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Lithium is a drug used for
treating people who suffer from mood disorders like
depression or bipolar. People who suffer from
depression show signs of severe low mood where
bipolar mood is sometimes excessively high and very
low on other occasions. Lithium is a simple
chemical (very much like salt) that occurs
naturally. Lithium has been used for more than 5
decades so this is not a new medicine. The forms of
lithium used medically are lithium carbonate, and
lithium
citrate.
Most
people who seek help for their mood
disorder normally ask common questions
like “How can lithium help me” or is it
addictive.
There are
different ways in which lithium is used for
treating patients with high mood over-
activity, racing thoughts and agitation
behaviours.
Taking
more than any prescribed dose can be very
dangerous indeed. Lithium needs to be
taken in doses that keep its level in the
blood relatively high. Often, other
medicines are used initially to treat
mania because of the increased risk of
side effects with high levels of lithium.
Because it takes a number of days to work
this drug is then introduced a little
later to stabilise
moods.
It
helps prevent any severe mood swing
recurrences after an acute episode of
bipolar illness has settled. In most
cases of any illness or disease,
medication can take time to
work.It can take weeks,
months and probably up to two years for
lithium to reach its full potential. Not
every case is a success case of a
complete cure by taking lithium; however,
it can help reduce severity of the mood
swings.
As we speak there
is no real explanation on how lithium
works
Lithium can change
the way nerve cells respond to some of the
chemicals that pass messages between them.
Lithium is usually taken in a single dose in
the evening – because it reduces the problems
with some of the side effects. To answer the
question asked earlier, is lithium addictive,
in answer to this query “No”. When coming off a
drug like lithium dosage needs to be reduced
gradually to minimise the chances of the
illness returning.
Lithium is a safe
medicine, however before a prescription is
given by your doctor
he/she will need
to know your medical history - including any
psychiatric illnesses you have had in the past.
The GP will examine you physically and take a
blood sample to check your blood count, your
kidney function and your thyroid gland. You may
be asked to give a urine sample and have an ECG
heart tracing done, this will be determined on
your health history. These are routine tests to
make sure that it is safe for you
take.
The problem with
lithium is that a certain level of the drug has
to be produced in the blood for it to be
effective, but if the level rises too much,
unpleasant and potentially serious side effects
can occur. This is not duly pinpointed towards
lithium alone; most drugs come with side
affects so this is why you should get your
drugs from a doctor and not a dealer on the
street.
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