Hi Catchingthesun. Like CANDC wrote, I also think that reducing or coming off medications is best done under a doctor's supervision. There are several reasons, including withdrawal issues and illness relapse. Though doctors do not want to see most of their patients with bipolar disorder going off medications, any good doctor should be willing to assist in the process if that is what the patient really wants. In my view, the best doctors, in these cases, will finally get the drift that the patient NEEDS relief from certain types of side effects in order to remain medication compliant. There are bipolar medications that are weight neutral. I won't say that switching to a weight neutral will melt the pounds off all on their own, but at least may make it easier to stick to a productive diet. Some may or may not be equally effective. In my view, something is better than nothing.

You want my story (as briefly as possible)?

Looking back on "good ole days" is sometimes a little dangerous, especially if the days you look back on were elated hypomanic/manic days. In many cases, like mine, the bipolar illness course worsens as you age, especially if unmedicated for many years. I wasn't medicated for bipolar disorder until I was the middle age of 34 years old. By then, my illness had become so severe that I was caught in a Catch 22 aka "the kindling effect". It took quite a while for my doctors (private, inpatient, and IOP/PHP) to finally get hold of my illness. I also had to finally quit drinking alcohol, as well. I was one stubborn ***** thinking that I could simply "go back" to the good ole days without medications. Some of my worst bipolar relapses were when I decided to up and quit my medications and drink instead. That didn't work out (understatement). You may recall Albert Einstein's definition of insanity: "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results". Well, I tried to quit medications and few times. The results became worse and worse. Or, maybe a person has what my youngest nephew had when he quit his bipolar medications. I called it a "Honeymoon period". That was just swell, until his illness eventually came back with a vengeance. It came back so fast and furious, that there wasn't time to contain it. He died by suicide at age 24. Believe me when I say that that was not better than him taking his medications!

I'm in my late 40s right now. I'm not a young woman anymore. I have matured a lot and learned a number of lessons over the years. I guess you can say that I do play it safe, compared to when I was young (meaning before 34 years old). I'm doing alright on my current medications and I've learned a lot through my years of therapy. Is everything perfect all of the time? No, but it's not that bad and sometimes I feel more creative now than I ever was, even as a young woman. There are some things I don't/can't do as well. I've come to terms with those or I keep trying. C'est la vie!

I'm on a relatively weight unfriendly medication (Seroquel XR) and have been for a while. I'm overweight, but I fight it the best that I can. I'm actually one of the thinner people in my family, and only two of us take psychotropic medications, that I know of. Well, perhaps I'm unique in that I haven't gained 50 lbs from a notoriously weight unfriendly medication. I won't say that I haven't weighed more. I once weighed about 20 lbs more than I do now. Back then it was important that I get off that medication, not just for vanity sake, but for health sake. I found more weight friendly substitutes, though, and lost much of that weight.