Against Medical Advise!

Feeling a couple fries short of a happymeal here…not really sure what I or what anyone else in this position should do.
I’m personally still struggling to accept my diagnosis but when I was diagnosed about two years back the medications I tried only seemed to make things worse. So I eventually abstained and started smoking weed. I found that if I were only to just maintain a contact high throughout the essence of the day I could maintain. Through reading, practice meditation and vitamin supplementation I was also able to make it through the day. Then about six months later I ended up getting hospitalized for an anxiety attack. There the doctors there decided to give me an injection of invega sustina or however you spell it. I didn’t really have a choice but fortunately I didnt really notice much differences on the medication. At first it was a minimum dose once a month then they said they wanted to up the dose just to be safe. So now its max dose once every three months. So I continued on with my life, got my paramedics license and things have been pretty normal. The only downside is I have started experiencing some side effects these past four months. I have noticed heart palpitations, irregular pulses, dysfunction during intercourse and worst of all I gained 49 pounds-Im now 172. I refuse to get fatter, I workout almost every day and I have a damn 4yr degree in nutrition.
So I told my doctor I wanted to lower the dosage of the medication and eventually ween off of it. He didn’t agree and said I would wind up living on the streets if I went off of it. He said it with such conviction too ■■■■. I t0old him I can prove to him I can do this and I am really concerned about the physiological changes and that I would rather be bat ■■■■ crazy than an overweight diabetic. He said that without the medication I wouldn’t be able to think clearly. But I insisted and he said no. So I went against medical advise and now I have no doctor. What would you do if you were me
I went home that day got drunk and wrote a detailed letter to my future self, in the instance that I would have symptoms flare up again and how I would deal with it. I also decided to try to get a support network so I joined this site and Im going to a skz group therapy meeting this weekend.
What else can I do, what would you do
Im too afraid to talk about my condition with anyone, no one knows except my parents and the doctors. I try my very best to hide it.

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What do you think, the doctor was being mean?

Jayster

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You’ll probably crash and have to be re-admitted to the Hospital.

Been there, done that…got the t-shirt.

Best of luck to you just the same. Getting your paramedics license is a wonderful accomplishment.

I think it was an issue of liability. The decision was made based on logic not emotion.

thanks man Ill take it with a grain of salt

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I think you should do what you think is best. No one can make you take the medications. We all know they suck, that’s why people stop taking them.
I know from my own experience after a suicide attempt, (because I couldn’t accept the illness and the meds) the doctor in the hospital told me that if I didn’t take the meds I would be in and out of hospitals for the rest of my life. I thought he was full of ■■■■ but you know what? I didn’t listen anyway and sure enough I’ve been in and out of hospitals for the last 5 years. The best thing you can do is suck it up and jump on the bandwagon, take the lousy meds and hope and pray for the day when they come out with a med that doesn’t have side effects like the ones they have now. Either that or you’ll be in and out of institutions, you’ll go from fat to skinny, put more stress on your heart and risk getting hurt during an episode. I feel ya though bro. I fight the meds every minute of the day. But it’s better than thinking that my neighbors are in the CIA or my mailman is gonna shoot me in the head in a mob hit.

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i hates medicines too, had high cholestrol when i hit 30, had schzo for 12 years, medicine only help controls your thinkings, but doesnt cured it.

I would love to not have to take meds. They suck. The side effects suck. However…I am not interested in another suicide attempt (I thought I would die and merge with God) or some other loss of control. I am concerned for you but support whatever you choose. I am lucky (in a way) in that the people talking to my brain tell me to take my meds. Works out cuz I am scared not to. Good Luck to you

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Usually when people talk about meds I say to keep using them… except when there are side effects like that. Those could’ve killed you and if the doctor didn’t try and put you on a different medication he is an idiot. My advice is to find a doctor that will actually help you. I’m pretty sure that there is a med that will work. Of course some of the people on here don’t use meds so I know that it is possible. Me personally I would be a wreck without meds as my hallucinations are kinda violent. Also from the stuff that they post on here about marijuana it worsens your psychosis so in the very least stay away from that stuff.

I would be out my family ,job and on the streets without my meds. Do you think your old doc would put you back on the lower dose or another med? But for me it took going off the meds a few times ,a few ER visits and just about loosing my wife ,kids, and. Job. Not to mention the expenses incurred while phsycotic. So I’ll take my meds but totally don’t know if anyone wants to not take the chance and try to go med free atleast once. I gave up sugar for the weight gain works for me. But every thing I’ve heard about weed and sz is not so good. I don’t personally know. Best of luck with your decision.

right on thanks

thanks 47, yeah medications are paramount. Its all about the right dose, right time etc.

yeah the doctor was not interested in negotiating I hope I find a better doc

I believe that medication is your own choice.

You really have to take in consideration a large field of play when deciding this.

Ext: it may be untypical, but I had my greatest heap of recovery getting off APs, and have been of them for about three years now. Only on a anti anxiety medication, Ativan, 2mg daily

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