Why Do People Stop Taking Their Bipolar Medication?

It's true that day-to-day routine can be a bit boring

, but for those who've been diagnosed with a serious mental illness, boring is a great deal better than the many highs and lows they have to deal with on a regular basis. Someone who has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder can spend days, or even weeks, extremely excited or extremely depressed or bouncing in between the two. Those who are diagnosed with a mild form of bipolar disorder are often able to maintain a fairly healthy lifestyle with only the help of a therapist. Those who have a more severe case may require medication in order to keep their bipolar disorder symptoms from disrupting their lifestyle.

It is often confusing for people who have never had to deal with mental illness to try to understand why someone who is been given a prescription for medication to help deal with their bipolar disorder would stop taking it. Those who have never dealt with mental illness believe that there is absolutely no reason someone should stop taking their medication, and simply don't understand why a person who was given a prescription would not choose to take it. There are actually a number of reasons, some valid and others not, why someone would taper off their bipolar medication. Here are some of the top motives behind dropping the meds.

Reasons They Stop Taking Meds

One of the biggest reasons why people stop taking bipolar medication, or why they do not even start to take the medication they have been prescribed, is because they are in denial. Unlike most medical diseases, mental illnesses do not tend to have any physical symptoms. This can make it difficult for someone who is been diagnosed with a mental health disorder to come to terms with the fact that they have one. Because of this situation, quite often those who are newly diagnosed with bipolar disorder will either refuse to take the medication only take it for a short amount of time. It is also common for someone who is been taking bipolar medication for only a week or two to stop taking the medication because they believe it is not helping them. Any qualified mental health professional will tell you that it can take weeks, or months, for this type of medication to truly show improvement in your lifestyle, which is why doctors and psychiatrists recommend that anyone who is been given a prescription for bipolar medication stay on it for at least a month or two before deciding that it is not working for them.

We live in a society where being diagnosed with a mental illness can carry with it a stigma. Because of this many people stop taking the medication because they believe they do not need it. They believe they can handle the condition may have been diagnosed with without the help of medications, unfortunately quite often those who stop taking the medication wind up worse off than they were before they had been diagnosed.

Patients who have been on bipolar medication for a number of months often feel so much better that they believe they are cured. It is completely normal for a patient who is been diagnosed with a mental health condition to stop taking the medication after a few months because they feel so much better. Unfortunately this often has a rubber band effect as their symptoms begin to creep back into their life often only a few weeks after ceasing the medication. It is important to remember that a mental health disorder is like any long-term medical condition is something a patient will likely need to be treated for over the course of a lifetime.

Side effects of mental health medications can be a bit frustrating, and many people worry about those with bipolar medication, specifically the idea that they may feel like theyre in a fog. While there are some medications that may initially cause this, it doesnt usually last forever. That is why it is important to stay in contact with a doctor during the entire course of treatment. That can help keep side effects in check.

When most people are diagnosed with a physical disorder and prescribed medication, they take it without complaint. Patients dealing with mental health disorders have to follow the same advice. The body cant deal with bipolar on its own, and theres no shame in using medication to help control that condition.

by: Judith Moss

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