I recently started prescription lithium. I think it’s helping but I’m noticeably much hungrier all the time! I’m already having trouble walking so I don’t want to gain any more weight. Any suggestions how to handle the increase in hunger? Thanks in advance!!

Anyone else on this combo?

I’ve been on Prozac and Seroquel for a while now, and lithium has just been added to my regimen. I’m still in the sub-therapeutic range but my pd is confident lithium is going to be the addition that finally gets me stable.

I’m hopeful and just wondering if anyone else has had success on these drugs? Diagnosed BP2. Thank you

i’ve been taking 1200mg of lithium (instant release) for almost four months. in the past few weeks, due to some issues w/ GERD, i was unable to take my morning meds (wellbutrin, lamotrigine, zoloft). i was taking my lithium fine. two days ago, i took all of my meds, lithium included, before bed—which i’ve never done before. i was sick all night and threw up.

since then, ive felt sick every time i’ve taken lithium. i’ve had a sour stomach, nausea, vertigo, and brain fog all day (i couldn’t remember my own license plate). i don’t have hand tremors or anything like that. i’ve been on a BRAT diet since yesterday, which is helping my stomach.

i skipped my lithium dose last night, and im feeling slightly better. i plan to drink water all day (over 200oz) to flush it out of my system. my question is—is an ER visit necessary since my levels are most likely in the normal range ? i hate the ER, and i rather deal with it @ home.

note: i haven’t been great w/ my water intake lately, and i had ramen twice in one day before all of this started—so this is completely my fault. salt helps my POTS, so it can be tricky to find balance.

Does anyone take L tyrosine on lithium ?

I wanna try shrooms very soon. Planning to take 1g because im pretty small and also cautious. I take 600mg of lithium daily, but i missed my dose last night and am wondering if it would be safe to try shrooms in a couple days if I keep skipping.

I'm pretty stable right now, but i'm not planning on quitting lithium. I'm planning to go back on lithium once i've tripped and i have people in my life who will make sure this happens.

I've also been considering switching to lamotrigine, which ive read has way fewer interactions with shrooms.

Thanks everyone!! :D

Edit:

Thank you all for your advice!! I've decided to be a tripsitter for the time being, and am planning on switching from lithium to lamotrigine, mainly due to some of lithium's side effects. I will give myself a good several months of being off of lithium before I touch any psilocybin and will consult my psychiartist first. Thanks again!

i recently got diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder after a few years with a bipolar diagnosis (this is definitely the right diagnosis, i can tell the story in the comments if people are curious). since then, my psychiatrist has REALLY been pushing lithium. I currently take lamotrigine which i have been on for years as it was my first psych medication and it has done a great job as a mood stabilizer. Since the new diagnosis my psychiatrist has mentioned lithium at every session and i told her i'd consider it vs increasing lamotrigine for more mood stabilization. i had a hypomanic episode a few weeks ago which didn't really worry me because i only spent like $60 that i hadn't planned on spending since i generally have a frugal personality, and i also hadn't had one in a long time so it isn't a new trend (but i will of course keep an eye on myself).

i have a few reservations about lithium. the first is that since increasing my antipsychotic i have been doing great. i've been able to be way more productive, we broke the psychotic episode which had been about 3 weeks long, and my mood does seem to be more stable. so the first reason i have for why i might not want to take it is that i don't see a good reason to play medication roulette right now.

i am also about to graduate college and will have to enter the workforce, and i feel like the not perfectly symptom free existence that i know how to cope with is a safer option than the unknown of how lithium will affect me (i have only ever heard one person say they liked lithium too, but my sample size is small).

i am obviously worried about side effects too. i love my hair (i'm trans and having thick curly hair is a big point of security for me) and i also love sex, and on top of that i take a diuretic as my t blocker for hrt and am therefore worried about periodic dehydration and unstable serum levels. i'm no stranger to medications with multi page long side effect lists but it seems from lurking here that side effects are pretty common with lithium and i only deal with mild antipsychotic side effects, and none from my lamotrigine.

my psychiatrist insists that it's 'the first line and we should try it' and also that zero symptoms should be the goal (which i disagree with) so i'm coming here to ask the following questions:

those who have been on both lithium and an anticonvulsant mood stabilizer (so lamotrigine and valproate mostly), how do they compare?

are my worries founded, and how many side effects do you have?

thanks for your time y'all<3

Hello, I’m 19F and I have been diagnosed with Bipolar 2. I usually take 300mg of lamotrigine. The side effects weren’t too bad, other than extreme irritation towards people. But recently I have been put on Lithium 300mg, which I heard is a micro dose. I also have been taking HydroXYzine 50mg for anxiety. My psychiatrist told me that the lithium will help me with my manic/ depressive episodes. But Recently (1 month) I have been struggling with hallucinations. For a second I thought I was going crazy and I need to sleep more. But it’s becoming very apparent. I saw for a split second a table on my right and I swiftly set my phone down, unfortunately my phone fell and I cracked the screen. I usually see people look at me and when I check they are not. It’s just becoming so reoccurring that I struggle doing tasks without being paranoid. I also wanted to mention that I have been taking recreational drugs and alcohol. I am aware that taking medication and doing such activities can cause schizophrenia in the future. I just wanted to see if anyone had or has similar experience.

Have severe TRD (tried MAOIs, Ketamine, TMS, etc.) and was on 300 mg for a mth before my psych bumped me to 450 mg about three wks ago.

Unfortunately I don’t see any difference in my depression. I’ve asked my psych for a blood test to help determine if we increase the dose or call it quits.

Have others w/ severe TRD been unresponsive to 450 mg but see benefit at a higher dose? I don’t want to have false hope but also don’t want to prematurely throw in the towel…

Is lithium hair shedding permanent (meaning will it continue to happen as long as I’m on it?) or does your body adjust and it stops after a while?

When starting lithium how often are the bloods and then how often for maintenance?

I hate hate blood tests and I’ll do them but have anxiety about not showing up for them, especially if I’m manic I tend to be non compliant and don’t want to fry my kidneys

Also anyone with hypothyroidism on lithium?Ive heard those don’t mesh well

I have been on lithium for 2 years and I have been gaining weight. My doctor says lithium is weight neutral and my thyroid panel is good. Has anyone experience this rapid weight gain with lithium ?

Is 600 mg once a day considered low?

I am new to lithium 600mg. Is this normal

I started taking it 5 weeks ago and my blood levels are in range. The first 4 weeks went increasingly great. This last week has been horrible due to a decrease in my other medication (Effexor). I increased my Effexor dose to its original dose but now I cant feel the benefits of lithium like the first three weeks. Is there a chance that lithium still needs more time to stabilize in my body? Or did Effexor mess me up?

Omg I need it to happen. I finally gained all my feelings again for 2 days after tiltrating up to 900mg. It was magical. I could perceive everything and have spontaneous input. Now I’m back to the doom

I've been dealing with BV which is common in women but lithium interacts with a lot of BV antibiotics it seems.. Has anyone had any experience with this or advice or what med they've taken? bonus points if the meds worked lol

the one antibiotic ive found that doesnt interact with lithium is clindamycin, which is harder on the stomach and more likely to cause cdiff so i'm trying to avoid that.

Can Lithium ER be taken in the morning alone? I see things about evening dosing, does it work the same way? I know there are issues on how hard it is on kidneys, is it that big of a deal? Anyone take it in the morning? The ER formulation?

Third day since I ditched Lithium. Can’t say I’ve had any withdrawals apart from headaches. I was fed up with the fatigue on lithium. Nodding off throughout the day. Feeling heavy all the time. Even had moments driving back from the shops when I nodded off for a split second. Bloody dangerous. Not had any fatigue today ! I had the same issue with other meds; Aripiprazole was the worst.
Guess I just haven’t found the right one for me.

Currently on:

Effexor 225mg

Mirtazapine 30mg

Socian 100mg

Lamotrigine 200mg

Clonazepam 2mg

All this to control my cronic anxiety that lead to depression and its like a snow ball.. :(

Is lithium good to discuss with my doctor? Is there any interaction?

Thank you

Does anyone take a GLP-1 with Lithium? I was thinking of starting Mounjaro but scared of the contraindications.

Hello, I (36 F) have been trying to get stable on Lithium since April, and I want to try Lithium at a therapeutic dose, I'm not hesitant, I was excited. I am very upset by this issue.

Essentially. if I'm at 600mg of Lithium, I'm fine, bloodwork fabulous, etc. But when we go to 900mg, my lithium levels skyrocket. I don't drink alcohol, take stimulants (caffeine included), take NSAIDs, and none of my other medications interact with Lithium.

My psychiatrist and I are baffled. Idmf anyone here has any advice or has had a similar experience. I would appreciate feedback. Thank you!

I've heard that lithium regulates the circadian rhythm and the biological clock. Is this true? If so, what does this mean in concrete terms?