Question about lithium and bedwetting.

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Hello, I am in my early 30s. I had a bedwetting problem as a child, but it got mostly better in my mid to late teens. Then, at age 17, I got put on multiple psych meds, including Lithium, and the bw problem got worse. My urologist said that lithium might be making it worse. Anyone else had similar experiences/ side effects from psych meds? It is a theory of mine that the change in psych med induced REM sleep, could be a cause. My psychiatrist has cut my lithium in half and the problem is slowly starting to get better.

My urologist was wanting to do a TUIP surgery for enlarged prostate? I think that's what he said. But when I asked him if getting off lithium might do the trick, he said maybe. I decided to skip the surgery for now. I don't want to go off topic, but I feel that doctors in America sometimes overmedicate patients, and that could be a cause in some of today's issues with the youth.

 

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Lets just say that YOU when you were a kid, were a computer, wiring, processors, relays. every thing. So when you were built, certain processors were set up to WAKE YOU UP when your bladder was full. So when you were a kid, it did that most of the time, but sometimes not. So at some point because psych meds became a quick fix for some other problem, all of a sudden that early wake up program was interrupted. So guess whos back? I have HAD to get on some meds, but when, and if I can get off them, I do.

 

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-wml1963...

Thank you for the input. I am starting to feel like myself again, and not a doped-up "shell". Good luck to you, mental illness is hard.. but not knowing yourself is even harder. I am hoping that finding a relationship will solve the problem. I am usually OK in the past when spending the night with others. Have a good holiday season.

 

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I have heard similar challenges from a number of people on lithium. I also know of many people on lithium without the problem.

 

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Mightychi- thank you for the input

 

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It is not easy to know how everything effects us, and personally with me my urology team in the notes have actually said, they are not concerned with either retention or incontinence because the patient self caths or has a Foley!

 

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-Boomersway.

Yeah, some of my urologists seemed to be a bit quacky. I sort of had to grill my last Dr. in order to get answers. It seems like our healthcare system likes to add medical procedures to deal with side effects from already prescribed meds. I hope it is only a conspiracy theory that our drugs are made in China. Otherwise, there will be many sick and desperate Americans in the storms to come. Merry Christmas, if you celebrate and happy 2021!

 

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Chronic lithium toxicity causes increased kidney output. It's a well known side effect, and the only solution is to cut back the lithium. In addition, almost all antipsychotic medications are known to cause bedwetting, both the typical and atypical varieties. In particular, stay away from Clozapine, which has a 19.5% enuresis side effect rate.

If you're being treated for bipolar disorder, check the side effects for your meds very careful.

 

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msuspartan

Thank you for the input, I will be careful how much I write.

I have read that many Kings of old had Bipolar disorder. As long as I don't use illegal drugs, my manic episodes (on a lower dose of Lithium) can be slowly controlled and put towards a positive future. Although life can sometimes be a balancing act, you know?

The bedwetting is getting better. My Lithium was cut in half two months ago. My pitbull mix wakes me up now in the morning by licking my chest!

God-bless and have a good Christmas/holiday season.

"The greatness of a nation can be determined by how they treat their animals"- Mahatma Gandhi
I like to intertwine "animals" with prisoners. It has a more relevant American ring.

 

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Ultimately, you have to figure out the balance between the risks and benefits of your different needs. Is bedwetting and diapers more bearable less impactful on your life then mania. Do be cautious in your thinking, because Mania can be dangerous, especially since it feels so good (at least initially). Just remember you have to decide for yourself what the right balance will, be and what your life path is.

 

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-Mightychi.

Thank you for the input. I believe that sober mania will transition itself out in time. You know, an upper medication like wellbutrin can make manic episodes worse.
I would rather learn to live with myself and find holistic approaches to life, then balance uppers with downers and be forty years old and in diapers.

 

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@LizardKing2 You don't have to share any more than you want to. Just be sure you're taking enough of your medication you're not putting yourself in any danger. Honestly, diapers aren't that bad in the long run, especially if you have supportive family.

I'm having an intact appointment with a new psychiatrist on the 12th, so I'm right there with you on finding balanced treatment. Good luck.

 

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Duuude... I don't know if you are a guy or girl., but I believe that men were "bred" for danger. I am gay and won't find a hot boyfriend in diapers. Good luck to you though and happy 2021.

 

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If you're on lithium, your doctor should be doing fairly regular blood tests to check levels. The rate at which lithium leaves the body varies between individuals, and a therapeutic dose isn't very far from a toxic dose. (Not necessary a lethal dose, of course, but enough to start having a set of symptoms of lithium toxicity.). Lithium is a potent med, but must be used, and monitored, carefully.

I would caution against trying to treat bipolar disorder strictly through lifestyle changes. While a holistic approach to the disease can help mitigate the symptoms, it's a dangerous enough disease that it generally demands the most effective treatment available. It's also a disease caused by physical, rather than psychological, factors, and fighting a disease caused by chemical problems in your body without addressing the root cause is very difficult.

I'm not suggesting that there isn't value to a holistic approach; that is one of the keys to long term mental health. But be very cautious about stopping meds, which can be an important part of a whole-body approach.

 

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Itapilot- No offense, but has society improved since doctors started pumping out psych meds to the masses? Have suicide rates gone down and are people happier? Improvements and investment in mental health are needed, but I feel the answer lies in a happy enough soul.
No I would not stop meds on my own again, I tried that at age 23 and it was awful. I am getting lowered with my doctor this time. Getting lowered on a downer like lithium can make the effects of uppers like wellbutrin and caffeine more potent.

If you have never been diagnosed with mental illness, then you cannot understand. It is like me trying to understand breast cancer. The root causes of my struggles I feel, go to fear, childhood trauma, and low self esteem. I shall try to deal with my issues by going back to college in the spring and using my mind and body, minus excessive weight gain and hand tremors. I will let you know how it goes getting lowered on my meds. Stay well, positive debates make us Americans. Happy 2021!

 

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Society has improved dramatically since psychiatric meds became available. Those with schizophrenia are no longer locked away in psychiatric hospitals, unable to be treated and stuck in terrifying delusions. There has been a renaissance in depression treatment since SSRIs have come out - remember the side effect profiles of tricyclics, and all the interactions and resulting deaths from MAOIs? Most people with depression can now be treated in the community setting, often by their PCPs, rather than suffering through weeks-long hospitalizations. Newer and less toxic meds for bipolar disorder have come out.

Have suicide rate dropped? I suspect so - suicide had been destigmatized to the point that you hear about it now, instead of it being hidden away as a shameful family secret.

I have fought with mental health issues since I was 12, and I'm over 50 now. I struggle daily with major depressive disorder. I've been through over 60 ECT treatments, most recently in 2017. I've been through a whole laundry list of medications, few of which help apart from MAOIs that come with hardcore dietary and medication restrictions. I've nearly been killed by an emergency room doctor who didn't bother to look up the drug interactions. I've been hospitalized for weeks at a time, including in psychiatric intensive care under 24-hour monitoring, and I've attempted suicide more than once while I was hospitalized. Among many other meds, I've been on lithium several times over my life, and I've dealt with the tremors, the excessive urination, and the constant blood tests to make sure the levels in my body weren't building to to toxic levels.

When I talk about these issues, it comes from 40 years of experience with major mental health issues, and experience with many of the meds that you're taking. You may not be able to fully understand breast cancer, but I understand mental illness better than you might think. I understand the complex interplay of life experiences and body chemistry, having lived in the personal hell of major depression for the majority of my life, and having survived it and built a successful life for myself in spite of it. I've had a lot of help, to be sure - family, friends, and God have all stood with me when I've been in the darkest blackness of my depression.

So don't think for a moment that you're alone in this. There are more people here than you know that have your back.

 

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Itapilot- I am glad you are doing better, that is all that matters on the individual level. My final points and then I stop babbling and try listening.
I view mental illness as going hand in hand with creativity, and so I believe that rock and roll sucks today because most potential musicians are drugged up, not knowing who they are.
Yes, they used to lock the mentally ill in cages and we should never as a free society go back to those days.
For myself though, after two decades of severe depression, hospital stints, self harm and more, I did not start feeling better, nor get over my sex/porn addiction until they started to lower me on lithium and other meds.
I feel that hope is the best medicine, and in the worst case, post-apocalyptic future society, meds might not be readily available. One week off of psychiatric meds will turn a normal Joe into a psychotic mess. Native Americans lived by the spirit... that is my calling. Merry Christmas and stay well.
Pat.

 

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You make a good point. At the end of the day, each of us is responsible for it own happiness and health. Neither drugs nor doctors are going to do the hard work of teaching us to love ourselves as we are, or conversely to become a person that we can love. It took me a very long time to learn that, and perhaps others learn it sooner, but I believe that that's the key to happiness, and that, more than any medication or treatment, is what's allowed me to overcome my depression.

Be well, and merry Christmas!

 

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@LizardKing2 I'm a guy. I don't believe that men were bred for danger, but testosterone programs you for risk taking behavior. I'm not sure why this is relevant to this conversation though. Perhaps you can elucidate this line of thought for me.
EDIT: I caught my reference to not putting yourself in danger and realized that's what you were referencing. Oh course, when you're off your meds (or on a minimal dose), you aren't in the best frame of mind to recognize the degree of danger you're in. Please work closely with your Dr and trust their advise.


On the idea that you'll never find a hot guy while wearing diapers ... that's wrong. Maybe you will, and maybe you won't, but that's somewhat down to chance. The suggestion that you can't is simply incorrect. Not only are a lot of people simply willing to look past it, a lot of people are superficially attracted to those in diapers. If you were looking, there is an entire untapped market where it would be a selling point. You would have to deal with them being overly into it, so that's a whole other kettle of fish, but you get the idea. Even without that, it's far from a forgone conclusion that nobody attractive will be interested in you because you have continence issues.

I'm the lead moderator of r/adultbedwetting on Reddit, and this is one of the top questions asked. It almost always turns out favorably when people reveal they wear diapers to a prospective partner. It's a much bigger deal on our own minds than in reality.