What is Lithium?
Lithium is a medication commonly used to treat the manic episodes of manic depression. These manic episodes can severely affect a person’s ability to function properly at work and at home. Symptoms of such episodes may include hyperactivity, aggression, anger, and intense feelings. Lithium helps make these episodes less severe. Lithium is also one of the only medications that has been proven to decrease the risk of suicide in patients who have manic depression.

How Does Lithium Work?
Lithium is actually a form of salt that the body produces naturally. Sodium affects your mood, and taking lithium is believed to stabilize sodium levels in your body.

Is Lithium Safe?
Lithium has been successfully used to treat manic depression for years. However, lithium is risky to take, and it affects the blood levels so much that patients must undertake regular blood tests while on lithium to ensure safety. Even a small overdose can result in death. People who have been taking lithium for years also have an increased risk of kidney disease.

What Are Some Lithium Side Effects?
Like any drug, Lithium side effects vary in intensity and severity. Some of the most common side effects that come from taking lithium include tremors, nausea and upset stomach, loss of appetite, dried and thinning hair, and an itchy sensation.

Some of the more serious side effects of taking lithium include hallucinations, lack of coordination, extreme thirst or weakness, feelings of confusion or restlessness, seizures, severely slowed heart rate, and fainting. If any of these occur after taking lithium, you should seek medical help immediately and stop taking it until speaking with your doctor.

Lithium can successfully treat manic episodes, but some of the side effects can be serious and even deadly. Open communication with your doctor will help you know if lithium is right for you.