Bipolar and sertraline?

hiya froggerella'

SSRIs are used in the treatment of bi polar for the anti depression properties, if they make your mania worse your psychiatrist will add in a 'mood stabilizer' its common practice so don't worry about it

cheers,

Ken ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Aye, I'm just worried since I'm already on anti depressants that tackle the depression side just fine, and she didn't suggest any mood stabilizers. I went to see her because of the mania... feeling a little let down by her :-(

Thanks for your response x

Hello there,

By the sound of it your manic episodes were CAUSED by citalopram. If you were not previously diagnosed with bipolar disorder- but with depression- and haven't had manic episodes until you started taking your medication, then it probably means you are not bipolar but your medication is causing you to react as if you were.

I have bipolar disorder and was prescribed anti-depressants like citalopram and prozac (fluoxetine) when i was experiencing a depressive episode BEFORE i was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Once the doctors started to assess and diagnose me, they realised that in fact i have a bipolar disorder since birth. I have had both manic and depressive episodes my whole life (mainly manic up until the age of 18, then mostly depressive since then). As it turns out, anti-depressants alone are dangerous to be given to people suffering from bipolar as they can send you into a manic state (they are capable of doing so to depressive people without manic episodes, too). So, since fluoxetine and citalopram made me totally manic from the moment i started taking them (my pupils dilated, i couldn't speak or make sense of anything in my head, couldn't sit still or sleep or focus on anything), once i was diagnosed with bipolar (based on my HISTORY rather than the mania i was experiencing whilst on anti-depressants), i was then put on lamotrigine which is a mood stabiliser, commonly used to treat manic depression (bipolar). After being on it for 6 years, it has indeed improved my manic state, but has done very little to my depressive side. So, after my recent suicide attempt i have now been prescribed Sertraline in addition to my mood stabilisers. as it turns out, it is often prescribed as a combination of drugs for bipolar people. However, after taking it for the past 4 days, it has sent me into something similar to a manic episode i used to experience before being diagnosed. it is, however, not as strong as it was when i took citalopram and fluoxetine- and the doctor assured me that it was a medication of less adverse effects than the above. so, i guess the reason why you were put on it is because it is a milder anti-depressant. remember, that no anti-depressant is the same, there is a reason why they have so many variations of it, so i wouldn't be bothered that it is a SSRI. give it a try, you might start feeling less manic with time (i am hoping for the same). let me know what happens! but remember that just the fact that an anti-depressant made you feel "high" and "manic" doesn't mean that you have a bipolar disorder!

good luck

Hello everyone.

I have been taking Sertraline for approx 3 months (50mg p/d), usually in the morning. I suffered a bereavement

last April, and i have to say the Sertraline has improved things. I have, however, noticed a couple of side effects.

The most concerning is that i also have some small patches of Psoriasis , on my elbows, but since taking

Sertraline, this has quite simply got a hundred times worse, and is now really bad, particularly on my legs.

I have been using Hydrocortisone cream twice a day, but to very little, if any effect.

The other thing is, around 6-8 PM i tend to get short tempered, or ratty if you like. Has anyone had similar

problems?

Any help / advice would be appreciated.

Andy.

I'm on stertaline and I do have bipolar sadly not any other meds so finding stertaline no help what so ever the only difference is now I rapid cycle

I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder at 14, however refrained from being medicated until I was 20. They put me on sertraline straight away, I have a lot more manic episodes than depressives, however the depressives when they come are crippling. I have been taking sertraline for three years now and don't have any complaints, however it is the number one "antidepressant" that is handed out in this country, which does make me think maybe it is cheaper for the NHS to supply. Either way, whether it is placebo or not, it does stabilise me, however I find it very difficult to feel empathetic now, and don't cry at all which does bother me. I am aware this post is over a year old but maybe this might help.

I just want to say, I just discovered i have been suffering from mania for 4 years.

I habve lost my mind. i opened my eyes yesterday when my dad came and saw me after a suicide attempt. (I am 26) I never wanted to...highlight bipolor as much as it should have been, it was something i didnt like to admit because of how misunderstood my dad is (he is bipolor, 900mg of lithium did not level him) i cant believe this

I've just come across this again, following an e-mail notification that I had replies on this old thread.  I'd actually completely forgotten about this, and about the fact that the MHT semi-assessed me and not much came out of it.

An update, 5 years on - I'm still on citalopram, 40mg/day (highest dose), and have been on this dose for a long time now.  It stabilises me in terms of depression, although the last couple of months I've been struggling - I'm currently following through on another counselling referral, I have my telephone assessment for this booked in for next week.

Since my original post 5 years ago, I believe I've had at least one more episode of potential mania.  The summer before last I began to drink heavily and almost daily, became quite hyperactive, and formed intense friendships with a crowd of new colleagues.  When I say intense, I mean INTENSE - my partner and old friends mentioned their concerns to me at the time about how intense the group dynamic was, and also about my drinking at the time, but I didn't want to listen.  I took part in some risky behaviour, and acted out of character during those months.  It all ended badly, and I'm no longer in contact with the people from that group - whether that's down to them or me, I don't know, but I thought it best to cut ties either way. 

One thing that may have triggered it is the loss of my father a few months before.  I had been his carer during his short illness, and we were very close.  I believe part of what happened to me that summer was a delayed reaction to my bereavement.

I still have the diagnosis of depression/anxiety, nothing more than that.  I can't decide if it's worth chasing this up with a doctor again, or if this is just me being a hypochondriac. 

Anyway, I just felt like updating on this since I rediscovered the thread.

I was administered sertraline 50mg after showing signs of apathy which my GP told me was a response to depression.

I started it 13/09/18 and was told to stop 22/10/18

After daily home visits and invites to the mental health unit my my sertraline was stopped and I was put on Clonazepam 0.5mg every 7hours

My medication was stopped as i was showing elevated mood and this pill should calm me back down. I am being treated for a manic episode and insomnia but yet to be diagnosed with bipolar.

I have history of anxiety and depression or was diagnosed with that 8 years ago and currently have CBT for it.

So in short, sertraline was given for my depressive episode but when i got manic they took me off it immediately and are bringing me back down to earth lol with supervision