> I know if I go off my meds I go to a bad place pretty quickly.
Sincere question: how would you know if this bad place was withdrawal from meds or the reappearance of your pre-existing "bad place"? (Pre meaning before you began taking prescribed psychotropics.)
If GP was bipolar or schizophrenic, and meds suppress that, he was on a bad place (bipolarity can be okay but you will alienate your friends and family.)
People throwing around labels like "bipolar" or "schizophrenic" without factual scientific evidence of what those labels really are is the real problem in the pursuit for scientific truth.
Bipolarity is mood regulation issue. You have two phases, manic and depressive. You can have issues getting out of manic phases, depressive phases, or both. My mother issue was only with regulating manic phases, that were notably triggered by NSAIDs (and some food). She got out after a day or two. Probably triggered around her 28-30 year old. She lost her marriage, friends and my sister to her mood swings. Nowadays, with lithium, she's much more stable.
Why are you implying I'm throwing around labels? Do you think I never read anything about bipolarity? Do you want to enter a citations battle, where I cite studies on bipolarity? And which scientific truth? That mood regulator help regulate mood? I mean, it's their names, I saw the results, do you want citations on that?
I am really sorry for your mother and hope she is well. However, I do not agree that lithium is the answer you're looking for, nor the fact that she has mood swings is the problem. The problem is the reason behind the mood swings. Treating symptoms will never bring an effective solution to the problem. I can only imagine the cognitive overhaul and deterioration that comes with substances that mess with electrolytes (lithium). No matter what you read on "bipolarity", it lacks critical and fundamental deterministic proof. Don't get me wrong but, I like problems solved, not pretending to implement a "lithium" patch that completely and effectively blunts quality of life.
Sincere question: how would you know if this bad place was withdrawal from meds or the reappearance of your pre-existing "bad place"? (Pre meaning before you began taking prescribed psychotropics.)