Get Your Free Drugs Here: Bipolar II Study

Well, I'm one appointment closer to getting free drugs to treat my Bipolar II depression. I qualified for a study at a local hospital where I'll be given either Zoloft, Lithium or Both (I'll be getting something, but I won't know which combo) and went today to get blood work for the final check before they give me the meds. Assuming everything comes back normal (and after I take an EKG next week) I'll be given the medication and set up to track my moods for the coming 16 weeks.

My psychiatrist gave me a prescription for Celexa but I'm holding off on buying that until I do this study. I think I'll learn about myself and my mental state by carefully tracking my interaction with medication, especially since I won't really know what meds I'm on.

In addition to getting free meds, I also get a $25 grocery store gift certificate every time I go in for an appointment (I'll be going every week for the first six weeks of the study, then every other week for the remainder of the study). It's not a bad deal... I can basically pay for my groceries for a month and get free meds. I do have to let them poke me with needles more often than I'd like and accept that I might be on a medication that may not be perfect for me, but with any mental health med you have to experiment to find the right medication and dosage. Plus, without knowing what I'm on I'll avoid the placebo effect. I'm looking forward to seeing if these meds alter the way I think and feel in the coming months.