Help please

sorry to bother everyone but i am having a huge issue what happens if you stop taking lithium i dont want to but my ocd is really bad at the moment and i am almost paranoid that i am going to choke on my medication and i cant swallow it. this is actually making me cry i want to take it but i cant i dont know what to do...

What happens if i stop taking lithium

It depends on you and your dosage. I have stopped Lithium cold turkey to have ECT done and had no physical side effects BUT emotionally I was a wreck. I would not recommend in at all. Please let your doc know how you feel before you do anything.

I do kind of understand though as I want off all my meds and keep threatening to refuse all my meds in hospital but reason hits me that stopping so many meds suddenly would cause more problems. Still, in the right circumstances, when stable, I might give it a go. While you are unstable it is best to not rush off your meds as it may only make things worse.

it is not that i want to stop i am just petrified of swallowing at the moment i dont know what to do it is too late to contact my mental health worker and they would just be mad anyway oh my i am freaking out.

I dont know if i can do this anymore i feel terrible i want to scream at the top of my lungs. i have ruined everything completely

Flutterby, I recommend calling your mental health worker and telling him/her just what you told us - you want to take your lithium but your OCD is so bad that you can't swallow your pill and you need help. If he/she knows it's your OCD causing this I don't see how they would be mad at you. After all, you are calling for help. I would think they would be upset if you stopped taking your meds and did not call for help. I agree with Wander--it's not good to stop cold turkey. Please call your mental health worker for help.

i can try in the morning but it is too late right now i am scared of what they would say/do i have really messed everything up

I'm not sure what lithium's half-life is, but I'm sure going without for a few hours won't hurt. You haven't messed anything up.

Oh, Flutter! Honey, I'm so sorry you are going though this. As if being bipolar isn't enough all by itself. Hugs to you.

How are you feeling now? It was night when you posted this first.

Moose is right. You haven't messed anything up at all. Did you get ahold of your professional?

One thought: I think lithium is available in a liquid form. If you have insurance, can you possibly get that instead of the pill? It might be easier to swallow.

Sorry you are going through this stress.

I had to quit cold turkey because I got toxicity and it ruined my thyroid. I didn't get any WD or bad effects from quitting it. I actually felt better. But I had to take thyroid meds for years because of it.

Thanks everyone apart from water I am scared to swallow anything at the moment I don't know what to do I will contact them or try's to today. But I am also worried the lithium is making me sick I have been getting dizziness and nausea and my vision is a bit blurred and hand tremors and I feel really tired and gross when I take it. I have told my doctor about this but they said my levels were fine but it is getting worse.

maybe you could put them in apple sauce or yogurt. and swallow them that way.
sorry that your ocd is kicking in.
bizi

i dont think i am supposed to crush them it says dont crush on the box.still havent managed to get a hold of my mental health worker yet. i want to cry everything is so hard right now and the last few days i have been really depressed too i dont know what to do.

i managed to take the next dose but it was a struggle.

How are you doing today, Flutterby?

Not good at all.

I dumped lithium with no taper , I was borderline toxic and I like my kidneys and thyroid and wasn't going to take a risk anyway.

Odd thing I dropped loads of AP's left and right not even a hiccup. Lithium ? I felt like I had a hella flu for 7-8 days

Talk to your Pdoc and work together to find the right meds for you. Be you're own best advocate.