ADHD drugs and affect on Bipolar and Anxiety

[Futurity]

Hi Everyone,

I have been diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder and Generalised Anxiety Disorder and have an unofficial ADHD diagnosis from my previous psychiatrist who is ADHD trained.

My Bipolar and Anxiety are almost under control now but it's clear that my ADHD symptoms are triggering my anxiety which in turn creates stress which destabilises my bipolar.

I spoke to my new psychiatrist about getting medication for my ADHD, but she said ADHD drugs can trigger Bipolar mania. She is not an ADHD expert though, as she works in the Mental Health Hospital and ADHD is handled by seperate clinics in a different location.

I was wondering if anyone has both Bipolar and ADHD (even Anxiety as well) and if they have experienced any problems taking ADHD medication?

I'm currently taking 400mg Lithium and 1000mg Depakote. I'm very susceptible to side effects which is why my Lithium dose is so low as it causes brain fog.

Thanks in advance for any help you may be able to provide.

Futurity.

[Gettingittogether]

Hmmmmm ... here's an article that says ADHD meds are fine as long as the person is being treated with a mood stabilizer: psychiatryonline.org/doi/10....

This article has a section on treating people with ADHD and bipolar. If you want to research things yourself, the magical word is "comorbid" ... as in "comorbid adhd and bipolar" .....basically most people with adhd have another serious condition, such as depression or anxiety or bipolar. The psychologist at this link is pretty prominent in the field and he describes how he would treat people with adhd and bipolar conditions.

additudemag.com/treating-bi...

[Futurity in reply to Gettingittogether]

Thank you so much Gettingittogether that's very reassuring and a good starting point for further research.

Thank you

Futurity

[girlWs0ul]

I have ADHD, Bi-polar II and Anxiety. I don't take medication for the ADHD but ever since I started taking Vraylar my symptoms have mellowed out. I have tried strattra which is not a stimulate so maybe try that first if they let you.

[Futurity in reply to girlWs0ul]

Thank you girlWs0ul i didn't know there was medication other than stimulants. Very useful information thank you.

[Mamamichl in reply to Futurity]

I don’t have bipolar, but I tried each of the stimulants first. They raised my anxiety. I’m on stratera now, which is not a stimulant, and it calms my mood. If I take it in the morning, I get sleepy and triggered still, but I’m great if I take it at night.

Stimulants speed up our processing so it helps with some ADHD symptoms. It allows us to decide which thoughts to ignore. Nonstimulants seem to mellow my mood so that I don’t react out of emotion as much and respond instead of react out of emotion.

[Gettingittogether]

Basically here's my experience. You just need to get to an excellent psychiatrist (I have an excellent psychiatric nurse practitioner) and they are highly informed and will work hard and work creatively to figure out how to help you.

[AuDHD3245]

Just so you're aware, symptoms of bipolar, depression, anxiety can all overlap and are very similar to autism. ADHD is within the realms of the ASD, so it maybe handy to have a look at the symptoms of autism. If the medication for bipolar doesnt work, you may need an alternate diagnoses. Just saying from experience. I was diagnosed with depression/anxiety, emotionally unstable personality disorder, and it turns out to be ADHD and autism.

All the best

[MorningDanceTrece in reply to AuDHD3245]

This is the first time I've heard that ADHD is within the realms of autism.Do you mind explaining what you mean about that further please?

They're both neurodivergencies.

[AuDHD3245 in reply to MorningDanceTrece]

Autism and ADHD

There is a strong link between autism and ADHD, with both having high heritability and genetic overlap. Common traits shared in ADHD and autism include:

Sensory differences

Executive dysfunction

Hyperfocus and intense interests

Rejection sensitivity

Social challenges

Sleep disturbances

Differences in eye contact

Difficulties with interoception, such as noticing when you are hungry

Although there are many similarities, differences exist; ADHD individuals may crave novelty and exhibit impulsivity, while autistic people often seek routine and similarity. If someone is autistic and has ADHD, which some people refer to as AuDHD, they may experience an internal struggle between these contrasting traits. An AuDHD person is likely to experience a heightened version of the shared autism and ADHD characteristics, such as an intense focus on hobbies and interests, or experience challenges socialising with neurotypical people.

Overlapping symptoms

[MorningDanceTrece in reply to AuDHD3245]

Thank you for taking the time to share that.

[MorningDanceTrece]

I'm 58 year old woman. I've been diagnosed with bipolar since I was 16 and I definitely have it. Currently and I'm certain it's correct they say I have bipolar 4. I have only known that I have ADHD for 2 and 1/2 years. The two conditions definitely can exaggerate each other. I'm not on medication for ADHD specifically and probably won't be because I will not take a stimulant for myriad of reasons and my insurance will not pay for the new non-stimulant ADHD medication that now exists. I'm on 2000 mg of depakote which keeps the bipolar symptoms really low with the exception of the depression with which I am really struggling right now. One way the bipolar 4 expressed itself is that most of the time I was agitated and angry and irritable. Once I got on mood stabilizing medication that decreased about 70% on a bad day and 90% on a good day. I had thought that I was just a bitch and a jerk and that was my real personality. 8 weeks after being put on depakote I was a radically different person in a good way.I also have complex post-traumatic stress disorder for a combination of reasons including being an undiagnosed autistic female in the 1960s, seventies, 80s, 90s and onward and also being an undiagnosed female with ADHD throughout that same time frame.

I was mentally, emotionally, verbally and even physically abused for having autistic and ADHD traits and that gave me the complex post-traumatic stress disorder one huge symptom of which is anxiety.

Over the decades I have learned and utilized skills from CBT, DBT, REBT, SMART recovery, and faith in Jesus to deal with the anxiety, depression and mood problems. In the last 3 years I have been part of support groups for autistic people and people with ADHD and learned more helpful things.

It might be worth it for you to attempt to find an excellent medical practitioner as someone recommended although it's nowhere near as easy as that person seem to make it look.

They're definitely are now in existence medications that help with ADHD that are not stimulants.