Lithium - and hospitalization

I have just spent a few days in a psychiatric hospital but discharged myself because i didnt believe it was helping me. However, when i was there they were finally discussing putting me on Lithium. Now i am discharged is it impossible to get this? They told me they like to monitor you to make sure the dose etc is right but has anyone ever started this without being monitored in a hospital?
Virginia

It is possible to monitor Lithium levels outpatient with the help of a p-doctor. They usually like to hospitalize u so that they can watch the levels more closely. I would recommend making an appointment with a p-doctor asap or go back to the hospital

I've been on Lithium for several years. I was never hospitalized. You just get lithium serum levels in your blood tested every 3 months. No big deal.

There's a standard dose of 300mg 3x's a day for Lithium "beginners".

Believe it or not, as much as I hate the crap, it does help.

hi, let me preface this by saying this is almost six years of experience boiled down into a few lines. my drug Rx has learned to trust my reactions and honesty, and she gives me some leeway on how things go. you will not have this experience at first probably.


I am on 1350 mg/day of Lithium and have been since Feb 2000. I get to that dosage by staggering my doses - 900 mg every 16 hours. 1500 is too much, 1200 not enough.

It has decreased the speed of my reflexes, slowed my analytical capacity, cut my sex drive by a factor of 12 (yes, really, but it was way too high before). And made my body soft (ankles bloated too) and caused me to gain weight.

However, getting balanced (if flat) moods is worth all of it AND more. People actually like me now, at least some, and I'm not driven like some 33 RPM LP on 78 RPM (comparison for the oldsters)

I am getting tired of the negative effects, and tried Depakote - very nice on cutting mania and keeping a clear mind, but worthless on protecting against depression. Now on lamictal (for 5 days) so far promising, will lower to 1200 mg of lithium in a few days, later (like 5-8 weeks, hope to get down to 600 Mg of lithium or less).

IMO, two ways to be sure you are bipolar are (besides the doctors telling you you are):

1. take an ADHD drug, if its like speed, you do not have ADHD (a lookalike for bipolar in many ways).

2. take several anti depressants in a row, if they make you go manic within 2-3 days, you are not uni-polar depressive, which means you may be bipolar.

3. if lithium, depakote, lamictal or whatever Rx'd for bipolar works, then you have some sort of mood disorder. Welcome to the club.

good luck,
W