Sorry to hear about your long journey. Unfortunately, that's typical...mine was 10 years. Now I take lithium, Lamictal and Seroquel, which is working very well.

If I'm not mistaken, the therapeutic range for Lamictal is between 200 - 400 mg/day. I take 200, I imagine your pdoc would try that dosage first. Lamictal, despite it's reputation, has a pretty benign side effect profile. What people worry about is that it can cause a potentially fatal condition called Stevens-Johnson syndrome, I believe, which is a really bad rash on your face and chest along with a fever. People freak out about it, but it is extremely rare. Many doctors will have you stop taking it at the first sign of a rash, which is safest but probbably not necessary. The incidence of these side effects is much lower with a very slow "ramp-up" of dosage, so that's why they do it that way.

Lamictal is shown in blind test to not only help in stabilizing mood, but also helping with bipolar depression, so it's often the first choice in a situation like you describe. I've been taking it for about three years now, it has been a vital part of my "cocktail".

I hope things go well for you... it's such a relief when you manage to stay even for a good long while!

DJ