Has anyone here tried alternative treatments for Bi-Polar Disorder? I was reading on the internet about B-vitamins as a treatment, but does it really work? I have a 16 year old girl who someday wants to join the armed forces. She also wants to grow up and have children of her own, but the doctor has told her she will be on these meds for the rest of her life. I really don't like the side effects of the Neuroleptic drugs, even the newer ones.
She has had several "blow ups" as she calls them and been hospitalized 3 times for suicidal thoughts and violence over the last 3 years. Now that my husband is disabled, (which was caused by an allergic reaction to Thorazine-given to control his hiccups of all things), she has really gotten out of hand. She thinks that she runs the house. I truly don't want her to have to live without the love of a child in her life, but she also needs something to help her cope. If you have any ideas, please let me know.

Well, bipolar is a serious disease and it needs serious medicine. IMO, alternative treatments are never going to work as well as prescription medication. Maybe your daughter needs a med change if the side effects of her current meds bother her. There are plenty of helpful meds out there...of course it is the rare person who has no side effects. You just have to decide where is the balance you can live with.

I am checking into a vitamin supplement called E.M. Power Plus it was founded by two men in Canada and they are supposed to work closely with your doctor. I Watched a program on it and I am checking into it myself. go to [removed] for more information

I'm a big believer in meds, but I saw a segment on one of the network shows like 60 Minutes or Dateline.
They are researching whether an MRI to the brain area can make a substantial difference in Bipolar folks. Turns out that someone with Bipolar had to have an MRI for some other reason and came out feeling truly better. I don't think that they think it is a cure, but a treatment. (Little MRI machines in Psychiatrists offices, hmm)
I haven't headed to the search engines yet, but it sounds pretty interesting...

Ruth, I heard about that too...maybe if we put enough refrigerator magnets on our heads... :)
Seriously, wouldn't it be great if magnetic fields worked? I would volunteer to test it any day!

Hey, I'm not laughin'!!!
I actually suggested the same idea for my husband to try on me!
(I've been REALLY irritable lately...)