Lithium is a mood stabilizer and can aid to treat or protect against mania. It can also be utilized to reduce the frequency of clinical depression episodes.
Take this medication as routed by your physician. It is essential to consume alcohol lots of liquids while taking this medicine. Lithium may engage with certain medications that impact serotonin (such as antidepressants, SSRIs, MAO preventions). Inform your doctor regarding all of your drugs.
Mood Problems
Lithium is typically used to treat bipolar disorder, a mental disease that causes very quick shifts in between the severe moods of clinical depression and mania. Bipolar affective disorder can make it tough to live a typical life and can cause severe problems in connections, job or institution. Lithium aids to prevent these severe mood modifications and lowers the seriousness of clinical depression and mania.
The very early researches of lithium at Glostrup Psychiatric Hospital in the 1960s and 1970s offered persuading evidence that it can decrease the regularity of hospitalizations for anxiety (38 ). Baastrup and Schou's placebo-controlled discontinuance study was particularly important since it revealed that patients fell back on sugar pill but out lithium (39 ).
Your medical professional will inspect your blood degrees routinely to see to it you are taking the correct amount of lithium. It is necessary to drink lots of liquids while taking this medicine. Your doctor might advise a low-sodium diet while you are taking this medicine.
Attention Deficit Disorder (ADHD).
Lithium is a mineral so soft you can cut it with a knife therefore light it drifts on water. It is found naturally in the setting, with researches linking low levels of it to psychological and psychological health problems and violent criminal offense. The mineral was included in sodas in the 1960s, where it brightened moods and aided individuals focus and concentrate-- thus the name, 7-Up.
Lithium minimizes mania by raising the action of an enzyme that controls neurotransmitters, reducing glutamate degrees, and aiding to stabilize various other chemicals in the brain. It has likewise been revealed to have antidepressant results and boost sleep, irritability, hostility, and stress and anxiety in ADHD individuals.
Individuals taking lithium needs to have normal blood tests to monitor levels-- too high can be harmful. It is very important to allow medical professionals find out about various other drugs and supplements taken, as some can interact with it. Tell mental health treatment for severe anxiety your doctor if you have diarrhea, vomiting, drowsiness, tremors, weakness, unsteady walking, or fainting (especially after exercise). Use effective birth control to avoid pregnancy while taking this medicine.
Hyperthyroidism.
Lithium may be used as a temporary therapy for over active thyroid glands (hyperthyroidism). This is specifically vital if the person has Graves illness or various other autoimmune problems like thyroiditis or Hashimoto's condition. Lithium hinders the launch of thyroid hormonal agent by obstructing iodine uptake at the thyroid gland via the sodium-iodide symporter and by hindering tyrosine iodination. [9] Lithium additionally hinders thyrotropin-releasing hormonal agent (TRH) stimulation and reduces the production of thyroxine from tyrosine in the thyroid gland. [10] Nonetheless, lithium usage may result in hypothyroidism and a goiter in some patients. [11] Hence, frequent evaluation of thyroid feature examinations and dimension is recommended in clients on lithium therapy.
It is important to review the advantages and dangers of this medicine with your doctor prior to beginning it. It is likewise essential to avoid items reduced in sodium (salt) while taking this medicine and beverage sufficient fluids. If you have any troubles, call your medical professional or the emergency situation department right now.
Epilepsy.
The anticonvulsant effects of lithium are well developed from both professional and experimental studies. It is necessary to keep in mind that in comparison to a couple of primitive medical reports and the lithium-pilocarpine pet design, a number of current research studies demonstrate that lithium in healing degrees does not decrease the seizure limit however actually decreases the threshold for seizure occurrence.
This is believed to be because of the fact that lithium boosts cholinergic activity, inhibits phosphoinositide metabolic rate and GSK-3b signalling. It likewise reduces glutamate excitotoxicity by raising NMDA receptor agonist-evoked apoptotic currents and improves the endogenous nitric oxide synthase task in nerve cells [36]
Lithium is well tolerated by most people with bipolar illness, however it has a couple of negative effects that should be taken into consideration. These consist of a decreased capacity to concentrate pee (nephrogenic diabetic issues insipidus) and an increase in the focus of lithium in the blood (lithium toxicity). It is consequently extremely important to follow your medical professional's directions about having normal blood tests.
