Lithobid
Lithium 300mg tablets (the shop lists them as Lithobid) are a mood stabiliser for bipolar disorder, in packs of 30 to 360.
All strengths and pack prices
| Strength | Pack | Price | Per tablet |
|---|---|---|---|
| 300mg | 30 tablets | $33.90 | $1.13 |
| 300mg | 60 tablets | $54.60 | $0.91 |
| 300mg | 90 tablets | $73.80 | $0.82 |
| 300mg | 120 tablets | $87.60 | $0.73 |
| 300mg | 180 tablets | $118.80 | $0.66 |
| 300mg | 360 tablets | $212.40 | $0.59 |
- Category
- Mental Health
- Active ingredient
- Lithium
- Route
- Oral
- Form
- Tablet (Extended Release)
- Strengths
- 300mg
You will receive a quality generic equivalent, depending on stock.
Shipped in a discreet, unmarked envelope.
Details
- Conditions
- Bipolar disorder
- Therapeutic Class
- Mood stabilizer
- Pharmacological Class
- Inorganic Cation
- Minor Side Effects
- Hand tremor, Increased thirst
- Moderate Side Effects
- Nausea, Weight gain
- Dosage Forms
- Tablet (Extended Release)
- Administration Route
- Oral
- Originator
- Novartis
- Onset Time
- Days to weeks
- Duration
- Continuous
- Storage Instructions
- Store at room temperature.
- Drug Interactions
- Thiazide diuretics, NSAIDs
What you will receive
Lithobid is the originator brand name, made by Novartis. We use it to identify the medicine; the pack you receive is a generic equivalent, not the original Lithobid.
- The same active ingredient (Lithium) at the same strength.
- The exact brand supplied depends on what is in stock when your order ships.
FAQ
What strength and pack sizes of Lithobid can I order?
You can order lithium tablets in 300mg strength. Pack sizes range from 30 to 360 tablets. This is generic lithium, not original Lithobid. Larger packs cost less per tablet.
Can I cancel a Lithobid order and will it arrive in one parcel?
Orders can be cancelled within 24 hours if not yet dispatched. Very large orders may be split into several parcels. Every order ships in plain, unbranded packaging with nothing outside about the contents.
What are the alternative names for Lithobid and lithium?
Lithobid and Eskalith are brand names of lithium, which is also sold as Priadel, Quilonum and Liskonum. Here, lithium can be bought online as generic Lithobid, and also as generic Eskalith and lithium tablets. These are generics, not the original brand.
How long does lithium take to work?
It is not a same-day medicine. When lithium is used to bring down a manic episode, the effect builds over roughly one to three weeks. Its second job — making episodes less frequent — takes months of steady levels before that shows, which is why it is usually measured in years rather than weeks.
Can I drink alcohol with lithium?
Small amounts are unlikely to cause trouble, but alcohol stacks on top of the drowsiness and shaky hands lithium can produce. Heavy drinking also leaves you dehydrated, and dehydration concentrates lithium in the blood.
Does lithium cause weight gain?
Often, yes. Appetite and thirst both tend to rise on lithium, and weight can creep up over the first months. Some of that is fluid, which settles, and some is fat, which does not.
How should I store lithium tablets?
Keep the bottle tightly closed in a drawer, out of direct sun. Heat and damp speed up how fast tablets break down. If a small drying sachet came inside, leave it there, and keep the tablets in their original bottle rather than tipped loose into a weekly pill box.
How long do people stay on lithium?
Usually years. Lithium's main value is in preventing future mood episodes, and that only shows over a long stretch, so a few weeks does not tell you much. Coming off it abruptly is linked with episodes returning sooner than a gradual reduction does.
About Lithobid
What lithium tablets are for
People with bipolar disorder move between highs and lows, and lithium has steadied that swing for decades. It is best known for settling mania (racing thoughts, little sleep, grand plans) and, over the long run, for making those episodes come back less often. Every tablet holds 300mg of lithium carbonate, and the packs run from 30 to 360 tablets.
Taking it through the day
The daily amount is usually split into two or three doses rather than swallowed at once. Meals help here — lithium can upset an empty stomach, and food softens the nausea. Steady timing keeps the blood level steady too. The gap between a helpful amount of lithium and too much is a narrow one, so blood tests are used to follow the level. Fluid and salt move it around: hot weather, a fever, heavy sweating or a vomiting bug can all push it up, and a sudden switch to a very low-salt diet does the same.
Early weeks, and the longer view
The first weeks bring a fine tremor in the hands, a metallic taste, queasiness and a stronger thirst with more trips to pass urine. That thirst is no accident: lithium changes how the kidneys handle water. Much of this fades. Weight gain, a dry mouth and tiredness come on more gradually, and over years the thyroid and kidneys can be affected, which is why blood tests carry on.
Too much lithium is an emergency: heavy vomiting or diarrhoea, a coarse tremor, unsteady walking, slurred speech, confusion or blurred vision need urgent treatment.
What changes the lithium level?
Several common medicines push the lithium level up: water tablets (diuretics), anti-inflammatory painkillers such as ibuprofen and naproxen, and blood pressure medicines of the ACE inhibitor and ARB types.
The two lithium listings
The shop sells lithium 300mg tablets under two names: this page and Lithium. Strength and form match, and so do the pack sizes; the page name is the difference.
Sources
- Lithium: MedlinePlus Drug Information — National Library of Medicine
- Bipolar Disorder - National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) — National Institute of Mental Health