been on the lithium for almost two weeks. Hollywoodfreaks, I thought that was suppose to be one of the big things about lithium...helping with suicidal thoughts. Anyway, who knew life could be such hell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cetkat Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 Lamictal is very activating when you first start it. It usually goes away, or at least gets alot better with time. The big thing with Lithium is it's ability to stop the hypo/mania that comes with BP. My suicidal help was a rarity. The crazy anxiety could very likely be the mania showing through.. as those meds aren't very effective when it comes to that. It's not clear to me what you are on, but it would make sense to discontinue the Abilify (as it would just exasperate the problem), and to hold off of the stims for not to get a clear picture of how the Lithium is working for you. Of course, this is something you would need to consult your pdoc about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CEW Posted June 30, 2011 Author Share Posted June 30, 2011 "It's not clear to me what you are on, but it would make sense to discontinue the Abilify (as it would just exasperate the problem), and to hold off of the stims for not to get a clear picture of how the Lithium is working for you." "I went cold turkey (no stims) today on the lithium and was functional until about 11 and then I started having extreme anxiety, which later turned into suicidal depression." I'm not on Abilify, just lithium. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cetkat Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 I'm not on Abilify, just lithium. Alright. The sentence before made it sound like you were. My mistake. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CEW Posted July 6, 2011 Author Share Posted July 6, 2011 I just want to die Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SashaSue Posted July 6, 2011 Share Posted July 6, 2011 I just want to die You really need to call your pdoc for an emergency appointment asap. Whatever your meds are currently, they clearly aren't working. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grousemouse Posted July 6, 2011 Share Posted July 6, 2011 I have MDD and take 1200mg lithium and 20mg cipralex. Seems to do okay. I still have plunges but rarely and less deep. My doc told me the lithium would act like a ratchet, it wouldn't help pull me out of a depression but would help me from falling back down into one. Which, come to think of it, doesn't really sound like a ratchet. grouse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lady_lovelace Posted July 7, 2011 Share Posted July 7, 2011 I don't quite have a real diagnosis, just mostly Mood disorder NOS, but I don't have mania. I am on Lithium now along with Geodon which my doctor says is a common combination. The geodon unfortunately is at a really low level right now since I'm working on getting the lithium up (don't want to change too many things at once). It's hard to tell but I think I am seeing some improvement, although I thought it would be more of a silver bullet for suicidal thoughts...I am not quite at therapeutic though, at 900 and I'm going to get a blood test at the end of the week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
area99 Posted July 11, 2011 Share Posted July 11, 2011 I take a combination of Lithium and Lamictal for my unipolar depression. After trying a dozen or so meds for depression this is the best combination I have been on. Lithium doesn't help me much with my anhedonia however it keeps me from spiraling out of control into an agitated depression. All the other antidepressants they prescribed had obnoxious side effects. Lithium is kinder to me this way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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