Benefits of taking antidepressants with bipolar

[Debster41]

Hi i have bipolar diagnosed 14 years ago recently suffering long period of depression and was thinking of getting on ssri to help but heard it could cause a manic episode. Anyone got any advice experience of these while taking meds for bpd?

[Charlie23]

Hi, I wouldn't recommend taking an SSRI. Although they can lift your mood antidepressants can exacerbate rapid cycling in bipolar which is what I experienced. What about a mood stabiliser instead?

[joeyawesomo]

It's a tough one.

I noticed crawling the internet a lot of our American friends are using combination treatments, but have read so many posts causing rapid cycling.

I think your best bet is to consult a Psychiatrist and see what options they come up with, as it's not worth the risk of just having a go.

Charlie23 right are you using any mood stabilizers at all? I take Lamictal and it really helps with the depression.

[Charlie23 in reply to joeyawesomo]

I also take Lamictal and found that it really helped with my depression. I had a depressive episode lasting about 6 months (longest one yet) and haven't had another since being on Lamictal.