Honestly, you learn to live with it. You're going to miss the up and downs because you're so accustomed to them, but it isn't any way to live. (Especially long-term.) Psychosis isn't good, and it's said to kill brain cells or something.

What I did was take a **** ton of medication until I was 'stable' and then I went down. Dropped a few different medications until I was just left with 2. (At one time I was taking an antipsychotic, 750 mg depakote, 900 lithium which is the most for me)

I've been fairly stable for a year and I honestly don't miss ANYTHING about my mood swings. All they do is cause destruction and push people away. It sucked *** at first when I decided that I'd actually try stability out. I mourned for a year of what I lost. Every few weeks I would go home and cry to my boyfriend because I couldn't identify myself anymore. I had to make a NEW me. I had to tell myself that it was better to feel emotions without constantly crying because I was "touched" by every other thing said. Honestly it's a chore to be emotional.

Also, you CAN alter your state of mind enough to minimize the effects of depression. I'm actually experiencing a depressive episode, but you would hardly be able to tell. I'm not suicidal, but I have physical signs of it. (Excessive sleeping, lack of motivation, pissed at the world, feeling betrayed blahblah) It SUCKS. However, I just ignore it because it's fairly moderate at the moment. I've somehow also diverted my thinking so I don't think about my imminent death.

Get a good therapist who will specifically work on behavior management and change. I don't think I see this enough, but deciding to take medication typically means you will have to look into yourself and decide whether or not the changes are worth it. After you decide that you have to let yourself mourn and hopefully find someone who can help guide you through it. (Why a therapist is good). I was lucky and it took me 3-4 years to decide that change was worth it. Some people take a decade (or more). But I think that mourning process is something we all share and should be embraced in recovery. Recovery doesn't mean you'll take pills, but recovery means you learn how to love yourself again.