Bipolar Disorder?

Question

To those with bipolar disorder. If you have it does it mean you will have to take drugs for the rest of your life? My brothr's doctor told us he will take it only for 3 years, however 3 years passed and now he's saying he will have to be on some kind of meds for the rest of his life. He was off the meds for like 5 weeks, and he was fine, but now he prescribed him someting else. I don;t want him to take it anymore. They are killing his spirit.

He was off the drugs for like 5-6 weeks and he was fine. Why he took him back on them?

Answer 1

Wow, a lot of people who have answered your question are firm believers in the church of the pharmacy. I hope this will even things out a little bit. Bipolar disorder is often something that people can outgrow as they get older. It has to do with having the emotional experience to be able to manage their emotions. I assume that your brother was diagnosed in his youth and is still fairly young. If that is the case he may leave it behind as he grows into adulthood.
Something else to keep in mind is that medical doctors in this day and age take the word of psychopharmacologists and drug doctors because they have a lock on all the right medical journals. But whatever those whitecoats tell you, keep in mind that they really have NO IDEA what is going on in your brothers brain. Nor do they come close to understanding why some of the medications they use work. Try asking them some detailed questions. You will find out very quickly that they are playing witch doctor with a bunch of serious chemicals without really knowing anything at all about what they are doing.
This somewhat frightening alliance between doctors and drug companies has failed to help many of the people they claim to be trying to benefit but that hasn't prevented them from being one of the most lucrative industries in the world. Studies have shown that doctors are really no better than anyone else for doing really good research for their patients and most of the time the lines they use to sell you these meds are taken word for word from the colorful ads sent to them by drug companies.
I don't want you to dismiss doctors and drug pushers, but you should make yourself aware that there are a lot of different ways of dealing with the difficulties we encounter in our lives. I suggest you look into other forms of treatment that do not necessarily grow directly out of the medical profession. They cannot do much worse than promising to keep your brother on drugs for the rest of his life while failing to give that life the quality that he has a right to expect from it.
Who knows, maybe after you do some serious research into your brothers condition you will not even want to call it an illness, or even a medical problem at all.
Be smart about your research. There are lots of hucksters out there, in the medical profession, in the new age healing industry, in chinese medicine, and so on; a lot of people have snake oil for sale. One of the best ways that you can identify these charlatans is if they tell you that something is impossible and their way is the only way. Anybody who tries to tell you about the facts of life in that light is a LIAR and a CHEAT.
This will not be an easy search. Bipolar disorder is hard on a person and it is hard on their loved ones. But your brother is lucky to have you caring for him and helping him in his life. That is the best medicine available, hokey as it may sound.
Keep looking, keep trying, and don't give up hope. Good luck!

Answer 2

Not to sound discouraging, even though it pretty much is, people who suffer bipolar disorder will have to take medication the rest of their life to prevent from going into relapse. Some people might take the medication for a while and finally be stable and then think they can stop taking the medication. Sadly, it doesn't work that way. Being off of medication practically guarantees they'll eventually go into relapse. It's a chemical imbalance in the brain, so it's necessary to take the right medications and live a healthy lifestyle to prevent relapse as much as possible.

But here's my question, why was he taken off his meds? Five weeks isn't a lengthy amount of time, but still. And the fact that the doctor told him he'd only be on them for three years makes no sense. Like I said, it's a lifelong illness. There is no cure, just treatment. It's not going to go away in a few years. I'm not sure that doctor has done quite all the research needed.

And the fact that you say the meds are "killing his spirit" shows that he's probably not on the right medication and/or dosage. It will take time and trial-and-error before he actually finds the right combo of meds that work for him. Everyone's experience is different, but stay hopeful that he will eventually find a treatment that works for him. And once he does, keep reminding him how crucial it is to keep a consistent routine and stay on the medication.

Answer 3

I have bi-polar and often times the meds they give you to even out the "ups and downs" will do the job too well. I also take welbutrin to keep me from being too even, you know up the spirit so to say.

I don't know what is up with that doctor, bi-polar doesn't go away. It isn't something that you can clear up like an infection. That sounds kind of shady to me, maybe a second opinion is in order, but he definitely needs to let his worries be known. Also, five weeks isn't enough time to really know if he was going to be "fine" the drugs may not have been totally out of his system or his cycles hadn't reasserted themselves. A doctor can't help if he doesn't say anything. And there is nothing, absolutely nothing wrong with taking medications, you have to do what helps you.

Answer 4

Hi

I work with people with mental health issues like bi-polar. It is a chemical imbalence in the brain and quite honestly he will be on meds the rest of his life. Now, if the meds are affecting him badly, there are many kinds to try. Often it takes a certain one or mix of them to help. This unfortunalty comes through trial and error. Odds are your brother is over medicated if it is killing his spirit. What works for one, doesn't always work for another. You can't out grow bi-polar -- I'm sure people wish they would!!! If he hasn't taken any meds for a month and seems fine, he probably is. However, by next month he is going to be "off" again. It takes about 30 days to get meds in to your system and about 30 days to get them out. Often people who are bi-polar come off the meds, feel great, theink they don't need them and then within the next few months go in to a terrible manic state...especially if they keep doing it over and over again. It is quite possible to have a "normal" life and be on meds. It just takes the right ones and a lot of patience. It's a chemical issue, not a thought pattern, a virus or something you can heal. Good Luck!! You can email me if you'd like to talk some more.

Answer 5

Bipolar is a very tricky condition and sometimes medications don't even help some cases. If your brother is taking a drug that is really "killing his spirit", it sounds like a medication adjustment is in order.

I do know that regular sleep patterns, eating an excellent diet high in fruits, vegetables and low in fast foods and pre-packaged foods can really help the symptoms to some extent. Plenty of exercise is essential. As far as medication, it takes a skilled psychiatrist to be sure your brother is medicated properly and doesn't feel "spiritless". If he's already discussed this with his psychiatrist and nothing has improved, I would see a new doctor. Unfortunately, your brother will most likely be on some form of medication the rest of his life.

Answer 6

I think a lot of it depends on whether one is a rapid cycler or a slow cycler. People who have repeated cycles one after another will need to be on medication for ever, slow cyclers may not have to be. My experience comes from my mother who went through a phase of 4 episodes in less than a year. She was in her 70's and had never before had an episodes like what she was having . Once she was in control on her medications her psychiatrist gradually changed and decreased her medications and it has been 4 years since the last episode. There is still so much to be learned about mental health issues and the way the mind works. Looking back we were able to see small little episodes through our lifetimes, but nothing that disabled her. So one could say she certainly was a slow cycler with an acceleration to fast cycle and then back to slow.

Answer 7

It can take years to find the best medication, and yes, he'll need some kind of medication, always. I do know of people who claim a natural approach that works for them.

It also helps to get counseling or therapy of some kind- or join a support group. More likely that's what he needs to improve his spirit. I'm not only bipolar, but also a former professional and I can't help but remember one girl I worked with that- for the first year or two kept going off her medication because she refused to believe she was ill. Every time she had a relapse. Finally, she accepted she as ill but to her that meant giving up. There was no convincing her that with treatment and proper self care she could do pretty much what she'd always planned to do.

Check your local papers for support groups- I highly recommend Recovery, Inc. and I know a lot of people who go to DBSA (if it's the same as DMDA used to be, then it's a good option.). Get him counseling if he's willing to go. And encourage him to get on the bipolar forums at NAMI.org or About.com where he can discuss his illness with peers who are in the same situation.

Answer 8

Bipolar doesn't go away. He will take meds for the rest of his life. They are not killing his spirit, he is killing his spirit. He needs to be optimistic.

Answer 9

Absolutely NOT. I was on them for 3 years as well, It made me have no emmotions whatsoever so I finally got off of them myself, I had no side effects from getting off of them, mainly Celexa, & I have been off of them for 9 months now & back to my normal self. It feels great to have emotions again & my family is so happy to have me back the way I was before the med's. If he has no bad side effects when he gets off of them maybe he should stay off if it makes him feel better. But he has bad side effects he may want to ask his doctor to help him wean off of them. Good Luck

Answer 10

If your brother is taking antipsychotics for Bi-Polar, he probably shouldn't be. 40% of Bi-Polar cases are not chemically treatable. If your brother can tolerate Lithium, he should take it. It is the only natural remedy for mood imbalances related to the disorder.