it took me a year to get off Cymbalta. The doctors lie when they say anti-depressants are not addictive. Maybe addictive is the wrong word. I know so many people including myself who's body has to have that med or else we get sick. Headaches, feeling like electric feeling in the head.....u need to cut back slowly, never cold turkey, u can have seizures if u just stop. some people are on them for life....i know some people who have been

BD in incurable.. so it's not like take some meds get well toss the meds. The meds in our bods is why we feel better. NO meds.. no feely nice. Changing meds be fine tho.

whenever i would go off of my meds during the summer it would usually take a few days for me to become manic but sometimes it would take a week for me to become grouchy i knewe i wasn't supposed to go off my meds tho i just did it cuz i thought i would be good off of for a while but i don't do that anymore

In the past, I would stop taking my medications because I felt better with terrible back in the hospital results! Usually I am in a manic state when I feel I no longer need the medications. In another post, I replied that I am now in a state of non-feeling and wonder if that is objective of the doctors, to sedate you to the point that your no longer capable of being manic, depressed...

The one time I decided to stop taking my meds. It was after being on about 5 years. Wanted to see if I was in remission I guess. I stopped cold. Tooak about a week for me to start getting wierd. Mostly I think it took that long for the depakote to get out of my system. After 2 weeks I was manic enough that I decided my little experiment did not work.

I look at my BP meds the same way as I look at my thyroid meds or diabetes meds..they're maintanance meds.
When I changed from paxil, even though I went off it slowly, it was a living hell.

when I come off my meds.. (because my husband says I dont need them) I am a real MF. drink alot!! and am very abusive.. Then my husband says to start taking them again. beause Im such a MF.WTF man

http://www.ragged-edge-mag.com/reviews/maiolehmann.html

I'm coming off lithium.Now it's a matter of my own 'Mental Hygiene' as to whether it's worth cutting more out.This book has varying first hand accounts from people.I have it and in truth it's not that good.It's all I could find.
Why do you want to stop ?
That's the main concern.If it's to do with jjust the fact of being down about taking drugs then that's a non starter.

I have paused at 600mg Lithium.I feel good.If I take any more off, I may be at a 'non-therapeutic ' level.
Bearing in mind where I have been in BP.Those immeasurable highs and lows...it's impossible for me to be unmedicated.
Not till my life becomes more reliable.

Exactly Pluck,

A lot rides on whether your life itself outside of you and your dx is stable... predictable.. stress free.. managable.

If not, the stress will chew you up and spit you out.

Pluck, I was just curious that's all. I do play with stupid ideas all the time, but then I am back to where I started at in no time.

So it is either, no one has made it way past the withdrawal period to not need medications, or there is no state of mind, us and stopping meds.

I wonder why we don't have more people here older than me? I'm 145 today. Maybe because of being part of the computer age??

I would really like to be able to go off of meds again some day. The longest I have been without them was one year & that was the time I was pregnant & right afterwards.

I tried going med free back in August. I changed pdocs and tapered down off of all of my medications, took 2 weeks off of work & all other obligations. Did a cleanse, really took care of myself, handled the withdrawals, they were rough, but I did it. I went manic within about 3 weeks time. I was even handling that okay, just using an anti-psychotic as needed, cut up my credit cards, quit drinking. But what followed hit me so hard, it completely blind-sided me. My mother came to pick up my daughter, I was home alone & the next thing I knew I had grabbed the big kitchen knife & I was on the floor. I don't even remember anything I did in that moment. My mother came back later, I had lost a lot of blood, but was still conscience, went to ER. That was my last hospitalization. Mixed state it was. Scary as hell. I will stay with my meds now, possibly forever, but I don't want to think that far ahead. Just a week in advance. This week I will NOT be stopping my meds. Best of luck to anyone who is though.

I understand Simon.I'm sorry , I was trying to stick to a serious attempt at a serious reply.Without the veering off I mean.
Peace x

wht happens??I was approved to come off of my meds slowly...For me I cut everythingout within a week...No not slowand it was hell for a while...I thought I had experienced hell when I was detoxed yers earlierand never imagined meds would be as bad but they were...

Once I was off of them I have done ok...there are a small number of beepers that can be unmedicated. But that in itself is hard work...other beepers will question if you are actually BP and those that are wonder all the time if you are ok because you are unmed.

Take the meds be accpetedby other beepers and then the others question all the time whether you are actually taking them when you have a mood.

Damn if you do damned ifyou dont...

Surely , it also has something to do with the seriousness of your diagnosis.
There are reasons to count Manic Episodes or ask about suicidal thoughts.
I've had 4 Manic episodes.
I thought it was just one.When the psych told me that , I was crestfallen about being reminded exactly how 'Shit4Brains' I have become.

I had the same experience as BasketCase (nice handle!) when I quit my meds. I understand how you feel @ not wanting to be on them for the rest of your life. It's a very depressing propositon to me.