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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
[email protected]Shown: posts 1 to 10 of 10. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by rjlockhart37 on May 16, 2022, at 18:46:01
i don't know how lithium is gonna affect me, but we'll just see. If you pray, i ask this, my hands have tremors, my dopamine levels are lowered, and that's why i've been having low motivation. I don't know if you pray, if people from other religions pray, just these hand tremors are similar to parkinson's.
Anyways yes started lithium 600mg daily
Posted by rjlockhart37 on May 16, 2022, at 18:48:25
In reply to started lithium, posted by rjlockhart37 on May 16, 2022, at 18:46:01
ok so, 300mg in morning and 300 at night. Prozac lowered to 40. I don't know how it's gonna work, but i'll keep you updated
Posted by rjlockhart37 on May 16, 2022, at 19:40:55
In reply to started lithium, posted by rjlockhart37 on May 16, 2022, at 18:46:01
i've heard the antidepressant effect from lithium is well aware so hopefully this will end depression
Posted by SLS on May 16, 2022, at 23:53:34
In reply to Re:read beloq, posted by rjlockhart37 on May 16, 2022, at 19:40:55
> i've heard the antidepressant effect from lithium is well aware so hopefully this will end depression
My personal experience with lithium has been similar to what is described in the medical literature. Low-dosage lithium is effective for depression. 300 mg/day is my sweet spot. If I go to 450 mg/day or higher, I relapse and experience cognitive blunting and a mixture of amotivation and passivity.It makes sense to start low and give 300 mg/day no longer than 2 weeks before moving up. Increase by no more than 150 mg/day, or you might miss your sweet spot. At 300 mg/day, lithium is unlikely to affect thyroid and kidney function. If upon starting low-dosage lithium at 300 mg/day, you feel any improvement, and going up to 1200 mg/day is ineffective, just keep taking 300-450 mg/day. If nothing else, it might provide prophylaxis against Alzheimer's Disease. The best argument for keeping lithium on board is that it might be a critical component your future combination drug therapies.
Blood levels are irrelevant using lithium this way. I would be surprised if mine were higher than 0.2.
1. "Low dosage lithium augmentation in venlafaxine resistant depression: an open-label study"
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22796912/
.
Recent studies have discovered a bimodal dosage-response curve for lithium. It has opposite effects on glutamate levels in the hippocampus at low versus high dosages.
2. "Bimodal effect of lithium plasma levels on hippocampal glutamate concentrations in bipolar II depression: a pilot study"
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25522399/
.
These are associations seen in some studies:
Low glutamate is associated with depression
High glutamate is associated with mania.
- Scott
Posted by PeterMartin on May 16, 2022, at 23:59:08
In reply to Re:read beloq, posted by SLS on May 16, 2022, at 23:53:34
Do you guys take immediate or extended release?
SLS> Have you ever noticed a difference between IR & ER versions?
Posted by SLS on May 17, 2022, at 14:54:06
In reply to Re:read beloq, posted by PeterMartin on May 16, 2022, at 23:59:08
> Do you guys take immediate or extended release?
>
> SLS> Have you ever noticed a difference between IR & ER versions?
I am taking the IR lithium carbonate. 300 mg/day - as 150 mg b.i.d.More recently, doctors are going with taking lithium all at once at bedtime. It is thought that this help reduce the load on the kidneys. If this is true, I would use the IR lithium carbonate (Li2CO3). There is quite a bit of literature backing this up.
As far as my b.i.d. dosing is concerned, I don't want the lithium blood level to peak too high after taking it. Right now, the bullseye has been hit. I might as well avoid rocking the boat.
- Scott
Posted by rjlockhart37 on May 18, 2022, at 1:02:38
In reply to Re:read beloq, posted by SLS on May 16, 2022, at 23:53:34
scott, thank you for responding. I do notice your right 300mg seems to be good for antidepressant effect, but when i take my night lithium capsule, 300mg i get a but blunted, seems like the antidepressant feelings, becomes more like stablization rather than antidepressant effect. But many people taking higher doses of lithium like getting up to 1800mg for severe bipolar i guess it helps them
im on 2 mood stablizers now, i do feel a bit sane, mood stablizer for stablizing cognitive function sometimes, less manic
Posted by rjlockhart37 on May 18, 2022, at 1:04:37
In reply to Re:read beloq, posted by PeterMartin on May 16, 2022, at 23:59:08
i'm taking immidate release, 300mg capsule in morning, then 300mg at night. 600 feels more stablization, less antidepressant feeling than 300
Posted by rjlockhart37 on May 18, 2022, at 1:07:14
In reply to Re:read beloq » SLS, posted by rjlockhart37 on May 18, 2022, at 1:02:38
but i've only been on it for 3 days, it takes time to build up in the system to notive it's real effects
Posted by rjlockhart37 on May 18, 2022, at 19:34:06
In reply to Re:read beloq, posted by rjlockhart37 on May 18, 2022, at 1:07:14
i'm starting to notice mood improvement, or antidepressant effect 300mg during the day - pulled me out of treatment resistant depression
This is the end of the thread.
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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
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