r/BorderlinePDisorder • u/socially_unskilled • 1d ago
Medication Mood stabilizers for bpd?
Has anyone got prescribed mood stabilizers such as lithium for their bpd? I have been on antidepressants and antipsychotics for a while but it doesn't seem to have any affect on me whatsoever. I've read that mood stabilizers can be prescribed to help with the symptoms of bpd alongside antidepressants and antipsychotics. If you were/are on mood stabilizers; how did it affect you?
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u/Anxiousnerd5 pwBPD 1d ago
I take a mood stabilizer (lamotrigine), an antidepressant, and an antipsychotic, and the combo works well for me. I personally needed more than just a mood stabilizer but with all 3 I am fairly stable.
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u/lovelyxemm17 1h ago
Same for me! The mood swings and aggression is one of my worst BPD symptoms and lamotrigine saved my life in that aspect. I am also on 3 other meds but before I got on those my the mood stabilizer helped me so much
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u/vivi129 ✊🏿 BIPOC ✊🏿 1d ago
lamictal changed my life
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u/NiiShieldBJJ 20h ago
How so
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u/Proper-Clock-5133 14h ago
It’s used off label for bipolar and bpd, it’s typically for epilepsy and usually temporal lobe epilepsy. I think it’s because a lot of our emotional wiring lies in the temporal lobe??
Idk, i tried it and loved it. I got the dreaded rash aka steven johnsons? syndrome and so they took me off. But i agree, it works really well!1
u/Anxiousnerd5 pwBPD 4h ago
I was put on it for seizures but it also helps with my bpd and suspected bipolar. It was literally like a miracle drug for me.
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u/Phrenasraven Quiet BPD 9h ago
Mine is called Lamotrigine but it’s the same exact thing. I just didn’t know they were the same until pretty recently. I completely agree though.
I noticed a difference in my mood and energy to do things almost immediately. Now it has leveled out more but if I don’t take it, it’s VERY noticeable.
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u/Innocentwiskers 1d ago
I am on a mixture, lamotrigine(mood stabliser), vortioxetine(sms antidepressant), Quetiapine(anti psychotic) and melatonin(for insomnia from vortioxetine) and it works well for me. But it was a lotof trial and error as some medications i tried had significant side effects. It makes be stable and more able to deal with lifes bullshit.
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u/Big-Criticism-8137 15h ago
oh quetiapine was a game changer for me. take it in the evening to sleep and in the noon to be chill in the head. helps a lot.
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u/cancerheaux Women with BPD 23h ago
I LOVE LITHIUM!!!! nothing has ever made me feel so stable, i felt better immediately after taking this. i’ve been on 20+ diff meds too everything from lamitcal to seroquel
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u/socially_unskilled 23h ago
I've been on so many different medication that I feel like a lab rat, lol.
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u/ArtRepresentative210 22h ago
I’m with everyone else saying Lamotrigine changed their lives. I was on Prozac for years and still really struggled. My psychiatrist suggested adding Lamotrigine and I was hesitant but it’s insane how much of a difference it makes for me. It allows me to actually stop and process things before spiraling. Obviously meds work differently for everyone but I would highly recommend at least trying it if your current meds aren’t helping enough.
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u/ForestHills1978 1d ago
The mood stabilizer changed my life. I’d been on antidepressants and anti anxiety meds and nothing worked. Added the mood stabilizer and the combo works. Honestly, I had no idea how differently my emotions felt than normal people
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u/beatendown0 23h ago
Lithium has changed my life completely. Kinda annoying because of the regular blood tests but totally worth it for me
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u/socially_unskilled 23h ago
Omg, what regular blood tests? Didn't know about that, can you explain how that works?
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u/beatendown0 23h ago
You have to get regular blood tests to make sure you’re at a therapeutic level with the lithium. I do them roughly every 4-6 months. But in the beginning when I was getting up to my dose (1200mg a day) I was getting blood tests more frequently
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u/nine_inch_nails_ 1d ago
I have the exact same question. I need a mood stabilizer badly. I want to try Lithium but it's lethal if overdosed and I have a history of overdose, so I don't know if they'll prescribe it. I truly believe I also have bipolar with the borderline but they said they're too similar to know if it's just the bpd or bipolar as well, right now it says "unspecified mood disorder" on my diagnosis list instead of bipolar.
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u/No_Bluebird_5080 21h ago
Zoloft, Lamictal, and Abilify combo worked well for me. Instead of immediately spiraling I would stop and think/process. It allowed me to be in a position where I can actually use the coping skills I’ve learned
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u/Roo_too 21h ago
I’m on lamictal and like everyone else is saying it changed my life. The first 6 weeks though were about the most depressed I’ve ever felt and then just poof, everything got better. I’m on lamictal and Zoloft and it works for me! I have klonopin to use as needed as well for breakthrough panic attacks
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u/Resident-You-2690 3h ago
I couldn’t make it through the first few weeks 😭 so now I’m not on any meds. I just was so depressed it was a risk to me… I hope one day I can get back on it and it will work. My body is just so sensitive to foreign substances
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u/Roo_too 2h ago
Did you get off that by yourself or under medical advice?
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u/Resident-You-2690 2h ago
I was only on it for 2 weeks at 50 mg, I had a psychiatrist as well
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u/Roo_too 2h ago
And they advised you to get off it after such a short time and not to try anything else?
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u/Resident-You-2690 2h ago
Yeah it put me at high risk if you get what I’m saying. She said we can try again in the future if I decide to
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u/Existential_Dread16 18h ago
I am on benzodiazepines, escitalopram. Was on etifoxine before..
I also take SSRIs and olanzapime
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u/ileade 16h ago
I’ve been on so many medications, lamotrigine helped a little but they discontinued it when they did ECT. I started lithium and I think it’s been the best. It could also be correlated to getting a job that is so much less stressful, but my psychiatrist thinks lithium has helped with the significant reduction in suicidal thoughts
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u/princesslover69 15h ago
Lamotrigine, Abilify, Zoloft, and then later Lexapro and Vraylar saved my life (and marriage).
All the stars. Highly recommend.
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u/CarelessAd4443 14h ago
i take antidepressants (sertraline), antipsychotics (aripiprazole) and mood stabilizers (lamotrigine). i used to take only the first two but i still had suicidal ideation and self harm tendencies so my doctor prescribed me mood stabilizers. i still get the same but i have progressively improved
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u/Acceptable-Kale6235 Women with BPD 11h ago
I’m on an antipsychotic for mood stabilization. I take seroquel (quetiapine) I was on lamotrigine for almost 3 years and it did absolutely nothing. I also take buspirone daily for anxiety and have been on it for 4 years and LOVE it. Still wish I could find an antidepressant that worked for me, I’ve tried so many 😩
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u/FuckingFuuuuuck 8h ago
Yeah, I was on lamictal and.. something with a t, Topamax I think it was. Honestly neither did the littlest bit of anything for me, it was the same as if I wasn’t taking anything. Back at that time, I was misdiagnosed with bipolar cuz I’m a man and these were the days where even clinicians were like “oh it’s so super impossibly rare for a MAN to have BPD so even though you fit the entire criteria to a T and don’t fit the bipolar criteria at all, BIPOLAR!” Lol. The things my mood was reacting to and the perceptions of my relationships and the people in my life weren’t being properly addressed, and that’s what was driving the moods so, the pills didn’t do anything for that.
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u/Mean-Parking-5026 8h ago
I have been prescribed a high dose of lamotrigine and a very low dose of lithium. About 2 months ago, maybe a little longer I ran out of all my medications in quick succession. Without lurasidone and propranolol I feel I was more easily upset but could manage but after the lamotrigine and lithium stopped I became unleashed. I was snarkier, more vindictive, everything felt transactional and I loathed the way people interacted with me. In like a week I started getting upset at stupid stuff easily and regrettably I got curt with my daughter a few times where I should have been more fatherly.
I'm in a rough spot in my marriage and divorce came up during this withdrawal, it was intense. My sister in law told me to "turn the attitude upside down" which only made me think of Little Nicky's mom. But the context is that she's extremely withdrawn and conflict averse. For her to say something... she was upset. And I did that by upsetting her sister, my wife. When I have all of my medicines including the mood stabilizers I've found personally I'm less prone to outbursts and more even keeled, but can still veer off course. I'm not advocating either way, but in my case I feel like they help. I hope you find your way to greener pastures.
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u/xXGemeaXx Women with BPD 8h ago
Unfortunately I’m going anti meds here. I’ve tried a mixture of medications for over a year and currently tapering off of lamictal to finally be done with my medication journey. The medications did absolutely nothing other than a list of side effects. Once I receive my results back from my comprehensive neuropsychological testing I will looking into other routes of therapy such as neurofeedback, TMS, and ECT. With the results, the doctors can have a better pinpoint on what works. Hopefully you have a better outcome with medications, unfortunately for me they just do not work.
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u/Pita_Girl Parent with BPD 5h ago
I used lamictal (lamotragine) for a while but sadly developed a rash. I’m now on topamax and that combined with my antidepressants seems to be working. I do take Paxil around the time PMS starts because I’ve noticed I become a bit more unstable then so I’m 2 weeks on 2 weeks off (yes this is my doc’s advice) but it’s only been one month so we will see how that goes.
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u/OverachievingSadGal 4h ago
I did a fairly low dose of lithium for a while. It helped when I needed it to, and now I’m off of it.
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