It's never easy, I get sick of them too. I know what cycling harshly would do to me though and the major depression is just too much. We all have to decide what we can handle. For me, it has to be meds, no other way. I have tried lots of alternatives and meds seem to work the best to keep my episodes minimal in duration infrequent.

Best wishes sweetie.........xo

for most of us it is trial and error with meds dont give up tryin to find the right med combo

Have you tried a lot of different meds? i know for some, it takes the better part of 10 years to find the right drugs. If your meds make you feel horrible, then something tells me they aren't the right drugs for you.

I am currently finding a new cocktail. I am on Lexapro, which helps with my anxiety and depression (no side effects), as well as Neurontin, which helps with anxiety, sleep, and mood stabilization (only side effect is increased libido....and I'm not complaining).

If you don't like your meds, talk to your pdoc and tell him you want to try something different. There are lots of us out there who are medicated and deal with minimal side effects. GOOD LUCK!

I have been on paxil, depakote, abilify, seroquel, geodon, lamictal, and another one that I can't think of the name.

Meds give me life... I would be nothing without pills.

I owe myself to them.

Lithium helped me so much and gave me hope for a normal life...

Think carefully.

no meds = dead
meds = life


trial and error
patience and a good therapist

I went 22 years before I got on meds I don't think I'll die w/o them.

if i was off meds i wouldnt die right away i would spiral out of control do alot of bad things get suicidal and then kill myself thats why i stay on meds

The only reason they diagnosed me as being bipolar is bacause I was moody and if I was angry I threw a fit. I am wondering if I really even have it. I feel worse on the meds than I did before I was on them. And my family dr said he doesn't think I have it and my old therapist said he doesn't either.

mybe you need a new pdoc? Or have him/her tell you some options that make the meds you take work better. I have had an internist and a pdoc prescribe drugs for me. One pdoc was just awful and gave me drugs just to shut me up, he had no idea what he was doing.

One doctor that someone talked about on here gave him/her the wrong dosage and she/he landed in the hospital. So get another referral from your MD. Might be your best bet

Why not try going Med-light instead of med-free for a while. Give it a trial and see how it goes.

There are many personality disorders that present as BP and it is possible you were mis-dx'd. Not a huge chance, but it's there all the same.

Talk to a different pdoc and get a second opinion. Then you'll have an idea of what to do next. Simply going cold-turkey without pdoc support tends to end poorly.

Good luck!

I'm not going to quit cold turkey. I am on two meds now. One the dr is lowering til I'm off and the other she just started and I don't want to continue it.

I am on lithiun er and prozac and keeps me balanced. I unerstand your frustration with trying to find the right meds for you. Try to be patient.

I am currently off all meds, but I may need to get back on an anti-depressant. Lucky old me, my manic episodes are very mild indeed, and I'm never a danger to myself or others. Maybe to myself when depressed. I wish I had been diagnosed and medicated when I was a teen, though, would have changed my life wonderfully.

I am wondering what age you are? For some people, problems worsen significantly in the twenties. I'm cyclothymic, and in my twenties my highs faded off to nearly nothing, while my lows worsened and became clinical.

So, the type of meds you need could possibly change over time.

Good luck with it! Sometimes that perfect cocktail of meds seems to be as elusive as the perfect job or the perfect love...

I'm on meds and i'm psychotic.

Bipolar not on meds? FIRE BAD