Hi Becky,

My friend deals with Bi-Polar and swears by this web site. It is a site that has all the most recent medical news related to this disorder. She says if you go there each day, there will be at least 3 new daily news articles to read. You can also check back over the months to see what you might have missed.

The articles tell about new medicines and treatments that have been approved and those that are soon to be approved. Here is the link that she gave me for you. Hope this helps:

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/sections/bipolar/

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I am not sure what you have tried in the past but here are some good meds at least for me.


Lithium
Topamax (Topiramate)
Trazodone
neurontin
Lamictal

Now then there is Depakote where alot of people swear by it, although for me it makes me a zombie..

I have been Bi Polar for over 20 yrs *that's once they figured out it wasn't just depression or a troubled teen*

If you are on a anti depressant get off of them.. It has been proven to cause major highs, and makes the lows even worse.. In some cases, alot of them have been proven to increase thoughts of suicide.

Valium and any of its generic related drugs doesn't treat Bi Polar, it treats panic attacks and or anxiety attacks. Which can be brought on by a low or high.

I know how hard it is, when my mom passed away with cancer, she wanted hospice care, and I was the only one who would do it.. I had to go off my meds so that I could be on a high all the time, as she lost her mind before she died and I had to do everything, feed her bath her, change her diaper...

Find someone you can vent to, someone who understands your BP and that you need a outlet. Some meds takes weeks to get into your system completely and I know for me that time seems like forever.

Start a journal, write in it when you get the feeling you cant vent this way you let it out.

I haven't tried any of the new meds, mostly cause my ISN wont pay for them, and two we now Lithium works wonders for me.. Problem with me and it, is I get used to it and my levels keep going up and with in six months I am toxic so I have to stop for a few months and then start over.

If you feel what you are taking isn't working, don't go on blind trust, talk to your DR and asked to change to something else until you find what works. Although remember some meds can take up to 4 weeks before you get the full effect.

Good luck and if you ever need a ear, feel free to contact me. I have no issues listening, and I know the feels of being BP and trying to find a new med. Or when the meds stop working.

One other thing, what might work one time, might not work if you are under alot of stress... So with everything going on in your life, as much as I hate in patience care, maybe a few days would do you a bit of good, Cause then in there they might find something that works better then what you are on..

Here is a link to a page with all kinds of meds, I cant saw what works but you can look them up and see the side effects and all the info on what, when, how long it takes and all that and you might find something you think will work better..

http://bipolar.about.com/cs/menu_meds/l/bl_medsAZ.htm

http://seroquelxr.com/bipolar-disorder-treatment-medicati...

http://www.health.com/health/condition-article/0,,2018899...

http://www.realmentalhealth.com/medications/top_bipolar_m...

You and your mom will be in my thoughts, and I hope things work out with her quickly.

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Thanks for the links. I'll look into them. I'm having a bit of a respite with my Mom. Dad decided to take her on a mini-vacation before they head up to talk with the transplant team. Maybe this little break will help with some of the stress.

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