Medication Woes

So, I've had problems with many types of mental illness since I was three. The first time I was put on antidepressants I was 8. Not long ago, I was finally dx as bipolar while I was in the psych hospital.

First they gave me lithium and seroquel. The lithium made my hair fall out, made it hard to concentrate and caused a lot of stomach problems. Eventually the seroquel caused me to sleepwalk. I used to take abilify, but it caused a permanent problem with the conductivity of my heart.

After about six months on those, they switched me to depakote and welbutrin. The depakote caused serious sleep problems. I was having these short, vivid and disturbing dreams. I was lucky to be sleeping three hours a night. The welbutrin made my heart race and I'd have these weird panic attacks. And once again my hair fell out.

They told me they wanted to try risperidone, which scares me. The problems I've had my whole life with medications make this seem impossible for me. I've been on one antidepressant or another since I was 14, until I eventually went through all of the medications approved for children. As a result, I let my prescription run out and I haven't been back to the doctor since.

The one that really worked the best at controlling my moods was lithium. But it still took a toll on the rest of my life. Is being medicated worth taking these risks?

What about trying lamictal? My son has been on it for awhile and it has worked well for his mood and depression without side. As a parent I feel it is worth the risk as bipolar is such a deadly and disastrous illness. I'd rather him have physical issues and be generally happy then the alternative.

Only you can decide if the benefits of meds outweigh the risks/side effects. The way I have it right now, I have no sex drive and gained ten pounds. But I was stable for the first time in months. So for me it worked. When I was on lithium though, I never saw any benefits and the side effects were such that I would never try it again.

It's up to you whether you can take the side effects.

Lamictal is a good idea, I have been on it for 2 years and have had great success with it.

If you really want to get out of the FDA approved drugs you can try lithium orotate.

But do your research on that one. I agree that you should try Lamictal That's what I'm on!

Really like the Lamictal too. It is scary taking a new medication, though. The question I ask my doctor to clear my mind is, are there any irreversible side effects of this drug and what's the likelihood?

My first priority in taking the meds was not to have the police "escort" me to the psych ward again. So I was willing to roll the dice on the possible weight gain, high cholesterol, permanent effects like diabetes, or very unlikely ones like the one you'll be presented with Lamictal. You need to feel comfortable with what it means when the dice roll snake eyes or lucky 7.

Of the medicines in my roster, I've had no side effects with Lamictal. For me, it's been the only one. Your chemistry is unique to you as is your risk threshold. Finding the right medication stack is a lot of trial and error. It took me a few too and you sometimes need to tweak them. But it's priceless compared to being confined to a locked hospital ward thinking they were going to kill you and hide your body.

Lamictal works well for me, but I take it with Abilify and Zoloft, so I'm not sue which one is working best or if it's the combo.

Lamictal works well for me. I cold tell a difference when I added it to my list.

I share your pain. I tend to get all of the rare but serious side effects with lots of my meds. I've been taking risperidone for a while and so far have not experienced any negative side effects and its worked wonders for my bipolar along side lamictal maybe you should talk to your doc about the combination of the two.