Medication for Bipolar: Can a person heal from bipolar?

Hello, 1953-- Thank you for your post!

Has the Abilify been working well for you? I hope so!
If it were me, wouldn't assume a "cure", though . . . One week late really isn't that long. From my own experience and what I've heard and seen from other people, medicines like this can take a long time to build up in our bodies to reach effective levels and it can also take a long time after stopping to notice any changes at all.

It seems like there is kind of 'lag' at each end, in other words. So the week is more likely to be a 'grace period' than a permanent state. That's how I would read it.

If you were scheduled for a week later, it may be that your doctor or medical team decided that that window would be safe, and that you wouldn't suffer ill effects from a short delay in the schedule.

I am being treated for Bipolar 2 with the mood stabilizer Lamictal (lamitrogene) and take two antidepressants as well. For me personally I think symptoms can be managed and improved with the proper treatment. However, my personal opinion is that it cannot be cured.

Are you being treated for bipolar 1 or 2?

I have been sick since I was 6, I’m 60 now. For the first 4 years I barely survived. Most of the time I was horribly depressed or psychotic. At 10 I started drinking and taking drugs. I end up in the hospital at 17. Six months later I went to AA. I took no medication until until 29 started on a low dose of Zoloft. That led to; 450mg of Effexor, 450 mg of Wellbutrin, 900 mg of Lithium, 20 mg of Latuda, 150 of Seroquel, 3 mg of Ativan and a variety of drugs to deal with all the side effects, all of these at the same time over 25 years.

The point of a this is that my first Psychiatrist believed in counseling and time, 9 years almost daily. The rest have relied on drugs.

Meanwhile I have gotten sicker and sicker. I’ve lost everything, including my family and my freedom during that time.

My current provider believes in less is more. I have begun reducing and stopping some of my medication, with an eye towards ( don’t tell anyone) getting off of all of it in the next 3 years.

“If one is a hammer everything looks like a nail.”

The worst thing that happened to the Mental Health profession was the separation of therapy from prescribing medication. It was a bad solution to the shortage of providers. Therapist don’t under stand the effect of your medication. And prescribers don’t know who you are.

I found that it has been the meds making me sick. I may not be able to get off of all of them, but I’ve already been able to stop two; Seroquel and Ativan.

I found a prescriber who aligned with my beliefs and then really started to educate myself. It was either that or suicide!

A good place to start is a book titled, “Brain Energy” by Dr. Palmer (40 years Harvard and MacLaine (sp) it change (saved?) my life.

Good luck to all. Beware of hammers unless your a nail!

@hopeful1953 I have Bi-Polar II. It was diagnosed in 2006, but I suffered with it way before that.

I’ve been taking Lamictal for about 15 or more years plus Zoloft.
In the past, I’ve tried stopping the Lamictal several times. It was horrible! The manic episodes returned almost immediately and I knew I couldn’t stay off the medication.

Unless/until we are blessed with a miracle healing, we will have to keep taking the medications.

Sorry, I got on a rant and forgot the question.

My doctors have told me “no” they currently can’t make my disorder go away, they even tried 19 ECT treatments.

What can and has happened is it can go into remission if treated correctly.

I have 9 years no drugs and very few symptoms when I was 25 to 34, lots of counseling and tough work.

I have never been in remission since. I hope that I am starting a good period now; albeit still with a lot of drugs.

If I stop trying to get well I’ll likely stop living. Complete hopelessness is the end for me.

I wish everyone the hope and strength to carry on!

My son was diagnosed with Bipolar 2 recently. He’s on Lamictal currently at 125 mg. It’s been really awful on our family because he gets really angry and it’s like constantly walking on eggshells around him, we have to watch everything we say because we don’t know what is going to make him mad. He does seem to be improving, but also gets bad anxiety and depression. Can you tell me what dose of lamictal you’re taking?? And are you able to hold a job and live a normal life?

@hope112 I’m sorry your son has this disorder. As you know it puts a strain on everyone.

I’m 73 years old so I’m retired. I take 150 mg of Lamictal, and 150mg of Zoloft. Please keep in mind that it will take about 6 weeks before the medication kicks in so everyone has to be patient.

The biggest social issue I have is that I tend to speak my mind without thinking. Basically I speak my thoughts without censoring them. That gets me into trouble now and then. I’m not sure if it’s because of the bipolar disorder but that’s what I do.

I also love to shop, however I don’t have to buy. “Window shopping” makes me happy when I’m manic. Even surfing online sites is fun.

There are other issues I deal with that overshadow this one. My physical condition is not great either.

I hope your son is able to find some peace of mind soon.

@dfb your story is amazing! You are certainly a fighter who is not afraid of the battle!

Isn’t it amazing how the chemistry in our brain can make or break us…How do you fix a brain whose ability to process certain things is wacky.

I don’t think we will ever get to the point where we are truly healed unless it’s a miracle.
Until then, I will keep on keeping on…

Thank You!

I remain hopeful that while we might not be able to fully heal we can go into remission.

I’ve been there before and there lies joy!

Thank you for your comments,

Thanks so much for your response. I appreciate the input. Thanks for the encouragement, I wish you the best as you deal with BP 2.