It's a literal life saver for a friend of mine!!
It's the only thing that has enabled her to stay stable and have a pretty good quality of life!!

I hope it -- or something else -- DOES prove to be a magic bullet for you!!!

Yuck, yuck, yuck!!!! I HATE feeling how you are right now!!
I hope that gets better SOON!!!

Good luck to you!!

(((((Hugs)))))

Some of your symptoms sound like mania and that should be controlled before you start lithium. When you do start lithium you'll find out very quickly whether you can tolerate it or not. You should really be under medical supervision when you start lithium since it's serious stuff. But when it works it works very well.

My aunt took it for some time and it worked very well for her with no side effects. I tried it and it gave me permanent tremors in my hands. Just remember to drink plenty of water.

i'm not a big fan of med roulette, and would never push them on anyone, but i think if i were feeling like you are right now, i would give it a try because even if it's not the magic med, it might help a bit, which is better than nothing.

desperate times call for desperate measures.

sorry it's so awful for you. sending (((BIG HUGS)))

Hi, I agree with mojo. Well said.

Hope you feel better soon. :-)

it is worth a try and if it doesn't help just stop it and try something else. hugs to you.

I tried it an got sick as a dog. It does not work for everybody. I wish you the very best in finding the best possible cure for you. We all struggle with this.

Ahhhh, permanent tremors and sick as a dog???? I don't know if that makes me even more fearful.

As far as sick as a dog, in what way did it make you sick and did it stop once u stopped taking it??

how long were you on the lithium before u developed hand tremors??

Today is REALLLLLY bad. I feel like crying, laughing and punching the wall all at the same time. And i am at work!!!!!!!! :(

But what if you're one of the people who do WONDERFULLY on it!!!!?

And if you were on it right now, you'd feel fine!!!?

And not like 'crying, laughing and punching the wall all at the same time, while you're at work'!!!!?

I will just say this lithium got me through one of the hardest years of my life . Witch was the 3rd time I lost everything .

You deserve it to yourself to give it a chance .

Lithium stabilized me years ago when I was in a very bad way. The only reason I stopped taking it was because I reached toxic levels. Lamictal was my lifesaver but only at a very high dose (400 mg).

Lithium is SO well tolerated. It was first discovered when a psychiatrist took his patients to a hot springs that had high levels of natural lithium in them and the patients responded well to just absorbing unknown (then) therapeutic levels. It's the most natural treatment you can get. But it takes time to work (worked fast for me) and your mental health team should implement means of treatment (therapy or such) in the meantime.

Don't be afraid. Seriously. I put off taking Lamictal because I read so many scary forum posts of negatives but found that most forum posts about drug reactions are negative. People don't post them when they feel great for some reason.

As for a magic bullet, there is not always "one" but you can achieve a good med cocktail mixture that will work for you. Trial and error, unfortunately. DO NOT GIVE UP. I had given up when my current doctor said "let's try this" when I started my last combination (Lamictal, Ativan, Cymbalta) and it has been as close to a miracle that I have found. But my episodes still take work. Exercise helps a lot even when I have to literally force myself to walk. Journaling (can't say enough about this) and reaching out to those who can "talk you off the ledge" when you are stuck.

Bipolar is work. The meds won't do it all for you. It has taken me many, many years to realize this and I could have saved myself a lot of frustration if I had accepted this years ago.

Permanent tremors and sick as a dog? Everyone is different. When I started Lamictal I was terrified of the deadly rash and read one account of one guy having projectile vomiting (my biggest phobia) and refused to start it because of that. When I started it, I had NO side effects. Lithium gave me slight hand tremors (most mood stabilizers do) but it was well worth it. When people ask (they have) I tell them it is a side effect of a medication. If they ask further, I am honest. I have never been ashamed of my illness and have actually helped some people get into treatment that would have otherwise not realized they had a treatable illness.

I have never had a single bipolar med give me scary results except one that was started at too high of a dose that was used in conjunction with a similar med and should not have been coupled.

Give yourself a chance...and the meds that are available.

I was in similar shape to what you are describing back in November and my pdoc placed me on Lithium. The first week it made me a little sick at my stomach and after two months I get slight tremors in my hands, but honestly, I have been more stable since I started than I have been in a year. It is always worth a try. Let us know what you decide!! Big Hugs.

I take Lithium everyday with no side effects. It seems to be a good med for me. I've been on a lot of meds. Lithium so far has been the least vile and most useful.

I would rather be locked up than on Lithium but for me other meds like lamictial and abilify are doing great. Best wishes to find the balance in your cocktail. IMHO =)