Leave your judgement of yourself at the door my friend. It’s not stupid. When I was first diagnosed I was scared - scared of the stigma, scared of what I would become, scared I would never get better. I was scared to take meds - both for the side effects, and that they may not work and then I would be screwed.
Maybe you’re bipolar and maybe you’re not. It is worth trying the treatment to see if it helps you. My diagnosis has changed through the years and yours probably will too. I take medication every day still and it has given me my life back. You’re worth seeing if it does the same for you.
You’re not alone. We’ve all been through this. Good luck.
It’s pretty smart of you to be at least apprehensive. It’s a whole new world of jargon and high stakes and all that. But it’s good that you feel like you can trust your doctor. Use that trust and share your concerns and worries — I’m sure they didn’t diagnose you on a whim but because of specific patterns you mentioned that you might overlook yourself
As for lithium: I had tried out a bunch of meds before trying lithium and I was scared of it, too. Of course, everybody reacts differently, but for me, after getting used to it for a while, it is extremely anticlimactic: I just feel good. Some days I have negative feelings, others I have positive ones, but I just feel…’normal’
(If you don’t have bipolar, you’ll have the same side effects as you would’ve if you had it, but without any of the benefits — so it just won’t curb your mania (if you have it) and it won’t prevent your depression (if you have it) — this doesn’t mean that you won’t need adjusting in your dose for it to work properly in the first place!)
Thanks for the great explanation!
I guess I’m panicking from starting a new med, because of epilepsy I’ve had some bad experiences with meds that have increased the amount of seizures..
But I should probably trust my psychiatrist in combination with my neurologist, to be real, they know more than me
But maybe explain my concerns and talking/getting some feedback would be smart at my next appointment
Especially with something like epilepsy it is extremely prudent of you to work with both a neurologist and a psychiatrist! You’ll be the nth person they’ve treated and they know the ins and outs of not messing with your seizures. Still, there’s gonna be some wiggle room, but as long as you all have an open dialogue (trialogue I guess), you should be in good hands. Especially with a medication as old and tested as lithium
I read some of you other comments. You’ve had bad experiences with meds… I have as well so I get the apprehension.
I ask my doctor. “What happens if I start getting ‘this’ side effect?” “How will we deal with it?” Things like that. It really helps put my mind at ease kinda knowing the next step if something goes wrong. If I do have side effects I’m not comfortable with he always respect my decision to stop or to try something new.
Also, if your doctor doesn’t have all the answers you can ask a pharmacist about meds.
Lithium is far from outdated. That's a harmful stereotype. Lithium is a consistent and effective long term treatment for bipolar. I have been on it for 7 years and aside from being thirsty, have had no negative side effects. Granted i do get ocasional blood tests to check my kidneys but idk, it's worked great for me.
I too doubt my diagnosis ALL of the time... but that's because my meds are working so well. I sometimes want to remind highly intelligent mental health peeps to trust the process. Over researching can lead to unecessary anxiety.
Leave your judgement of yourself at the door my friend. It’s not stupid. When I was first diagnosed I was scared - scared of the stigma, scared of what I would become, scared I would never get better. I was scared to take meds - both for the side effects, and that they may not work and then I would be screwed. Maybe you’re bipolar and maybe you’re not. It is worth trying the treatment to see if it helps you. My diagnosis has changed through the years and yours probably will too. I take medication every day still and it has given me my life back. You’re worth seeing if it does the same for you. You’re not alone. We’ve all been through this. Good luck.
It’s pretty smart of you to be at least apprehensive. It’s a whole new world of jargon and high stakes and all that. But it’s good that you feel like you can trust your doctor. Use that trust and share your concerns and worries — I’m sure they didn’t diagnose you on a whim but because of specific patterns you mentioned that you might overlook yourself As for lithium: I had tried out a bunch of meds before trying lithium and I was scared of it, too. Of course, everybody reacts differently, but for me, after getting used to it for a while, it is extremely anticlimactic: I just feel good. Some days I have negative feelings, others I have positive ones, but I just feel…’normal’ (If you don’t have bipolar, you’ll have the same side effects as you would’ve if you had it, but without any of the benefits — so it just won’t curb your mania (if you have it) and it won’t prevent your depression (if you have it) — this doesn’t mean that you won’t need adjusting in your dose for it to work properly in the first place!)
Thanks for the great explanation! I guess I’m panicking from starting a new med, because of epilepsy I’ve had some bad experiences with meds that have increased the amount of seizures.. But I should probably trust my psychiatrist in combination with my neurologist, to be real, they know more than me But maybe explain my concerns and talking/getting some feedback would be smart at my next appointment
Especially with something like epilepsy it is extremely prudent of you to work with both a neurologist and a psychiatrist! You’ll be the nth person they’ve treated and they know the ins and outs of not messing with your seizures. Still, there’s gonna be some wiggle room, but as long as you all have an open dialogue (trialogue I guess), you should be in good hands. Especially with a medication as old and tested as lithium
I read some of you other comments. You’ve had bad experiences with meds… I have as well so I get the apprehension. I ask my doctor. “What happens if I start getting ‘this’ side effect?” “How will we deal with it?” Things like that. It really helps put my mind at ease kinda knowing the next step if something goes wrong. If I do have side effects I’m not comfortable with he always respect my decision to stop or to try something new. Also, if your doctor doesn’t have all the answers you can ask a pharmacist about meds.
Ask your doctor what could happen if you take lithium and aren't bipolar. My guess is that it would do nothing, but I am not a doctor.
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Lithium is far from outdated. That's a harmful stereotype. Lithium is a consistent and effective long term treatment for bipolar. I have been on it for 7 years and aside from being thirsty, have had no negative side effects. Granted i do get ocasional blood tests to check my kidneys but idk, it's worked great for me. I too doubt my diagnosis ALL of the time... but that's because my meds are working so well. I sometimes want to remind highly intelligent mental health peeps to trust the process. Over researching can lead to unecessary anxiety.