Tell me about your experiences with Lithium.

In My Humble Opinion
1

I just got back from my doctor.

For years I’ve been diagnosed with ADD. This is the first time I’ve ever brought it up to my doctor here in Seattle, and I explained to her that the ADD meds never seemed to work, and maybe there was something new she could suggest for me. She began asking me questions, took some blood (ow, my poor arm has been pricked twice this week, ow ow!), and dropped the bomb on me: she doesn’t believe I have ADD at all. She believes I’m bi-polar.

This isn’t the first time it’s been suggested, and when I was a teenager I was told this was probably the case, but not much was ever done about it. They told me it was ADD, and gave me meds for that. I figured it wasn’t a big deal. My doctor says otherwise; I’ve been dragging my ass for a long time, feeling tired, having highs and lows, slowly becoming a sociophobe, talking faster than the Micromachines man… and just coping with it. I take forever to get to sleep, then sleep all day. I have the attention span of a wood louse. I am fucked up, and I’ve come to accept that as normal.

She prescribed Lithium, which I’ve never been on before. I’ve been reading some stuff on the 'net, and frankly, it’s been a little scary. Mania? Psychosis? Hallucinations?! Dear god, what have I gotten myself into?

So tell me, please, what are your experiences with Lithium? Did it help? Did you experience any of the scarier-sounding side effects? Because frankly, if I react badly with this medication, I’d rather just be flaky and scatterbrained. :frowning:

2

Never been on it, but have heard folks who were discuss it at length.

Lithium is traditionally linked to a diagnosis of manic-depressive psychosis (nowadays called bipolar disorder).

It had a reputation as being less destructive to mind and body than the vast majority of psych drugs back 20-25 years ago — didn’t do permanent brain damage, wasn’t physiologically habituating, and was chemically simple. You did have to be very careful with blood levels because the “therapeutic” level was rather close to the overdose level at which it became toxic to liver and kidneys, if I recall correctly.

Among the anti-psychiatric / patients’ liberation movement, it was strongly disliked because of its effects on the mind — another dampener of everything you feel, an emotional wet-blanket. People who were on it said after awhile they didn’t care about much of anything, bad or good. Bland city.
But not like thorazine, stelazine, haldol, prolixin, and so on, which made it almost impossible to think, let alone feel, and gave you the twitches and other horrid stuff.

I think it’s probably safe enough, and if you decide it’s not for you, you just drop it. If they say you need to get blood serum levels checked regularly, take them seriously.

3

Everyone I’ve known who has been on Lithium has gained weight and been, in general, miserable with one side effect or other, with the trade-off of regulating their bipolar disorder. YMMV. (extremely anecdotal evidence!!)

4

Thanks for your replies so far, guys.

I’m just really wary about taking these things. I haven’t yet. I’m supposed to start this morning at breakfast.

Is it common for a doctor to jump to conclusions so quickly about bi-polar disorder? I mean, sheesh, I just wanted to bring up to her that I was having trouble sleeping, and that my (supposed) ADD was raging again to the point that I have a tough time paying attention, and that it was affecting me daily. Also, that I was becoming a bit more of a sociophobe because of it - knowing I can’t pay attention makes me wary of meeting new people, as I don’t want them to get the wrong impression about me - I can come across as either rude or flaky. Also, it worries me about the future and getting a job, because I’m worried I’ll not be able to concentrate on the tasks I’m given.

I complained of weight gain, too, because I’m having a hell of a time losing weight. Then she gives me this shit. Great. More weight gain.

Anyway, she whipped out a questionaire, and I answered everything as honestly as I could. Yes, I do have ups and downs, but that doesn’t affect my life as badly as, you know, the inability to concentrate and focus. However, I guess the questionaire I answered “Yes” or “No” to (which I stressed in many places that “yes, this sometimes happens, but it is very rarely.”)

I keep looking at that bottle of lithium. I don’t know. I feel quite wary about this whole thing. It just doesn’t feel right. My emotional highs and lows aren’t that bothersome. It’s all the other shit. I don’t freak out at people, I don’t get angry easily at all, I do laugh hard, love hard, and sometimes I feel sad for no reason, but I’m not suicidal, or mad at the world, or down in the dumps all the time. My dizzying highs are great and are my primary emotion, and I don’t know how much I want to trade that in for… the bland. With side effects.

Those pills are the most depressing thing I’ve had to deal with in several years. I’m having a helluva time convincing myself that they will help me. Maybe I should just trust my doctor on this one, but it just doesn’t *feel * good.

No, sir. I don’t like it. :frowning:

5

Have you thought about getting a second opinion?

I was diagnosed with Type II bipolar in college. What I was told at the time (and I don’t know if this is true) is that you’re not Type I bipolar unless you’ve had mania to the point where you’ve been up for several days straight on several occasions, or where the mania has caused you to engage in seriously destructive behaviors because of the feeling of “on top of the world” arrogance. With me, it’s more a sense of mild highs of very productive times when I also have insomnia, combined with long periods where I’m very lethargic, and the occasional screaming rage/crushing depression. I also had horrible, sick nightmares that I’m told were the product of one of the rages/depressions coming on while I was sleeping. They’d usually manifest as really messed up violence directed either at me, or at random other people. -Really- messed up violence.

I was prescribed Neurontin, which has levelled out the high/low swings a bit but not made them go away (they can still be quite challanging to deal with, but I find that setting small goals during the ‘down’ times helps, not overdoing it during the ‘up’ times and giving myself time to wind down at night helps me sleep, and exercise helps in general) and has almost completely stopped the rages, depressions, and horrible nightmares. I only get those now when I’m under a prolonged period of extreme stress, and even then, they don’t last as long and are much easier for me to control. I experienced no real side effects, although I know of people who’ve had problems with dizziness.

Anyway, my point is that another doctor might prescribe something you’re more comfortable with, or diagnose you with something different, or any number of things. Someone who specializes better in bipolar might be a better person to see, anyway, because there are quite a lot of things that you can do to help yourself cope better aside from take pills. The pills may still be necessary, but the behavior modification might help you even more. To be honest, I’m a little concerned that your doctor would prescribe you a medication that you’re so uncomfortable with and also fail to refer you to someone who can help you better with the diagnosis in general. Bipolar is something that really needs to be managed through more than just medications alone.

Anyway, good luck. Remember that even if five-hundred doctors say you’re bipolar, the diagnosis doesn’t change who you are, it just puts a name to it and helps you harness the wisdom of all of the people who’ve had or treated bipolar before you to help you be the person you want to be :slight_smile:

6

Yes. Yes, definitely. I want to go see someone who specialises in this kind of thing. This is really bothering me. There were certain questions she didn’t ask - I know she can’t read my mind, but I feel like she picked a symptom and zoned in on that, ignoring everything else I was saying.

And the more I read about this Lithium, the less I like.

What type of doctor would I consult for this kind of thing? I doesn’t bother me that I might be bi-polar, for real and for true, and I’ll be sure to mention that I’m not comfortable with Lithium and see if I can have something different worked out. It’s just that all that crap she asked me barely had anything to do with the reason I had come in, and I feel a little… hustled, I guess. I have to go with my gut on this one: it just doesn’t feel right.

Thank you, for everything you’ve posted. I’m not ashamed of who I am, and if that means part of who I am is having bi-polar disorder, so be it. But I don’t want to treat something with such an iffy med if I don’t actually have it.

7

I agree with PurpleKat. If you aren’t getting a feeling of relief by just knowing that someone has “unlocked” the problem at long last, you would be doing yourself a huge disservice if you didn’t talk to another doctor before taking such a powerful drug. What could it hurt? It’s not like your hair is going to burst into flames if you don’t start the lithium at breakfast today.

Get as much information as you can. You need to at least START treatment with a feeling that it’s the right step for you. If, after you’ve gotten enough opinions to satisfy you, you feel it’s not working, you can proceed from there. Good luck.

8

Your doctor is testing your system to be sure it can handle going on Lithium, right? If not, go for a second opinion, and if they don’t schedule tests, go for a third one, or just ask why they aren’t testing you. You need more than one kind of test to be safe I’m given to understand because it is a “system shock” when you first begin it.

9

I have no idea. The guy who diagnosed me was a psychologist or psychiatrist or something like that. I can’t remember. He was very good at what he did, but like many geniuses, extremely flaky and odd. So my example is far from typical. You might consider telling your doctor that you want to see a specialist so you can learn more about bipolar and see if you can get a good recommendation from there.

10

Okay, you’re bipolar, here’s some Lithium, have a good day? Geez. That creeps me out. I know somebody with hard-to-control bipolar and I don’t want to think what might happen if that’s the response she got from her docs.

Definitely get a second opinion. I’d find a psychologist, especially if you’re wary of drugs. I would be too without an expert opinion, which you certainly did not get.

I’d love to smack that doctor good. Lithium is not stuff to play around with. And here I thought the way some doctors give people antidepressants was kind of weird…

11

Oops – what I meant was I’d be wary of starting drugs without getting properly diagnosed first, which you were not! After that, if they’re necessary, then…okay. But not before.

12

Mr.stretch was recently diagnosed bi-polar and put on Lithium. He did not suffer any of the really bad side effects, but he hates the mood flattening effects. It has not helped with his irritablility or helped him focus; it has only flattened out the highs and reduced the suicidial ideation.

Get a second opinion! Or a third and fourth opinion! Get as many opinions as you need to feel that the doctor treating you is doing so appropriately. Did your doctor tell you to have labs done within a few weeks of starting Lithium to ensure that your liver can handle it? Did the doc schedule a follow-up appointment to see how the Lithium is working? If the answer to these two questions is no–then I would definitely get a second opinion and not start the meds until I was comfortable doing so. Psychotropic meds are nothing to mess around with–you want a doc you are sure is going to manage them effectively while you are taking them. That means someone who will follow up with you–not just write you a scrip and send you out the door. IMO, psychiatrists are the best for managing psychotropics–if you can find one who works well with you.

Good luck.

13

FWIW, the doctor did indeed schedule an appointment for two weeks from now, and the pharmacist pointed out to me that my prescription is not refillable at this point. So that’s at least one bonus in doc’s favour.

It just really surprised me, I guess. Yes, I have highs and lows; sometimes I can be rather emotional… but with the complaints I went in with yesterday afternoon, in less than ten minutes, I’m diagnosed as bi-polar and put on Lithium? I wasn’t told anything about it at the time, but I decided I wanted to do some research first. This is some tricky shit. I know that there’s risks with all meds, and as I understand it, not everyone experiences these side effects with Lithium. But it would have been nice if someone had, you know, mentioned some of this to me. I know, I know, it’s on my shoulders to ask the questions. But you know, I went in there to ask for help with my focus and concentration problems, and frankly, I wasn’t focusing or concentrating very well when I was being diagnosed. :stuck_out_tongue:

The whole thing just felt wrong. I know I keep saying that. I like the word I used a few post back: hustled. Because that is truly what it felt like. I was not at all comforted by the diagnosis, or the prescription. I truly would rather get a second opinion. Bi-polar I may be; comfortable with Lithium I am not. I’m going to give my regular doctor a call today and tell her I just don’t feel comfortable taking this stuff, and would like to speak to a psychologist first. Do doctors take it personally when you do that? Because she’s awesome with PAPs - I don’t want to lose her, there! She’s been great with every other thing I’ve come to her about, until mental health was discussed. Now I’m munching on my breakfast and giving the ol’ stinkeye to my prescription bottle. I won’t be taking it today.

~sigh. Who knows. Maybe I’m being paranoid. Isn’t that one of the symptoms of bi-polar disorder after all? :dubious:

14

Well, it is, but it doesn’t sound like paranoia to me. In my huge experience (my Mom and a friend are both bipolar) the paranoia/feelings of ecstatic perfect knowledge/total lack of good sense/soul-crushing depression are pretty darn apparent. Maybe I just know really extremely bipolar people, but lithium’s what my Mom takes, and you don’t sound like you need as much balancing as it provides. YMMV, and this is just anecdotal.

Go to at least one more doctor.

15

Whoa, whoa, whoa! What?!

I’m a happy girl most of the time, and I can come crashing down into the dumps pretty quickly sometimes… I’d even go so far as to call myself “emotional” with no problem. But not to that extreme!

Despite being emotional at times, I’m pretty even-keeled. I answered the questionaire as honestly as I could, and yes, some of the “symptoms” were there… but in *no way * this bad.

And perhaps you are right - maybe I just have a different “type”. She didn’t mention to me that there were types, let alone which she suspected I may be. Maybe it’s too early to know, until I’ve been on some meds a while.

Either way, I want to thank everyone who contributed to this thread. I will definitely get a second opinion, and mention to the second doctor (preferably a psychologist) everything that happened yesterday, and how I felt about it all.

So many things that were left unsaid. She asked if bipolar disorder ran in the family. No. But you know what does? ADD. You know what else does? Thyroid problems. When I exercise, my heart pounds. I wish I’d said those things out loud, but again… I wasn’t as “there” as I wish I could have been. (Hence my problem and seeking help in the first place!)

16

Admittedly, I have never seen a doctor for mental health issues, but I think the answer to the question of whether your doctor will mind has a lot to do with how you approach it. If you say “You know, I’m a little surprised about this Bi-Polar diagnosis and I’d like a recommendation for a mental health professional to talk this over with at greater length”, it shouldn’t be offensive. Medicine is both art and science. On the other hand, if you are too aggessive, the doctor may be offended by your approach. It sounds to me like you said, “Dr. I’ve got problem X, the usual treatments don’t work, can try something different” and then got annoyed/ frightened by the proposed solution. I don’t blame you–especially if you felt hustled, I’m just not convinced that this was a massively inappropriate suggestion from the doctor. I’d be polite, and diplomatic, in discussing it with the doctor, and I’d absolutely postpone starting the prescription until you have a chance to talk about it with someone who makes you feel like the solution they are offering is appropriate to your problems.

17

This is excellent advice. I did indeed get a little frightened by it all, and I feel overwhelmed. I’m sure I conveyed more of a sense of orgency in my posts than I intended to, reading back over them, but in most cases, I was laughing a bit where it appears I was flustered. I can be a little melodramatic when I’m trying to get my point across. :wink:

I will definitely be as polite as I can be when dealing with this, because all said and done, I like my doctor, and I don’t think she was trying to hurt me in any way. I don’t want to lose her, because in every other area I’ve dealt with her so far, she’s been outstanding. But for my comfort and peace of mind, I would like to consult someone else on this one.

18

Orgency? Got something else on the mind this morning. That should be urgency, of course.

19

Hey Anastasaeon,

I was going to email you, but I see you don’t have that option activated. If you want, you can email me through my profile. I have been experiencing an eerily similar situation.

Cyros

20

After reading all the subsequent replies to this thread, my take on it is: don’t do it. And get a different doctor. Don’t ever go back to this one.

There are psychiatric doctors who do respect your right to make your own medical decisions and there are those who kind of run roughshod over your input and expect you to simply do as you are told.

If you have this much antipathy towards lithium (and I don’t blame you, I sure as hell wouldn’t take it), and your doctor didn’t pick up on that — or did but didn’t care — then it’s the wrong med and the wrong doctor.

Personally, as you may or may not be aware, I’m inclined to push for a non-pharmaceutical solution. Try everything else first, and then try meds as a last resort. Psych meds are clumsy things, stone-knife-and-bearskin kind of tools because we know so little about the brain-as-mind. A vast number of people have far better results with user-run mutual-support groups.

Don’t be alone. Connect with others who have been there or are still there but trying to cope.