Treatment for resistant bipolar depression

This can be disabling and your doctor will have to weigh the risk of inducing a high or rapid cycling in you if using multiple treatments.

Your doctor may, by combining drugs, boost their effectiveness. Combinations your doctor may investigate include multiple mood stabilisers, two antidepressants or lithium plus lamotrigine.

In severe cases electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) may be necessary. The law governing the use of ECT is very strict in the UK and it is used infrequently, but can be very effective for some people who have not responded to other treatments.