Lithium may need to be taken for a long period of time — do not suddenly stop taking it without speaking to your doctor. Short-term side effects can include nausea and diarrhoea, muscle weakness or a dazed feeling. A long-term side effect can be weight gain. Your lithium dose needs to be adjusted to suit you.
Notify your doctor if you suspect you may have persistent side effects from lithium or if you develop diarrhea, vomiting, fever, unsteady walking, fainting, confusion, slurred speech, or rapid heart rate.
For the psychiatric reason category, we created a variable called “non-adherence”. Under this variable, we summed up discontinuation of lithium due to fear of adverse effects, being in disagreement with the diagnosis, refusing medication, feeling subjectively well and not adhering to monitoring.
The most concerning side effects of long term lithium use are hypothyroidism and kidney problems. According to a 2015 review article , these side effects are most likely to affect women below the age of 60 years. They are also more common among people with higher-than-average concentrations of lithium in the blood.
In mild lithium toxicity, symptoms include weakness, worsening tremor, mild ataxia, poor concentration and diarrhea. With worsening toxicity, vomiting, the development of a gross tremor, slurred speech, confusion and lethargy emerge (Bauer and Gitlin 2016).
The reputation that lithium got for being "toxic," "mind numbing," and so forth, certainly those things have an element of truth to them. But they come from earlier studies where people were kept at a much higher doses and blood levels of lithium.
The most common side effects of lithium are feeling or being sick, diarrhoea, a dry mouth and a metallic taste in the mouth. Your doctor will carry out regular blood tests to check how much lithium is in your blood.
It has long been known that lithium has toxic effects on the thyroid gland and the kidneys. The thyroid toxicity, caused primarily by lithium's interference with thyroid hormones' release from the gland (19) affects up to 19% of treated patients (20).
Although the possibility of gaining weight while taking lithium is well known, this side effect does not affect everyone who takes the medication. Approximately 25% of people gain weight from taking lithium, according to a review article published in Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica.
Quetiapine covers ground that lithium does not. It is more effective against mixed manias, while lithium is preferred for the purer, euphoric highs. It also works better in acute depressive episodes.
Studies suggest that lithium is very effective at both treating symptoms of bipolar disorder and preventing relapses of the condition.
While bipolar disorder can't be cured, symptoms can be controlled with an effective treatment plan. Are you struggling with your mental health? Call us today to get help. Bipolar disorder may worsen with age or over time if the condition is left untreated.
“Based on the research conducted on this issue, the average weight gain that people who take lithium experience is usually between 10 and 26 pounds,” says Faisal Tai, MD, a board-certified psychiatrist and CEO of PsychPlus, a mental health services provider in Houston.
Substantial affect and mood changes are induced by lithium carbonate. Lethargy, dysphoria, a loss of interest in interacting with others and the environment, and a state of increased mental confusion were reported.
Lithium may work by changing the release of chemicals like dopamine or serotonin in your brain. Taking lithium helps you to have more control over your emotions. It helps you cope better with bipolar mood swings. It may take several weeks to months for lithium to start working.
Coming off lithium
Ideally, you would reduce it over a period of up to three months. This is to lower your risk of relapse. While you are reducing your dose, your doctor should monitor you closely for early signs of mania and depression. They should also do this for three months after you stop your lithium treatment.
Although lithium has been used in significantly longer-term treatment than any other mood stabilizer, long-term therapy is not devoid of adverse effects, the most important of which is kidney damage.
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In contrast, the most common reasons in which lithium was not the preferred option were patients' negative beliefs and/or attitudes towards lithium (13%), acute side-effects or tolerability problems (10%), intoxication risk (8%), medical comorbidities (6%) and long-term side-effects or safety issues (metabolic, thyroid ...
Lithium has adverse effects on the kidneys, thyroid gland and parathyroid glands, necessitating monitoring of these organ functions through periodic blood tests.
Lithium is used to treat mania that is part of bipolar disorder (manic-depressive illness). It is also used on a daily basis to reduce the frequency and severity of manic episodes.
People taking lithium should avoid drinking alcohol. Not only can alcohol worsen bipolar disorder symptoms, but it can also intensify side effects caused by lithium, including dizziness and drowsiness. Additionally, taking lithium while drinking may make the medication less effective, leading to more mood swings.