Im bipolar and tired off taking lithium what herbal suppliment can i take for this please help?

Question

The lithium make's me gain weight and i can't deal with all that. I used to be 145 pounds 7 yrs ago but since iv'e been taking this i have gained to be 205 pds it make's my deppression worse. If anyone can help me please do, i would greatly appriciate it. I have spent so much money on diet pills and exercise equipment its disgusting actually.

Answer 1

Hi Rara

I gave you the whole list to choose the correct formula for yourself.

Natural Cures

Aromatherapy: The following essential oils can promote calm and soothe stress: chamomile, clary sage, lavender, sandalwood, and ylang ylang.

For depression: bergamot, geranium, jasmine, melissa, neroli, and rose can be helpful, since they act as natural antidepressants.

Bach Flower Remedies:
Back flower remedies, discovered by British homeopathic physician Edward Bach in the early 20th century, are a safe and often highly effective self-care approach for dealing with a wide variety of mental health disorders. According to Dr. Bach, all illnesses are due, at least in part, to underlying mental and emotional issues that interfere with our connection with Spirit or divine energy. His research showed that energetic frequencies of the various 38 flower remedies he identified are able to resolve and heal mental and emotional imbalances to create overall health. The remedies are very easy to work with and in most cases patients can determine which remedies are most suited for their needs simply by referencing the following chart:

Agrimony—Suffering covered by a cheerful or brave facade. Distressed by argument or confrontation, may seek escape from pain or worry with addictive behavior through the use of food, drugs, cigarettes, or alcohol.

Aspen —Vague fears or anxiety of unknown origin. Apprehension, foreboding.

Beech—Critical, intolerant, or easily finding fault. May overreact with annoyance or irritability to the shortcomings of others.

Centaury—Willing servant, overly anxious to please, weak willed, or easily exploited/dominated by others. May neglect own needs to serve others. Avoids confrontation, difficulty saying “no.”

Cerato—Lacks confidence in own judgment. Little trust in inner guidance. Constantly seeks advice of others; therefore vulnerable to being misguided.

Cherry Plum—Fear of losing mental or physical control, of doing something desperate or violent. Tantrums, suicidal thoughts, impulse to do something thoughtless or known to be wrong. Fear of letting go. May be near nervous breakdown.

Chestnut Bud—Failure to learn from experience, repeats inappropriate patterns. Difficulty correcting mistakes.

Chicory—Loving, but with expectation of being loved in return. Possessive, emotionally needy, easily hurt or rejected.

Clematis—Lacks concentration, daydreams. Drowsy or “spacey” with a halfhearted interest in present circumstances. Inactive, ungrounded. Trouble materializing dreams.

Crab Apple—Cleansing remedy when feeling toxic, contaminated, or unclean. Ashamed of self-image. Fear of being contaminated. Need for cleanliness. Can be used to assist detoxification, if needed.

Elm—Overwhelmed by responsibilities. Normally capable, now doubts ability to perform tasks. Temporary feelings of inadequacy due to overload. Difficulty prioritizing.

Gentian—Mild despondency or discouragement due to setback, difficulty, or failed expectation. Negativity reverses easily with positive events or successes.

Gorse—Helplessness, hopelessness, sense of futility. Convinced situation will not improve; may not be willing to try remedies.

Heather—Self-centered, self-obsessed, or self-absorbed. Seeks the companionship of anyone who will listen to them. Constant chatterer, poor listener, unhappy if left alone.

Holly—Strongly felt negative feelings: hatred, envy, jealousy, suspicion, revenge, or wrath.

Honeysuckle—Dwelling in the past: old traumas, nostalgia, homesickness, regrets for happier times. Little expectation of future happiness.

Hornbeam—Mental fatigue and tiredness; procrastination. Weary before day or task begins, the “Monday morning” feeling. Difficulty starting.

Impatiens—Impatience, irritability, restlessness, or frustration with slow moving people and events. Quick in thought and action, requires all things to be done without delay. May prefer to work alone.

Larch—Lacks self-confidence despite being capable. Feels inferior. Anticipates failure; may refuse to make effort to succeed.


Best of health to you

Answer 2

Natural Lithium For Bipolar

Answer 3

If you are unwell enough to have been prescribed Lithium, then forget about herbals and other complementary/alternative approaches. There are plenty of alternative meds to Lithium, though they are all way more expensive. Depakote probably won't be one for you, as it is also noted for weight gain, but Lamictal is weight neutral (and I love it) so it may be worth talking to your doc about it. It has a very low side effect profile as well, and it has antidepressant properties. If you and your doctor feel that this is a good course of action, then the exercise equipment really will come into its own.

FWIW, many psychiatric drugs cause weight gain - I also take Zyprexa and that is a ***** for weight gain, but stopping it for even a couple of weeks meant that the pounds started coming off down the gym. There is a way round your weight.

Answer 4

There are a number of mood stabilizers available now other than Lithium. You might consider trying one of them, in consultation with your treating psychiatrist. I don't know of any mood stabilizing herbal supplements. There are some for depression, such as St. John's Wort, but it is not a replacement for the mood stabilizing effects of Lithium. As opposed to "dieting" you may find the Suzanne Sommers eating plan to be effective in maintaining a more normal weight. You can check her out on the internet . Her website is her name .com. Good luck.

Answer 5

You could try 500mg of St. John's Wort and 1 Vitamin D capsule (to help it dissapate without making you nauseous) daily, but come off Lithium SLOWLY or you'll have a reaction. You should really speak with your doctor or another as to how to wean off the Lithium safely.

Answer 6

I am bipolar too and medication is the pits but all I can say is talk to your doctor. Cycling through mania and depression and making your loved ones live through your daily roller coaster is definely worse than a model figure. Ask your doctor about ECT. I did it for awhile and you don't need to take lithium during this therapy. And it works wonders for the depression.

Good luck!

Answer 7

Could I recomend starting by speaking to your psychiatrist. There are other options. You could try Depakote, however, that one will cause you to gain alot of weight as well.

Others that are good and do promote some weight loss are some of the off-label seizure medications such as Topomax and Lamictal. Maybe talk to him and see if either of those or one in the same category might work.

Lamictal does work well, I can vouch for it, however you have to go slowly with raising the dose because of a very RARE but serious possible side effect of a rash that apparently can be fatal.

Answer 8

5-HTP helps with depression. I would be very careful stopping any meds without your Dr knowing. You may need to ween off very slwoly, Like over 3 months or something.

Answer 9

There has to be alternative meds that your doc can give you...have you tried anything besides lithium?

Answer 10

Hi, you recently just answered to my question and I would like to talk more about it. Could you please e-mail me [e-mail] so I can ask you more questions? I'm really interested and would like to know more. Sorry I don't have an answer to your question but this was the only way I could contact you. Thank you

Answer 11

some say that sam e is good. I wouldn't suggest stopping it without first talking to your doctor about alternatives. Some chiropractors are good with alternative medicines.