Across 18 first-hand reports, people mentioned a side effect 8 times (about 44 per 100 reports). The most common: zombie effect, kidney failure, polydipsia. User reports show what people notice — they can't tell you whether Lithium Carbonate is safe for you.
“Took the life right out of me, made me feel like a zombie.”
“Lithium was horrible for me. The first few days I felt fine but after about a week I had an insane reaction to it... I actually felt like I had lost my sanity.”
“I was on lithium carbonate 1200mg... Had extremely low motivation, low mood and drive, did not find lots of pleasure in sex... Stopped all... Mood and libido returned maybe 80%”
“my experience of being put on lithium carbonate kind of ruined my opinion of lithium.”
“I've tried lithium before but couldn't tolerate the side affects (fatigue and diarrhea)”
Conclusion: Lithium treatment reduces the risk of relapse in bipolar disorder. The preventive effect is clear for manic episodes, although it is equivocal for depressive episodes.