Lithium Carbonate side effects ? Please help !

Dx: BPD and Bipolar 2

I take Lithium Carbonate: 600 mg at the moment. Been taking it for approx 4 weeks.

I feel SOOOOOOOOOOO SLEEEEEEEEEEEPYYYYYYYYYY ALLLLLLLLLLL THE TIIIIIIIIME. Like 24/7. I feel the need to take 3 naps a day (I try to squeeze one in during my lunch break at work). This is REALLY affecting my ability to work.

Strange thing is: the drowsiness hasn't started until about a week ago (i.e. 3 weeks after starting on Lithium).

Have others experienced this ? If so, does it go away as tolerance builds up ?

Also, I see hair loss listed as a possible side effect. Has anyone experienced that ? Any other side effects ?

Please share. Any info would be much appreciated. Thanks !

My side effects:
-- queasiness and diarrhea (disappeared after a few weeks, THANK GODS)
-- blurry vision (still present)
-- mild hallucinations (still present)
-- coordination problems (bicycling, typing are difficult; I drop things all the time; I spill coffee on my desk too often to mention)
-- tremor (very strong and I have to ask the doctor if there's something we can do about it, I can't draw)

No hair loss, no drowsiness, no sleepy feeling. Dosage: 1000 mg at the moment, diagnosis: Bipolar 2 with BPD traits.

Oliveira wrote:My side effects:
-- queasiness and diarrhea (disappeared after a few weeks, THANK GODS)
-- blurry vision (still present)
-- mild hallucinations (still present)
-- coordination problems (bicycling, typing are difficult; I drop things all the time; I spill coffee on my desk too often to mention)
-- tremor (very strong and I have to ask the doctor if there's something we can do about it, I can't draw)

No hair loss, no drowsiness, no sleepy feeling. Dosage: 1000 mg at the moment, diagnosis: Bipolar 2 with BPD traits.

Thanks for sharing that info, bud. Sounds like you've had a much tougher time than me. I hope your doc can do something about it.

BTW, is your avatar picture a picture of you ?

No, but I wouldn't mind

Stomach upset after taking it, sometimes nausea;
not drowsiness, but I can get foggy minded;
clumsiness;
difficluty with finer motor skills;
sometimes, my mind can randomly go completely "blank" while doing something;
for about an hour and a half after taking a 300mg pill, I feel extremely unable to focus mentally on things. Like reading even. I can read one paragraph and not sink in.

Those aren't very present most days, though. the only permanent one is I just peeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee alll the tiiiimmeeeeeeee

I'm on 900mg Lithium and have never found it to make me drowsy. Is there anything else that could be contributing here, like an increase in an SSRI med? My first 4-6 weeks on Cipralex were zombie-like I was so out of it and tired.

Thanks everyone, for your responses !

Y'all might be right ... it may be something else causing the sleepiness. Let's see how it goes this following week.

lilodian4ever wrote:Thanks everyone, for your responses !

Y'all might be right ... it may be something else causing the sleepiness. Let's see how it goes this following week.

Actually a lot of people feel drowsy, sleepy and sometimes depressed on lithium.

twistednerve wrote:

lilodian4ever wrote:Thanks everyone, for your responses !

Y'all might be right ... it may be something else causing the sleepiness. Let's see how it goes this following week.

Actually a lot of people feel drowsy, sleepy and sometimes depressed on lithium.

For me, the first couple of weeks of taking lithium, I'd be completely stoned 30min after taking it. It went away, though.

I did/do have hair loss on lithium.

It is not that common, so I wouldn't panic until it actually happens.

I have found taking 1000mcg of Biotin every day really helps. Some websites and the like will tell you to take more but I have found the this dose to be pretty effective. As a bonus, it has made ny fingernails much stronger - they had gotten very brittle on my other meds, even before I started taking lithium.