Sexual dysfunction. Pressure. They will say they have no way to get to the pharmacy to get their medication, and the pharmacy doesn't deliver. My question is does anyone else do this?! Bipolar disorder can be treated. Give BetterHelp online counseling a try today (Sponsor) advertisement. ! Kanye has tweeted in the past about not taking medication for his well-documented mental health issues, saying: "I cannot be on meds and make watch the throne level or dark fantasy level music." For some people financial constraints also stopped them using all the strategies they would have liked to. People do not want to feel like they're in a fog all the time. To find out how people who stop taking medication manage, we conducted in-depth interviews with ten people with a bipolar diagnosis who had chosen to stop taking their medication for a period. Pregnancy. Bipolar disorder is a persistent and difficult mental illness. If you have been prescribed medication for your bipolar disorder, please DO NOT go off … 12-Step Program. Still, the statistics of people going off their medication along with suicide rates are staggering. I am not even remotely tempted to go off my meds, even when I think I am “better.” My experience has proven to me that I really need them. If the person refuses to treat their bipolar disorder, listen and observe to try and understand why they refuse. They told us that the first step they took was to conduct a cost/benefit analysis of the pros and cons of taking medication, and they described keeping this decision under regular review. Learn the side effects and benefits. It is also a very toxic drug. Without treatment to manage your symptoms and control your mood swings, you can lose your job, damage relationships, and reduce the quality of your life. Currently, there are legislative options that enforce treatment but I would like some other … The most important first step is to be honest about taking or not taking medications and to deal with it as just another challenge on the journey. Bipolar Disorder. This is not to say that wanting to stop one or more of your bipolar disorder medications is unwarranted. Reply . These medications even out the troughs and the peaks of mood swings to keep you on a more even keel. Despite this, patient decisions to stop taking medication are typically regarded by mental health professionals as being due to “lack of insight” or “inaccurate concerns” about a drug’s safety or efficacy. Not all bipolar medications make a person gain weight, but this is still used as an excuse not to take their medication. Location: … Denise May 24, 2019 at 3:34 am . If you have been prescribed medication for your bipolar disorder, please DO NOT go off your medication. Although there are many reasons given above for going off it, they are just excuses. Refusing to Take Bipolar Medication. Still, the statistics of people going off their medication along with suicide rates are staggering. Next they used their past experience to identify practical things they could do to help keep their mood at the level they wanted, or to adjust it if they felt it wasn’t “right”. It's essential to understand that his motivations for not taking medication are complex and important. Read about alternatives for medication non-compliance. Have you thought about online therapy? Cured. Hi bipolar peeps, I have BP2 and on various meds. I tried to kill myself wind it up in an institution they diagnosed me with bipolar put me on all kinds of meds. It is not unusual for people with poor medication compliance to think that “nothing works” and view themselves as having treatment resistant bipolar disorder. Posted Jun 23, 2012 Many people say you should not discuss politics or … However, there are many ways to minimize the side effects of bipolar medication. Write an article and join a growing community of more than 119,400 academics and researchers from 3,843 institutions. So is there anything you can do when a person refuses to take their medication? No need for it. I do try to work with my doctor to find the lowest effective dose, though. He won’t take the needed medication to maintain his symptoms. They say that their religion forbids the taking of medication. As some researchers have suggested that as many as half of patients with a bipolar diagnosis can suffer from a lack of awareness of their mental health difficulties, a common fear is that someone who is off their medication will lose the ability to identify when they aren’t well. He had all the attributes of what I perceived as a good man. And watching this happen, as a loved one,is extremely painful. Possibly the medication he takes alters his sense of self and he doesn't like the new self that he lives with. Was on all these meds for Year’s. Bipolar disorder is a diagnosis given to people who experience periods of intense low mood but also periods of elation and increased energy which can lead to impaired judgement and risky behaviour. This, too, is no longer a valid excuse, as there is Medicaid and Medicare for needy people and, as previously stated, there are drug companies who will provide medication for free (especially for those people who fall in 'the doughnut hole' of Medicare). Creativity. I know I need them, hell I am nurse. The approach to managing moods they all described was also in stark contrast to the usual approach taken by mental health services to people with a bipolar diagnosis. The side effects that drugs such as lithium and olanzapine can produce she does deliver... Were not working, they are doing well and is very abusive me. 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