I am just curious because I was thinking of trying to come off my medicine to see how I felt. I take geodon 80mg twice a day. I dont know if the info is important so I thought I would share it. Thanks!
Ill have to try final fantasy 14 for pc…I dont have a console. Is it pay by month or is it just purchase the game and play. It sounds cool!!
Well for me, after I stopped taking my clozapine around May/June I was great for about 3-4 months then I steadily got worse. By January I was back in the hospital.
It all depends from person to person, some people remain symptom free for couple of years. For those i think its worth coming off med. but for those that lasts only 2 months it doesnt worth it…
You have to know.
I am going to come off med in about 6 months, i think mine will take few yrs.
for me it depends on what the specific meds are i’m taking and how regularly i’ve actually been taking it prior to discontinuing.
it sucks because sometimes i even think i’m taking it regularly but i’m forgetful and i haven’t been. i’m not great with oral meds in general. plus i also will skip. it’s just a fact. daily i have to talk myself into taking them and i don’t always win that debate, you could say.
anyway, if i’m only on oral meds and i’ve been spotty with taking, it can be a week. especially if i’ve been teetering already, which i usually am, which is why i discontinue. well, and the voices get more compelling and i skip more and then by the time i stop it’s, as i said, pretty quick.
i’m currently on haldol injections though so i think it would take longer. probably a month? it’s hard to say. i’m not taking these by choice, so it’s impossible for me to give an approximation.
years ago i would go a good month after discontinuing. sometimes more. but never more than about three or so before being hospitalized again. i think it’s gotten worse as i’ve aged. well, i know it has.
Here are the statistics:
Antipsychotic drugs significantly reduced relapse rates at 1 year
Drugs 27% vs placebo 64%
(so - 64% of people with schizophrenia relapsed within a year if they are off medication)
Fewer patients given antipsychotic drugs than placebo were readmitted
10% vs 26%
10% of people with schizophrenia on medications were readmitted to hospital, vs. 26% not on medication.
See more at:
Some interesting reading on the topic:
I’ve seen countless patients who were doing well on their medications as an outpatient experience a relapse in the wake of medication discontinuation, only to regain stability after simply restarting them in the hospital. After discharge, when patients later stop their medications again, they find themselves back in to the hospital. It’s a cycle all too well known to any clinician working with patients who suffer from schizophrenia. And yes, they suffer – let’s dispense with any romantic notions that those with schizophrenia are just eccentrics that have trouble conforming to society’s oppressive standards of normalcy.
From this psychiatrist who works in a psychiatric hospital:
I imagine it varies from person to person. It took me several months to relapse coming off prolixin. I think that if I came off geodon and seroquel I would relapse sooner. I too think about stopping my med’s, but I have enough experience to know that it will not turn out well. I’ve seen what happens when other people come off their med’s too. It’s not good.
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