today's weather: S L I G H T D Y S P H O R I Aanxiety : 1
agitation : 1
today's unwanted guests: voices and noises, racing thoughts, decreased amount of sleep, headache due to decreased amounts of sleep
Some time ago I did a search on Lithium. I read that the primary treatment for bipolar disorder works by inhibiting the transmission of certain chemicals in the brain, resulting in more desirable ratios and thus a more "stabilized" effect. Seemed good to me.
But trying to find the article again yesterday, I stumbled upon this article and this article. Basically they say the same thing: Though Lithium has been widely used to treat psychiatric conditions for many years, its exact effect on the brain is still unknown. It is an approved treatment for bipolar disorder simply because it has been observed that it lessens the symptoms of mania.
Now I wonder if the "lessening of mania" is just a side effect to what it it actually does to the brain. What if might actually be harmful at some level?
Ah, well. Since it's the recognized medical treatment, I'm going to have to trust in it somehow.
But I'm still not going to take it right now, I mean until and unless I really, really have to. Aside from being concerned about the harm it might do to my brain, I need to think about my liver. Fashionable as it may at this day and age to be a drug dependent, I don't want to be one.
