Hi,

I am new to the forum and this is my first post ever, here or anywhere else. I am writing this because I am very concerned about my girlfriend. She was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and started taking medication about a year ago (we met 6 months ago). She is on Quetiapine 100mg and Sertraline (not sure on the dosage). The Quetiapine usually made her very sleep right after taking it and the drowsiness would continue in the morning, even after 8 hours of sleep. In the last month she started noticing that she wasn’t getting as sleepy, and in the last 2 weeks she even has had trouble falling asleep after taking her medication.

She is currently going through a relapse (I’m sorry if that or any other term I’ve used is incorrect, English is not my first language) and last weekend she tried to commit suicide. The trigger was the frustration of being back to where she started (she noticed she was going through a manic episode) even though she has been fully compliant with her medication. She tells me that even if her doctor adjusts her dosage or changes her treatment, this will happen again and again. That “there is no point” because she will never get better, everything she does to improve her condition will be temporary at best. Is it true that bipolar disorder medication works initially but eventually the dosage has to be increased or the treatment has to be changed? If so, what happens when the dosage is too high to be increased or there is no new medication/treatment left?

Thanks for reading.

Regards,

JAB1984