Any others out there also on Trilafon (perphenazine)? What’s been your experience with it? So far, so good for me. Anything I should know about it in particular?
I take 20mg of Perphenazine at night before bedtime, with 150mg of an antidepressant Nortryptaline. The Nortryptaline supposedly increases the amount of Perphenazine in me so it should be like I am taking a higher dose of Perphenazine. My psychiatrist did not want to increase my dose of Perphenazine above 20mg because of Tardive Diskenesea (Parkinson like movements). I over sleep on this combination of meds, like 12 hours a day, a little more or less somtimes, When I get out of bed I need coffee to get out of the sedated feeling I have from the meds. Once I am awake I feel calm with these meds. I still have a lot of Negative symptoms and take a lot of Vitamin supplements to feel any motivation for things.
Here’s some of my previous writings on Trilafon:
I was started on this drug and an antidepressant in 1969. I was started on Triavil, which was a little triangular shaped pill that contained Trilafon (Perphenazine) and Elavil. The doctor told me I was “chronically anxious and depressed”. Many years later I learned that my diagnosis was schizophrenia, and that, presumably, all along.
Trilafon (Perphenazine) has worked very well for me. Thirty five years later, I am still taking it. I no longer take Elavil, however. Rather, I take a subclinical dose of Trazadone and a large dose of Wellbutrin.
I was clued in by reading Dr. Torrey’s book on Surviving Schizophrenia that Trazadone goes well with Trilafon (Perphenazine). Specifically, since I added the Trazadone, I do have more curiosity and motivation.
What I didn’t see listed so far is one thing that I think is important. I think it is important to note that not only is Perphenazine a long term antipsychotic, but also it also has a pronounced short term antianxiety action.
Because in addition to being a recovering schizophrenic I am also a recovering alcoholic, I do not want to take Benzodiazepenes. Benzodiazepenes such a Valium and Librium, are indicated in many cases of addiction. Trilafon (Perphenazine) does a very credible job with anxiety without having nearly the danger of abuse that benzos carry.
Yours,
Jayster
I take Trilafon, aka Perphenazine. I started talking it in 1969, at which time it was unpopular with psychiatrists. Trilafon was unpopular because it is not spectacular. Haldol is spectacular. Take a floridly psychotic patient in the Emergency Room and give him a shot of Haldol, and in a short time he’ll be talking rationally and ready to go home. Give the same patient oral Perphenazine, and one may not see a result for six weeks.
I saw a psychiatrist in the prodomal phase of my disease, and I started on 2 mgs. of Trilafon three times a day. I now take 16 mgs upon arising and 16 mgs when I want to sleep. I would be happy to take it only once a day, but my prescribers want me to get the antianxiety effect as well as the antipsychotic effect. Which is to say, the antianxiety effect of Trilafon is short term, lasting perhaps six hours, whereas the antipsychotic effect of trilafon is long term, lasting perhaps six weeks.
The highest dosage of Trilafon I was every on was 64 mgs. per day. I was on 64 mgs per day when I was about twenty-eight. I was psychotic the entire time, but eventually the psychosis broke much the same way a fever breaks. When the psychosis broke, I was able to lower the dosage. I did suffer ocular gyric crises regularly when on the maximum dose.
In the early part of my using Trilafon, I tried the injections for awhile, and later on I tried the time release stuff for awhile. In as much as needles are sterile, the injections might have eventually caused a problem at the site that pills won’t cause, and the time release stuff irritated my colon, as shown by acupuncture testing.
In 1980, I worked with schizophrenia expert Alec Hyde, MD, who is author of more than one book on the subject. He wanted me to be on the minimum needed dose of Trilafon. He argued that too much antipsychotics make a schizophrenic dopey, drowsy, and dreary. After I worked with him for 18 months here in Hyannis, Alec Hyde move to South Carolina to teach at a medical school. He blamed the slowness of the state of Massachusetts in paying its bills as causing his need to move.
For greater than twenty years, I have trusted a Ph.D. named Ken Emonds in New Hampshire to titrate my dose of Trilafon using an electro dermal titration machine. Therefore, typically I take the most Trilafon in August, often 40 or more mgs a day, and the least Trilafon on December, often as little as 24 mgs per day. The wisdom of these titrations has proven itself in years of such doing.
Trilafon lowers the body temperature and blood pressure. Thus side effect has not particularly been a problem. My blood pressure is typically 120 over 62, which makes the gal taking it look at me approvingly and say, “You must work out.” I always laugh to myself when I get that line! Originally, If I stood up too fast, I might feel faint. My body seems to have worked out that issue with postural hypotension, however.
Not to be a sissy, but I do think I feel the hot and cold weather more than many, although I have learned to adjust. Particularly, I wear appropriate clothes for the weather.
I do wear Sun block in the sun; photosensitivity is a noticeable side effect for many, we know. I have not been in trouble with the Sun, however.
Trilafon is indicated in weight gain, although that has not been an issue here.
Trilafon is an antiemetic and widely used in Europe for sea sickness. I almost never throw up, which is more or less a good thing!
I did start to show signs of TD, but I nipped it by adding over the counter lecithin compounds to my daily diet.
Sometimes I cannot initiate sleep due to restless leg syndrome, and therefore I have a PRN for cogentin, which I take less than once a month. When I do take cogentin for the RLS, the problem resolves in about twenty minutes.
I think that schizophrenics my age are dying from heart failure, and I think the antipsychotics contribute to that. Therefore, I took myself for a stress test, which quite bored the technicians down there. They said they hadn’t seen an animal as healthy as me in there for months, but then added once a professional tennis player came in for testing for a life insurance plan, and he way out performed me! They did say it was good to have my baseline in case I ever did have problem.
Trilafon is good medicine in that taking an extra dose or missing a single does is no problem. The prescribers definitely encourage me to take an extra dose from time to time for occasional anxiety.
I want others to take Trilafon because I have had a good experience with it!
Jayster
PS Constipation is not a problem for me.
My ex wife stabilized on Trilafon and remains stable to this day…she has tried many meds but that one worked for her…I am on Prolixin, another older med, and I am stable for the first time since I started taking it…
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