I stopped Lithium last Feb or March - 2011 after taking it…

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Dear friend,

Lithium is used most, in one of its several salts, as a mood stabiliser in bipolar disorder, usually more for the mania stage than for the depression stage, although it is also used for major depression and cyclic psychosis.

I assume that yours was for bipolar disorder.

If this is the case, and there are no other external stressors, and you are not taking any other medications (that may interfere or cause negative side-effects with the Lithium), then it would probably be effective.

You might have to take a second medication with it, however. You would be prudent to consult with your psychiatrist just to be certain. Bipolar disorder can be cyclic and remain dormant for awhile. However, it can be increased in severity by the wrong medications or combination of meds, so that is why it is most prudent to have professional face-to-face guidance.

In the meanwhile, avoid stressful situations (besides the holidays), keep your intake of caffeine and other stimulants (MSG, aspartame).

I wish you a good year ahead.

Warm regards,

Elliott Sewell, LPCC, NCC, CCMHC

You are not alone in discontinuing your lithium. I have worked closely with psychiatrists treating manic depressives for 30 years and when you first notice symptoms you are exactly right in that you need to see your psychiatrist again. The initial symptoms are usually an increase in energy, euphoria, creativity and an inability to sleep. Most people find these initial symptoms to be very seductive and before they know it they are dealing with pressured speech, flight of ideas, poor judgment and an inability to sleep at all. Then you are in a dangerous situation and most people don't know it till they are stopped by other people or arrested for doing dangerous things. The medication your psychiatrist will give you may not be lithium but something stronger to focus on controlling your manic symptoms to avert a hospitalization. Manic depression is a mental illness that requires you to both educate yourself on its symptoms and prognosis as well as how it manifests in you. It is one of the few illnesses that has a wide range of manifestations although they are consistent in how they effect you. Here is a Mania self test you might find helpful (http://depression.about.com/od/bipolar/a/bipolarordep.htm) The medication most widely per scribed for the first signs of mania include: anticonvulsants, calcium channel blockers (of which Verapamil, Diltiazem, Nifedipine and Nimodipine are examples), antipsychotics, Benzodiazepines, Valproate (Depakote), Carbamazepine (Tegretol), Lamotrigine (Lamictal) and Gabapentin (Neurontin). If the mania is more pronounced these are the usually prescribed medications: Topiramate (Topamax), Olanzapine (Zyprexa), Risperidone (Risperdal), Clozapine (Clozaril), Quetiapine (Seroquel), and Ziprasidone (Geodon). For a more detailed description see (http://bipolar.about.com/cs/menu_treat/a/0312_treatmania.htm)

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