Brandi,

Lithium is probably one of the best mood stabilizers out there, but it does come with its problems - because high levels in the blood can be toxic, your dose must be carefully titrated upwards to prevent any problems. A lot of people (like my sister) are taking anticonvulsants like Depakote to help control their mood swings. I take Zyprexa (olanzipine), one of the new atypical antipsychotics - they do tend to work very, very quickly but they also carry the dangers of a TON of weight gain (I gained 20 pounds the first month I was on it) so you have got to be sure to be eating right and exercising a lot from the start to keep that risk down. Frankly, I am thinking of switching to another drug that doesn't cause so much gain. I'm trying to get buff (I'm down to 125 - boo ya!) for the summer and I don't need to worry about my medicine short circuting my efforts to look and feel better.

some of it's magic
some of it's tragic
but i had a good life all the way......
~jimmy buffett