Lithium and frequent urination

I'm on 1500 mg of Lithium - 900 in the morning and 600 at night. I drink all the time and consequently urinate all the time. I can deal with this during the day, but at night it really interrupts my sleep. I'm now taking more in the morning and less at night which has helped decrease the number of times I get up from 3-5 to 2-3. But it still really interrupts my sleep (and I have sleep apnea and a circadian rhythm disorder). I started taking my nighttime dosage about 4 hrs before I go to bed and this hasn't helped too much. Does anyone have any suggestions? When I don't drink enough in the evening I end up getting up because I need to drink--I'm so thirsty, so this won't work. Incidentally, the last time that I checked my Lithium level was at .8, which is on the lower end of a therapeutic dose (1.0 is perfect), so it's not too much or dangerous for kidneys. The thing is that the drug is really working for my depression so I don't want to stop taking it, and I've tried everything (and am concurrently on 125 mg of Lamictal). Thanks for any suggestions.

Lithium is a form of salt so maybe you are simply less tolerant or that is the wrong med for you. Your pharmacist would be the best place to start because they have more knowledge on side effects and contraindications and you don't need an appointment. They can't change your dosage obviously but knowledge is power as they say.

Thanks for the suggestion and I might talk to my pharmacist, though I have a great psychiatrist and neurologist with whom I "talk science" during our appts (I have some background in chemistry and medicine). Excessive drinking and urination are a 'normal' side effect of taking larger dosages lithium, which is indeed just above sodium on the periodic table and therefore has a similar composition to table salt. This side effect doesn't mean that the drug isn't the right med for me (getting up twice during the night is annoying but not dangerous and I'm not dehydrated or suffering from any other medical problem, tremors, etc. all the classic reasons people stop lithium).

I was hoping that other people in my situation might have tips from their own experiences for how they tweaked times of dosages, etc., that helped them out (i.e., things you don't see in medical journals). Already, I learned that taking 900 in the morning and 600 at night (i.e., the larger dosage in the morning) has made a positive difference for getting up in the middle of the night. But I'd love to hear other people's suggestions/advice. Thanks!

i'll start by saying we all know are bipolar is different for ea. individual; i am female, 67 yrs. old and was on 450 mg. lithium for 35+ yrs. never had depression and 450 mg. kept the mania stabilized except when traveling and changing time zones or being really stressed out. anyway, over time needed thyroid med., had most of my parathyroids removed and lately having kidney issues, all attributed to by the low doses of lithium. i'd take it in the a.m. and the first 4 hrs. after taking it i was urinating constantly (always walking around w/styrofoam glass of water all day long). by noon i had fatigue which required a nap daily. never realized that the fatigue was caused by the frequent urination as told by my psych nurse. finally decided 35 yrs. was enough and have been off lithium for about 6 mo. and have not needed to replace it w/another mood stabilizer…yet. all these drugs have side effects and yu must figure out what works best for u.