Lithium can take some adjustment time. You did the right thing getting your levels checked so that's good.

Some people handle lithium better than others. The trick is finding a level that you feel good at but which is still enough to help you. It probably would be a good idea to contact your pdoc and get orders for a standard 12 hour draw so that you know what your level really is and then maybe the dr can lower your dose some.

I was on lithium for 10-12 years and while I never had side effects that were that bad (except hand tremors and a thing called diabetes insipidus that isn't diabetes and just meant I took another med to maintain my electrolyte balance) I did have several toxicities. Eventually we learned that I did best on a low dose.

I quit nearly 2 years ago after the last toxicity but went on a REALLY tiny dose Monday in a last ditch attempt to fix my depression before a drastic med change after Christmas (only 225 mg so my blood level will stay really low I hope).

It's a really great drug except when it isn't being a really great drug and then it's difficult.

Drinking ice water always helped me when it was making me feel bad b/c my levels were messed up. I have no idea the value of that but it did help and I drank a lot of it.