My pdoc *claims* that Zoloft is an SSRI "that is least likely to trigger mania compared to other SSRIs." I don't know if there is any truth to that statement, but he said that. So I suppose if you are being pushed into taking an SSRI and given the choice of which one to take, I would probably ask for Zoloft to be on the safe side. But lots of people with bipolar have difficulties with SSRIs like BeyondTheRainbow implied, so even Zoloft may make you manic. So, I *personally* think SSRIs should be used as a last resort for people w/ bipolar even though some people (like myself) can tolerate them really well.

Also, my grandma had bipolar and became manic on both Trazodone (SARI) and Remeron (tetracyclic), FWIW. So really, YMMV even with non-SSRIs. She literally slept like 2 hrs in the span of 3 days while in IP on Trazodone. IP pdoc had to take her off it immediately because she was totally tripping out. She was initially given it to sleep because she was getting 4 hrs a night, but it just exacerbated the sleep issues and she started seeing weird sh_t.

But anyway, I know lots of people on this forum have had good luck with MAOIs, Emsam in particular. However, I know that Wildflowerchild25 was on Emsam for a while and then (if I'm remembering right) her insurance stopped covering it. I'm guessing that's because there is no generic yet and also likely because antidepressants technically aren't recommended for people w/ bipolar. (My insurance has rejected meds based on whether or not they are "approved" for treating bipolar.)