Hi Julie,
I am taking Oxcarbazepine (Trileptal)(800 mg a day) ..my doctor wants to switch me to Lithium Carb 300mg. I don’t know anything about this medication..does anyone?
Karen
Hi Karen,
It’s not super common for people with bipolar to take Triliptal (Oxcarbazepine) which may be why your doctor wants you to switch. Most people take Depakote, Tegretol or Lamictal – these are all epilepsy medications. Lithium is the only true mood stabilizer and if often the first choice for bipolar treatment. Your doctor is making a very normal treatment change from a anticonvulsant drug to the mood stabilizer Lithium. This change is very much based on your personal symptoms and how you respond to medications- so there is no right or wrong here. A lot of it also has to do with the dosage, so that will probably change around a bit as you work with your doctor. It’s all very normal to experiment with medications- whether it will work or not is a mystery. Most people have great response to lithium. I wish you luck!
Julie
Related posts: Bipolar Disorder and Medications: Lithium, Zoloft, Celexa, Lamictal | Reader Question: Lamictal dosage (lamotrigine) | Help for bipolar disorder rapid cycling: Answer to reader question |
I have had good success with Lithium. It took a little while for my digestive track to get used to it though.