Teen Mental Health and Mood Stabilizers: Types, Uses, and Side Effects
It’s no big secret that teen mental health is under more pressure than ever before. Between academic stress, social media, and the normal rollercoaster ride of being an adolescent, teens can find themselves struggling with mood swings, anxiety, depression, or symptoms of bipolar disorder. When these emotional ups and downs begin affecting everyday life, it’s not just “teens being teens.” It’s something that deserves support and solutions.
Therapy can be an important step in the right direction for teens struggling with their mental health. But for some people, therapy may not be enough on its own. This is where combining teen mental health and mood stabilizers can be a useful option.
On this page, we will explore mood stabilizers, why teens may be prescribed them, how they work, and what side effects to watch out for – so that you and your teen can feel confident and prepared to talk with your healthcare provider about your options.
What Are Mood Stabilizers?
But what mood stabilizers are out there? Well, you may have heard of the most common medication for bipolar disorder, Lithium. Lithium is a well-known psychiatric medication that has been around since the 1940s. However, it’s not the only choice. Other candidates have entered the ring as potential teen mood stabilizer medications.1
Anticonvulsants like valproic acid (Valproate) and carbamazepine, as well as atypical antipsychotics like risperidone, are being prescribed more often to treat mood disorders in teens.
How Do They Work?
Here are the three of the most common types of mood stabilizers:
Lithium: The most well-known mood stabilizer. It helps prevent extreme mood swings by balancing brain chemicals called dopamine and glutamate, which can affect your moods. It also acts on a chemical called GABA, which can help you feel calm.3- Anticonvulsants: Medications like valproate were originally created to treat seizures. It turns out they are good at leveling out mood swings too. They generally work by increasing the effects of GABA in your brain, which has a calming reaction.4
- Atypical Antipsychotics: Medications such as aripiprazole are sometimes used as mood stabilizers as they can calm aggressive behavior and reduce impulsivity. They alter the amount of certain brain chemicals called serotonin, dopamine, norepinephrine, and histamine, which can improve your mood and lessen symptoms of both manic and depressive episodes. They are often used when other medications don’t seem to work.5
Each type of medication works a little differently, and no two people will react to them exactly the same. That’s why finding the right medication can take some time, and plenty of expert advice from your doctor.
Why Teens Might Take Mood Stabilizers
You may be prescribed a mood stabilizer if you currently have a mental health condition that can cause extreme mood swings. However, these medications aren’t a one-trick pony – they can come in handy with other difficulties, too. Let’s find out what mood stabilizers can be for.
Using Mood Stabilizers for Bipolar Disorder in Teens
Teenagers using mood stabilizers for bipolar disorder find that generally, the medication can stabilize their feelings so that they can get the maximum benefits from psychotherapy to help them manage their long-term symptoms.6
Mood Stabilizers for Adolescent Depression
Best Mood Stabilizers for Teenage Anxiety
Teen Treatment With Mood Stabilizers for Aggression
Benefits of Mood Stabilizers in Teens
Reduce how often and intense mood swings are- Help keep your emotions level, making the daily ups and downs easier to deal with
- Minimize impulsive and risky behavior
- Improve your focus by slowing down your racing thoughts
- Decrease in suicidal feelings
- Better relationships with family and friends
- Boost sleep quality
- Turn down agitation and irritation
- Lessen depression
- Gain better results from therapy by feeling more stable and able to engage
It’s important to remember that medication is just one part of the solution. Therapy, family support, and healthy lifestyle choices also have a huge impact on how you feel and the way you manage your condition.
Side Effects of Mood Stabilizers in Adolescents
All medications come with the potential for side effects – temporary and uncomfortable reactions to taking a medication. Side effects will vary depending on the exact medication you take. Therefore, when taking mood stabilizers, it will depend on whether you take lithium, anticonvulsants, or atypical antipsychotics.
We’ll go through some of the most common side effects of each of these types of medication, but please be aware that this is not a complete list of all possible side effects – these will be available on patient information leaflets for each individual medication, and your doctor can go through all of these before you decide which mood stabilizer to try.
Atypical Antipsychotics
Lithium
Anticonvulsants
Remember that side effects aren’t guaranteed: They are a possibility. Just because an effect is listed as common, it doesn’t mean you will get it. Some people experience a lot of side effects, and some don’t notice any at all. This is why it is so important to keep talking with your doctor so that they know how you are reacting to the medication.
Managing and Monitoring Treatment
When you start treatment with mood stabilizers, your doctor will want to have check-ins with you to review how you are feeling on this new medication. Whatever meds you are prescribed, you will start them at a very low dose. This gives your body and brain a chance to adjust to new medication entering your system and means that you (hopefully) will feel fewer side effects. Your dose can be increased slowly over time until you are at the point where you get the maximum benefits.
You may find it helpful to start a diary or journal to keep track of any side effects or symptoms you notice changing over time. It can be useful to have this for your review appointments with your medical team so that you don’t forget to tell them anything important to you. That includes not only how you physically feel, but how you feel mentally. The goal is for you to feel better, not to feel out of it or unable to function through medication. The doctor won’t know how you feel unless you tell them, so don’t feel shy or embarrassed to speak up – they are there to help you.
Just like when you start taking medication, medical supervision is super important when it comes to stopping mood stabilizers safely for teens. If you want to stop taking the medication for any reason, like side effects, it’s important to tell your doctor so that they can come up with a plan to help you come off of it as easily and comfortably as possible. Everything needs to be done with your best interests and safety in mind.
Personalizing Treatment With Mood Stabilizers
Medication: To help stabilize moods so that you can begin working on managing your condition.- Home: A supportive and safe home and family can allow you to grow and recover.
- Education: Learning about your condition and understanding how it affects you.
- Therapy: To help you understand yourself better and learn coping and management strategies that work specifically for you.
- Lifestyle: Discovering and creating a lifestyle that supports your mental health, including nutrition, exercise, and self-care.
With the right knowledge and support, you can begin to thrive and live your best life.
Seeking Professional Support At Mission Prep
If you, or a teen you care about, are struggling with your mental health, it’s important to seek support – you don’t have to do this alone. We are here to help you.
Here at Mission Prep, we are experts at working with teenagers and their families to create a personalized mental health treatment plan that will work for your specific circumstances. We know that everyone experiences mental health difficulties differently, which is why we have a variety of options to support you. Whether you need round-the-clock support and care, or some therapy after school to help boost your condition management and recovery, we can help you.
Are you ready to take control and live your best life? Contact us today to discover how we can help you achieve your mental health goals. You don’t need to just survive – with our support, you can begin to thrive.
References
- American Psychological Association. (n.d.). Mood stabilizer. APA Dictionary of Psychology. https://dictionary.apa.org/mood-stabilizer
- Cleveland Clinic. (2025, February 13). Mood stabilizers. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/mood-stabilizers
- Malhi, G. S., Tanious, M., Das, P., Coulston, C. M., & Berk, M. (2013). Potential mechanisms of action of lithium in bipolar disorder. CNS Drugs, 27(2), 135–153. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40263-013-0039-0
- Nath, M., & Gupta, V. (2023, April 24). Mood stabilizers. StatPearls. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK556141/
- Grinchii, D., & Dremencov, E. (2020). Mechanism of action of atypical antipsychotic drugs in mood disorders. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 21(24), 9532. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms21249532
- Abrams, Z. (n.d.). Treating bipolar disorder in kids and teens. Monitor on Psychology. American Psychological Association. https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/10/ce-corner-bipolar
- National Alliance on Mental Illness. (2024, December 23). Lithium. National Alliance on Mental Illness. https://www.nami.org/about-mental-illness/treatments/mental-health-medications/types-of-medication/lithium/
- Miller, C. (2025, April 9). Best anxiety medication for children and teens. Child Mind Institute. https://childmind.org/article/best-medications-for-kids-anxiety/
- Mayo Clinic. (n.d.). Intermittent explosive disorder – Diagnosis and treatment. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/intermittent-explosive-disorder/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20373926
- Jones, R. M., Arlidge, J., Gillham, R., Reagu, S., Van Den Bree, M., & Taylor, P. J. (2011). Efficacy of mood stabilisers in the treatment of impulsive or repetitive aggression: Systematic review and meta-analysis. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 198(2), 93–98. https://doi.org/10.1192/bjp.bp.110.083030
- Saxena, K., Chang, K., & Steiner, H. (2006). Treatment of aggression with risperidone in children and adolescents with bipolar disorder: A case series. Bipolar Disorders, 8(4), 405–410. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1399-5618.2006.00334.x
- Brain & Behavior Research Foundation. (2019, August 15). Study finds lithium has advantages over other mood stabilizers in youths with bipolar disorder. https://bbrfoundation.org/content/study-finds-lithium-has-advantages-over-other-mood-stabilizers-youths-bipolar-disorder
- Tandon, R., Lenderking, W. R., Weiss, C., Shalhoub, H., Barbosa, C. D., Chen, J., Greene, M., Meehan, S. R., Duvold, L. B., Arango, C., Agid, O., & Castle, D. (2020). The impact on functioning of second-generation antipsychotic medication side effects for patients with schizophrenia: A worldwide, cross-sectional, web-based survey. Annals of General Psychiatry, 19(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12991-020-00292-5
- Medical News Today. (2024, February 26). What side effects can lithium cause? https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/326516
- Epilepsy Foundation. (n.d.). Summary of anti-seizure medications. https://www.epilepsy.com/stories/summary-anti-seizure-medications
