Is being bipolar and not taking medication and just going to therapy effective

[nikkimarie13]

(Sorry if this question sounds dumb) I'm 18 and was just recently diagnosed type 2 bipolar disorder.. It's really hard for me to accept because one minute I was "fine".. I was employed, functioning everyday and eating right and working out and I was healthy and doing what seemed to be okay. And then the next minute I had this huge panic attack out of nowhere and everything went downhill from there... Now I can't leave my house.. can barely leave my bed. I'm trying different medications all the time (which I HATE) I hate the side effects. I don't believe in taking medication. Lithium made me gain A TON of weight. Yeah it made my mood better but if I don't look good I feel horrible and can't do anything and get depressed all over again. So I tried topamax. Which didn't help at all. It made me even worse and made me itchy all over and made me breakout in hives. I don't know what to do :( Should I go back on the Lithium? I just don't know how to control my appetite. It's uncontrollable. And it's killing me. I believe in eating healthy and working out. I want to look good and feel good about myself and that's really hard when I'm taking stupid pills everyday that are making me go crazy over food and making me gain 20 pounds :( Please tell me I can just go to therapy and not take medication and end up being happy and okay. I hate medication. I don't want to gain weight or breakout or have anymore side effects. I hate medication. I hate taking pills. Please someone help me.. I don't know what to do anymore. Thank you. And please no rude or unhelpful comments..

[mixedsalad]

Hi there.

I am 56 years old and lived with untreated BP1 until three years ago.

I can safely say I wish I had been treated forty years ago.

I have refractory BP1 with mixed states and rapid cycling.  I wasn't always this intense, however as the years go by with untreated BP the trend is to worsen.

I would strongly suggest you continue looking for a mood stabilizer that is effective for you.

There are several neuroleptics that are weight gain neutral that you can try.

I am not going to tell you any certain drug will not cause weight gain, because it depends on whose taking it and how much they take.  You need to research mood stabilizers.  A good starting place is psycheducation.org.  My psychiatrist recommended it to me.

I am also not going to tell you medications don't really cause weight gain, because so many of them do and it is debilitating.

I gained 8 pounds during the month of October eating <1600 healthy, small meals calories a day.  So far be it from me to tell you to not worry about weight gain or that it doesn't happen.  It does.

Please just try to find a psychiatrist that is attentive, a good listener and responds to your needs and find a medication that works for you.  You have the chance to alter the course of your own life in a majorly positive way.  It may take some time and trials with medications you really hate, but that is the nature of the beast.  Just try.

[boozypirate]

I'm 18 and bipolar. i am REALLY anti-medication - i think that yes it is perhaps an easier way out but the side effects are horrible. While i still have some mood swings they are so much less frequent and not as bad now that i do a lot of meditation, positive mantras and vitamins. I also have told my friends and family what symptoms to look for and now they can tell if i'm either heading to or already in an episode, so they will talk to me heaps and make me go out and do things with them and stop me from going out drinking and stuff. If you have a strong support system, you keep REALLY on top of how your feeling - ie; keeping track of your moods/symptoms, and have ways of coping with your feelings - write a list of things that might distract you from depression you can get MUCH better without medication. good luck!

[thatquietgirl]

Until you have been in therapy long enough to learn some good coping skills, I would not recommend being off medications.  However, once you have, it can work.  I've been off meds for nearly three years and am doing fine.  Nevertheless, I have to constantly look out for symptoms or triggers that I learned are what start off my episodes.  If I'm not vigilant, I can easily fall prey.

I would not recommend giving up on medication just yet.  It can sometimes take a few years to get a good balance for you.  It can take a few years to learn your triggers, symptoms, etc., to be able to even think about trying it without medication.

Lithium does not have to mean weight gain, by the way.  You have to practice portion control, exercise, and be careful what you eat, but it does not have to mean weight gain.  I managed to lose weight while on it, though it was difficult.

[blackcat111]

hi there i have bipolar and borderline personality disorder. i was on lithium for two years and i only just got off of it. it took me 6 months to taper off it was hell. i wanted to get off of the lithium because of the side effects. i didnt gain much wait but i have always been thin, but itmade my hair really brittle and thin and alot of it broke off. i had long hair and i had to get alot cut off,it was devestating. i am seroquel now which is an antipsycotic medication but they can use it as a mood stablizer. it can make you gain weight but i have only gained 2kg which isnt much. i think with any medication there will be side effects especialy with mentel health medication. i recently was on a very bad low and tried to kill myself and eneded up in hospital. when i came home i couldnt get out of bed i cry alot and dont go anywhere. but they put me on seroquel xr and i felt abit better. i think if you are feeling they way you are you might need some medication. i have food cravings too, but i get weight watcher snacks to help with the sweet cravings. if you cant function then you cant get to therepy. i found that i need medication otherwise i cant function at all. there are different medications that are classed as weight netural i think they are called zeldox and ablifiy, look them up on google. hope this helps.