I went untreated in between episodes but my panic and anxiety and fatigue were so severe now I’m back on lithium and everything’s getting better. I think being treated is much better than untreated. It’s easy to forget the way manic depression feels though. I’ve had three supersevere year long episodes that I had forgotten how they felt while I was on treatment for a long time and then still off I forgot until I realize like a slow boil lobster I’ve fallen really deep and low and can’t get out. That hollowness i feel in that moment the empty pointlessness what like seeing a person from your childhood that you knew long ago and wondering how on earth did I forget about you. Treatment is definitely worth it.