Posted by Laree on January 16, 2004, at 9:11:59
In reply to Stimulants and LITHIUM ???, posted by femlite on January 15, 2004, at 10:59:44
I have heard of diagnoses of ADHD/ADD & Bipolar getting confused before, ie: a pdoc may diagnose someone who's actually bipolar with adhd as many of the symptoms tend to mock each other in these disorders i guess. A while after my pdoc thought i had adhd, the assistant that worked for him began to suspect bipolar & had me keep a mood chart for about 2 weeks, but the results confirmed the adhd i suppose...? At any rate, he didn't think i was bipolar...
I am pretty sure I came across someone last year who was bipolar taking lithium & ritalin at the same time. A problem that may be anticipated with a stimulant is the affect it has when starts to wear off--it can make one feel a little sluggish and down, change your mood temporarily, etc...Adderall would probably be a better fit for someone w/Bp than Ritalin. The reasoning for this is that Adderall is said to have less harsh "drop-offs" (when it wears off toward the end of the day) than Ritalin. I really would not think a stim would be too great for someone w/bipolar as it can make one feel up/down in a relatively short amount of time (often within hours), but if it was an addition to a mood stabilizer then that may work out...I have never taken a mood stab. but it might be a good combo for bp? Best of luck to you!
--L.
poster:Laree
thread:301136
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20040114/msgs/301550.html