Before my accurate bipolar dx, I'd occasionally be prescribed antidepressants and almost always stop them after three days to a couple of weeks when my mood switched. I never thought of my moods being any disorder, but sort of like a brain "flu" or situational hardship. When "fixed" that was it.

I rejected my official bipolar diagnosis at first and refused medications. That's what can happen when a doctor diagnoses you while in a hypomanic episode. I didn't think anything was wrong with me. However, one year later the you know what really hit the fan and I was hospitalized and received Lithium and Seroquel. It wasn't more than maybe nine months later when I decided I was fine and didn't need the stinky meds. It had less to do with side effects than a belief that I could take control of my moods by (self will?). That's how it had been most of my life. Well, maybe only five days later I was hospitalized again. Perhaps my decision to go off meds was sparked by a developing mania itself.

Maybe less than a year later the same thing happened. Alcohol was likely involved, too. I think one of these times in the hospital was when I spent my birthday there. After that, I never again fully quit meds cold turkey, but did F around with them a bit. That had consequences, too. I've been a model patient for some years now. I haven't been in the hospital for almost 9 years, since my 10th hospitalization.

Over the years, I have been very tolerant of medication side effects. More so than many people I've read about. I even didn't make much of a stink when I had an extremely scary thing happen during my first ECT treatment. Of course even I had my limits, but my solution was not quitting meds, but finally forcing med changes. I definitely gave most medications a very fair chance. In some cases, I was very happy I waited them out. Many people wouldn't have, I think. Some I waited too long. I can't completely undo my mild kidney damage from Lithium. My hypothyroidism is here to stay, but they are manageble.