It varies with the person...I was dx'd recurrent major depression for 9 years, on a-d's all that time, before I got the bipolar dx. At this point, they will pry my Effexor out of my cold dead hands, but I'm also on Seroquel (when I can afford it ) and doing well on that.

You can mix a-d's and mood stabilizers with no unreasonable side effects for bipolar, as far as I know, but I'm not a doc or a pharmacist. It hasn't really been a problem for me, is all I can tell you. Some bipolar people find that a-d's make the mania worse, but if it hasn't happened to you at this point, I think you're probably safe there.

Good luck.

Candy