There isn't really any antidepressnt thats the "best" for treating any mental illness, it's all rather subjective and dependant on each individual case. As you'll see from the above replies, Wellbutrin is a favourite and a commonly prescribed antidepressant for patients with Bipolar Disorder. However, there's been a little debate and controversy surrounding Wellbutrin and Bipolar Disorder. Some psychiatrists will prescribe Wellbutrin along with an SSRI such as Sertraline in the treatment of depression.

As for me, one of my favourites was Sertraline. The biggest issue for me was the sexual dysfunction it caused me, though it was nowhere near as bad as Citalopram in that depdepartment. Wellbutrin wins there because sexual dysfunction is nowhere near as common a complaint with it as it is with the main "first line" SSRIs.

Don't even get me started on Tricyclics!

So as I said, there is no universal answer to your question. Mood stabilisation wise most psychiatrists will agree that Lithium is the general gold standard. But ask the same group of psychiatrists your question and most of them will disagree with each other, or repeat what I've said: it's different with every patient.