Posted by deirdrehbrt on December 1, 2003, at 21:43:27
In reply to Re: Lithium and concentration » Adam Donahue, posted by fallsfall on December 1, 2003, at 20:43:42
Adam,
I'm on lithium right now, and have been on it for about a year. My concentration has always been poor, and the lithium didn't seem to affect that.
I have had fewer manic episodes though, and that makes life just a bit safer than without it.
It is one of those meds though, that you can't just take a little bit and expect to see any difference. It requires a theraputic level in your blood stream to have any effect. Your doctor will also require periodic blood tests because the level must be maintained fairly precicely.
You will also need to be conscious of overheating and sweating without taking water. If you become too dehydrated the Lithium level could become toxic.
These problems with the medication also apply to other medicines as well, and lithium shouldn't be considered any more or less dangerous than others. What I brought up is just the things that are most likely to happen.
Lithium (lithium carbonate) is actually a salt, and was used as a salt substitute many years ago. It was discontinued for that purpose as a number of users ingested a great deal of it and died. The theraputic dose is far less than what these people took.
I am very glad that I'm taking lithium. The things that I did while manic were quite nearly fatal.
As far as what my job is, I am currently disabled with mental illness. I worked for the six years prior to being disabled as an engineer (hardware and software). I've been involved in this kind of work since about 1979. In my last job, I designed test instruments, power distribution systems, and the odd pieces of hardware and software that connected various parts of larger systems.
It was a great job for someone who has DID, as there were so many different things to do.
Thanks for the question.
Dee.
poster:deirdrehbrt
thread:285584
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20031124/msgs/285733.html