lithium....only answer if u or someone u know take it?

Question

i take 450 mg eskalith of this and in the beginning i noticed a little bit of a change but recently nothing. i have panic disorder and anxiety disorder. sometimes i go inro modes where i feel like i dont know what is going on. my mind races, and panic attacks are outta control. i am constantly dieting because if i dont i will get as big as a house with this....has anyone had problems with this drug?

Answer 1

My sister's friend did have weight gain. I hope you are getting some improvement with the panic and the anxiety disorder from being on the lithium. Your best resource is the doctor who prescribed the medication to you or the pharmacist. They can tell you about side effects and any other questions about the drug. If you feel you are experiencing a severe side effect you should call your doctor.

Answer 2

have you just started taking eskalith (lithium) because 450 mg is not really enough to notice a real difference. have you had a lithium level done? your doctor will probably increase your dosage to at least 900 mg per day or more.

lithium usually causes an initial weight gain of 5 - 20 lbs. you can eliminate this weight through exercise and dieting. request a benzodiazepine like ativan, klonopin, valium and the like for anxiety and sleep problems.

lithium can be bothersome at first, but your body will adjust to
it.

Answer 3

I took lithium for a short time for mood stabilization. I would swing from high to low several times within a matter of hours. Lithium also helped with my anxiety. But I stopped taking it because it made me feel like zombie. Like I was walking through life numbed. I was phased down incrementally and then switched to Lamictal, which has worked out much better for me. Good luck.

...and yes, lithium has a tendency to make you swell. It was a slow weight gain with me. Not too dramatic but noticeable to me.

Answer 4

I have a friend who USED to take lithium. She gained lots of weight, first off, which made her very depressed. She hated the feeling the meds gave her because she felt everything was surreal. She'd ask me,''Is this real or am I dreaming?'.She would also get panicky just thinking about the surrealness! I don't think lithium may be the best med for you. I take Paxil. My friend switched to Prozac. Lexipro is good too.

Answer 5

I took Lithium for a very short time because I could immediately tell it wasn't for me. I am bipolar and needed both mood stabilizer and anti-depressant. With as many meds as there are with probably a 50 million possibility of combinations of all the drugs its highly unlikely two of us will have the same symptoms as each other. You, and only you can tell if you feel better on it. Please go by how you feel and not what your doctor says. He/she can give their input but you can't learn every patients background by any medical book put in front of them. Try, try and try again until you find something that works for you.......I was on 9 different medications until my doctor put me on Effexor XR and Lamictal and they are the absolute best combination for me. I am still tired, but thats due to blood issues and not being bipolar. I am on 300 mg of Effexor XR and 200 mg of Lamictal. Go with your instincts on the Lithium, for your instincts will never lead you astray. Try something else, after all you are paying the docs and for the drugs........let them work for you and not vice versa...........good luck as I know finding the right medication is very difficult! Trina

Answer 6

I took lithium for a year... it made me feel like a zombie, and I was always thirsty, gained a little weight, and I noticed my hands were shaking, too. People began to notice it, especially during school, and it is embarrassing. I hated lithium. When I think about taking it I almost gag.
My mom took it, too. For more than five years, maybe even a decade, I dunno. Her hands-shaking is so bad, when she tries to teach her class, students ask if she's having problems.

Answer 7

If your still having panic attacks, it's obvious lithium isn't for you. My sister took it for a short period of time for depression and sleep disturbance, and it didn't work. She switched to amitryptaline, and she did gain some weight, but it worked.

Answer 8

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