I had to increase my meds up 25mg again after reducing 50mg (supervised, have unhealthy side effects), I have tried three times now and every time I reach 50mg reduction I deteriorate. My doctor told me if I can’t reduce then they will put me on Latuda and increase that as I decrease chlorpromazine. I’m worried about that because I’ve always reacted to atypicals even abilify.
But I’m not seeing any other option I started seeing shadows walking around even when my mum was in the room, I was constantly feeling monitored I thought people were watching me through the TV and my voices started talking in gobbledygook and whenever I tried to study I couldn’t focus the words may as well have been moving round the page.
while concentration has improved my mood hasn’t and my thoughts are dark, voices are darker, I’ve self harmed and I don’t care about it it’s only because I want control. And I can’t seem to sleep, I feel watched, and even though I can say no one has been in the house, I think the house has been bugged and when my mum is at work I look for evidence but I’ve found nothing and it’s driving me scatty how they are watching me, I know spies move into the garden at night I can feel the radiation pumping into the room.
And I was hoping by increasing my meds this would all go away but I’m in limbo. I see my CPN in two weeks. I’m scared of going on Latuda, chlorpromazine has worked for me but it’s basically poisoned me, i have a tick sheet of risky side effects, I just don’t want to be sedated it’s my main fear. I don’t care about anything else as long as I’m not sedated and can’t keep my eyes open. That’s what happened with olanzapine and to an extent quetiapine. I just want to be able to live a normal life I don’t want this anymore.
I have been on Chlorpromazine the last 2 years, and I have changed to Quetiapine tonight, I have not noticed any effect from the Quetiapine yet, hopefully it will kick in later.
Chlorpromazine causes a horrible tiredness in my head and eyes, if the Quetiapine does not help me I am going on Olanzapine, because I find it cause a more bearable form of tiredness.
I get akathesia from most antipsychotics so I am restricted in the ones that I can take.
Olanzapine doesnt make me drowzy at all. And i feel im alert and i dont even feel im on ap.
Maybe you should try other med? I have tryed about 7 meds till i found out that onlazapine is my med. Bodyes are different. So your right med is out there. Try leponex. It usually helps with the most severe symptoms. My friend found that thats the right one for her. She has been taking it for years and she can work as a pier. Before she found leponex she had big problems.
Thank you both for replying, I think I’m going to have to swap really, I can’t stay on chlorpromazine physically and mentally I think I’ve had enough of being symptomatic and just about functioning. I’ve sort of static. Last night I had awful hallucinations I only got three hours sleep at four am so obviously reducing the meds is not helping like I hoped it would. So I think im going to ask about changing to my cpn and put everything in place so I can reduce during the summer break of my course.
Others think I am doing so well but to be honest I don’t like they way I feel either. I am on 20 mg of Olanzapine. I have developed a bad habit of taking too many naps.
I don’t know what to advise with the many a.p. drugs out there. I have been on at least 8 of them and the atypicals work best for me.
As far as sleeping goes, have you tried trazadone?? I have found that helps me alot. I was pretty groggy the first couple days when I started it but after like 4 or 5 days I was back to normal during the days.
I have found that when I don’t sleep, my symptoms majorly increase. I get extremely paranoid and the hallucinations really start to bother me.
I would keep trying different things till it works for you we’re all different and different things work. Hating how you feel shouldn’t be an option. Try other things or get different opinions.
Thank you everyone I really appreciate all your replies. I’ve made up my mind thanks to all of you and I’m going to enquire about Latuda when I see my CPN in a week. I can’t cope with the reduction on my own but I think basically I’m addicted to chlorpromazine and I won’t be able to get off it unless I’m tapering off onto something else.
And maybe you guys are right that Latuda will be the right med for me! I just have t go through the process of getting it approved for me (in U.K. So it’s different here it’s quite a new med in this country). So fingers crossed and I can have everything ready for when I finish with the academic year and start reducing again.
I really hope it gets approved now, I have some hope I won’t be stuck like this on a med I can’t get off and being stuck physically and mentally.