starpirate555 Posted August 15, 2014 Share Posted August 15, 2014 hi all, i have just started to taper off lithium down to 900mg. increase my abilify to 20mg. now, what can i expect is going to happen when i get lithium down to 300mg and abilify to 30mg. i originally took 1200mg lithium and 15mg abilify. i know abilify handles bipolar I disorder, mania, and mixed episodes. will there be withdrawals along the way with lithium and will the weight gain whether it be fat or water retention go away too. is abilify a good replacement for lithium. your answers are greatly appreciated. heres the tapering and titration plan: lithium: 900mg for 1 month 600mg the next month 300mg the last month abilify: 15mg for 1 month 25mg the next month 30mg the last month Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mardon219 Posted August 16, 2014 Share Posted August 16, 2014 I have been taking lithium for 20 plus years. I recently found out that I have kidney disease, caused by the lithium. Kidney doc says off lithium now. I was on 600 mg. daily and have decreased to 300 mg. in a couple of weeks. Having some withdrawal; insomnia, dizziness, confusion, sweating, etc. Not severe thank God. I have been on 300 mg. for approximately three weeks and wonder if it would be safe to drop to 150 mg. for the duration of the detox. Don't have a problem with this as long as nothing serious happens. I am just concerned because I have been on it for so long. Any suggestions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt07 Posted August 16, 2014 Share Posted August 16, 2014 I don't have much to comment on because it's been years since I was on lithium, but with regard to Abilify, I went from 15 mg to 30 mg literally overnight and did not experience any increase in side effects. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San Posted August 16, 2014 Share Posted August 16, 2014 Lithium doesn't cause dependence or addiction, and has few actual withdrawal/discontinuation symptoms. Most people just notice their moods shifting. When I stopped lithium, I had mood swings until the new mood stabilizer kicked in, but no physical symptoms. Since you're going from one med to the other, you shouldn't notice much of anything coming off lithium. Good luck with the abilify. I've heard great things from people, when it works, it works well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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