Up until a week ago, in prep for a bust, I've been on lithium for about 10 years. I'm allergic to Verapamil and most of the other prophylactics. Lithium won't break an episode, you start it with a steroid taper (or what ever you do to break a cycle) and hope that the taper breaks your cycle, and the lithium comes in behind to prevent I went from 2 episodes a year to one using the lithium. Started at 600, then 900, then eventually 1200 mgs/day in divided doses. You need to watch your GFR (kidney function) as it is a salt, and hard on the kidneys. Step up your water intake. BTW, I also do Batch's Vit D regimen, and keep my D between 75-85 nmol/ml (units?) I eat 10,000 IU/day of D, and have for several years with no adverse events.