My pdoc wants me to start on lithium tomorrow

im pissed and worried, depakote didnt work and neurontin she says it is not working cuz i am irritable at times and angry so now she wants to start me on lithium 300 mg twice a day, i mean do these ppl want you to have no emotion at all, btw i just came off a hypomanic manic episode but i didnt hurt anyone i was just super hyper can anyone give me oppinions plz

Lithium is just a mood stabilizer. I would try. I was on 1200mg per/day but I had an issue with it and had to quit. Instead I was put on tegretol, but for the 3 weeks I was on Lithium it worked wonders.

I think it's worth a try. Who knows, it may be great for you.

I was hesitant about starting a mood stabilizer, thinking it would dull me down and make me less productive. But it has had the exact opposite effect. Now I'm actually much sharper and more productive, way less anxious, and feel a million times better.

And hey, if you don't like the way it makes you feel, you can always stop taking it! But why not just give it a try? What do you have to lose?

You don't have to do every thing your doctor wants you to do or take the dosages your doctor says you should. If you feel over medicated or you are fine where you are at, tell your doctor! I would say, yea, I do get angry sometimes and so what? Don't you? I don't want to change my meds, we'll see next month, RX please!

And just because your doctor thinks your emotions are "symptoms of bipolar" does not mean that they are. Or even if they are, it doesn't mean they have to be fully medicated. Me? I take just enough medication so, I don't go entirely crazy or kill myself, just enough so that I can cope with the mood swings.

If your not comfortable going on lithium, then don't go on it. There are other options.

If you want a lower dosage, take less. Tell your doctor to prescribe less from now on.

While I agree with the essence of what you are saying, she won't know if the lithium will help her unless she tries it! Generally, I give my pdocs the benefit of the doubt and at least try a med if they want me to. After all, why even see a particular pdoc if you're not going to at least try their suggestions?

I agree with some of what you have said but at the same time it's worth a try. Each person responds differently to Lithium. My psych put me on the highest dosage she was willing to prescribe and I had zero response to it, which really shocked her. If you're still having mood issues I would suggest you let her do what is needed. The goal of any good psych isn't to make you emotionless; it's to keep you stabilized so you're not cycling or having bad mood swings. I've found Lamictal does that for me after trying Depakote and Lithium. It's worth a try.

i'm bp2, hypomanic, almost no depression, and am now 65. have taken 450 mg. lithium daily for almost 30 years...anything more than 450 mg. caused tremors, and for me it works. there are side effects to most of these meds. but i have been stable when faithfully and obsessively taking my lithium and 1/2 of a .5 mg. klonopin for anxiety and agitation. i've tried the newer mood stabilizer...forgot its name but you work your way up in dosage and it didn't do well for me. much of the med. treatment is trial and error til you find what works. my short term memory is gone, whether from lithium or klonopin, but i still have my humor, charisma, and have somewhat of a blunted affect or reaction to things. good luck.