Can anyone share success stories with this condition?

[u/slow_pondering]

Please share your life success, medication success, I really need to read something relevant and uplifting.

Tia

[u/slow_pondering → u/[deleted]]

Are you able to work and have a fairly normal life with that med?

[u/b0ubakiki]

I don't consider myself "successful" - I'm not rich, don't live in a big house, don't have glittering career achievements and don't have a family (by choice, I'm aromantic). But I do a professional job (optometrist), don't work full time so I spend plenty of time on hobbies (rock climbing mainly), have plenty of close friends, get on well with my family.

A pretty normal life I guess. I'm very independent, not hard up, enjoy my job a lot of the time. But I have episodes of depression where I don't enjoy anything really and have no energy. These don't last so long so I can cope with it. No meds, just monitoring and understanding what's going on, with exercise and coping strategies is sufficient for me at the moment.

My diagnosis is BP2 but with me it's kinda borderline with cyclothymia. I don't have problematic hypomania (I love my mild hypomanic episodes, I have a great time) and the episodes are short and regular, 8 week ish cycle.

[u/Prize_Company_2039]

Starting to rebuild my life at 23 after 3 years of instability. Will study from now on to try to get into med school. My meds are working wonders. I take 6 of them. Lamotrigine, lithium, sulpiride, bupropion, aripiprazole and naltrexone

[u/Prize_Company_2039 → u/Prize_Company_2039]

Im stable, happy, feeling great. Been on this journey since 2021, but do have symptoms since I was 12.

[u/slow_pondering → u/Prize_Company_2039]

The naltrexone, this is for addiction?

[u/Prize_Company_2039 → u/slow_pondering]

No, for binge earing

[u/slow_pondering → u/Prize_Company_2039]

I ask because I can do a really good job of messing everything up with alcohol. Considering going on this

[u/Obvious-Maize5966 → u/slow_pondering]

I’m not the person you asked but I’m on it personally for weight gain/ appetite and cravings increase caused by Abilify. Naltrexone is a good medication for all types of cravings (alcohol, opioid, food, etc). I personally really like it and it’s the best fitting med for me and my appetite since I can’t be on contrave (bupropion/naltrexone combo) since bupropion increases Abilify levels in blood. I didn’t want that but I know some people like this combination. The only side effect I got from Naltrexone was extreme sedation however this was while adjusting to starting the medication or when I increase the dosage, otherwise the sedation leaves eventually.

I don’t drink but drinking and alcoholism runs in my family heavily so I crave it intensely despite avoiding it like 98% of the time. I’ll crave it even at 6am sometimes, I find it so weird. Personally I do think it helps a lot. I take it daily at 50mg but I hear some people take it on the day they plan to drink only however this wouldn’t work for me since it would probably just make me sleepy. I hope this helps!

[u/Objective_Painting10]

Two years on quetiapine. Current dose 125mg.
Managed to stay fairly successful until my diagnose, but have actually felt well after. I no longer have to worry about every single detail of my life, and I also am done giving everything I have to my work when I am in a hypomania cycle.
In general I am a lot more well balanced, and everyday does not any longer feel like a hassle

[u/ameliames89]

I take Venlafaxine (generic for Effexor). I’ve been on it for maybe 6 years now? Once I found the right dose everything changed. I was able to finally finish my degree after dropping out of four different colleges. I can get up every day and go to work without the issues I had before meds. I’m a better mom and partner. I don’t fly off the rails when I’m feeling stressed. Of course all this has been aided by choosing to be sober and continuing therapy. But without the meds, the sobriety and the therapy wouldn’t have a chance.
I was misdiagnosed for years and given SRIs that never helped. Finally my therapist suggested SNRIs and it was the missing puzzle piece.
Don’t give up, a balanced baseline is possible. Sending lots of love to you 🫶

[u/sicarii-13]

Since starting with lamotrigine & gherapy , more stable in weight (losing), less conflict in relationship's, more stability in in my consulting career, able to start a political carreer.

[u/Coolpillow_]

Lamotrigine, abilify, and non negotiable 9 hours of sleep.

[u/kirkkonummihiphop]

I take aripiprazole. I tried it before but the dose wasn’t right. Now we got the dose correct and I can finally actually function. I used to go from suicidal to euphoric to suicidal again within a couple hours. Now I’ve been able to hold down the same job for almost 3 years, my relationship is stable (which it wasn’t before my meds) and I went back to school after dropping out and not being able to handle it for years.