Ability and/or Seroquel. I currently use a Risperdal and want to try something new. Experiences with these medications?
Everybody reacts differently to meds. I’ve tried both of those and my experience was very bad with seroquel and very good with abilify.
I do somewhat get the impression that not a lot of people here take seroquel on it’s own, but rather take it with their main AP.
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I also take Abilify and I don’t notice any side effects. I’ve taken it for the past 2 years and I haven’t relapsed, but my schizophrenia is a bit awkward, which means the probability of relapse is very low, regardless of what med I’m taking. I still have strong negative symptoms though.
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Been on both! Abilify for the past 9 years or so has effectively taken away the positive symptoms.
Seroquel was what I consider a “heavy hitter” drug, an effective but lethargy-inducing medicine. Abilify was easier for me to stay awake while taking the pill every day. With seroquel, I tended to nap a lot. That’s just me, though, everyone reacts to medication differently. Also,I was only on seroquel for under a year overall, so maybe it would have gotten easier to stay awake over time
Seroquel was very effective for my positive symptoms, though.
Abilify also has some anti-depressive effects, too, and as a sza, I really needed that.
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I’m on both!
Abilify makes me restless and tired at the same time for a few days, every time my dose is upped, but other than that, it works great.
It kills most of my positive symptoms, and it keeps me functional.
Seroquel kills the voices when they get too strong, and helps me when I have too many thoughts in my head at once.
All in all, I do recommend them.
But, as others have said, effects and side-effects are individual, and it’s important to remember there is an adjustment phase for new meds as well.
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Berru, I’m planning to try that exact combination.
Appreciating the input guys (and gals).
I switched from Risperdal to Abilify, I still sleep a lot but other than that less side effects
Could Abilify make me into a semblance of who I was before this sickness struck me?
Wouldn’t it be better to go onto rexulti instead of abilify?
Yea you can get back there. Ask if you have depression too. I never thought I would be myself again and I got back there
What is Rexulti and why is it a replacement for Abilify…?
I am just going by what someone said in another thread… I thought it was the newer drug by the makers of abilify…
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I just researched it a bit and it seems it might just be a way for the manufacturer to get around the patent expiring on abilify unfortunately…
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My personal experience with anti-psychotics is that the ones that target histamine are more effective and less sedative than older generation medicines. I’ve taken Abilify for 10 years and there’s a difference between when I take it and when I’ve been off of it for awhile. It diminishes that paranoia and makes me able to de-stress, permanently stopped and prevented hallucinations from re-occurring. I’ve also taken Vistaril which has the main action of anti-histamine. The psychiatrist prescribed this for obsessiveness and neurosis. It worked well however, it doesn’t treat anxiety symptoms–it can treat an underlying cause. I tried Buspar for anxiety and this made it worse; it made my anxiety symptoms increase and it also made me unable to focus and drive and I almost wrecked. So yeah knowing what your medications are doing does help. It helped me a lot to know the mechanisms of what I was taking so I could recover and it leads to better and more sustaining health. Abilify wasn’t able to treat the negative symptoms/depression or low energy but it greatly improved my mentality and lowered stress. I think it’s one of the best breakthrough medicines on the market so far because it proves that dopamine plays a role but not in the way it was once thought to.
Good luck. Seroquel actually did not really help with hallucinations and caused me to start having minor seizure like reactions so I stopped taking it after a couple years. I was recommended it again because I do get insomnia sometimes but I don’t want to risk it. I went to a NAMI presentation where a doctor explained how Seroquel binds throughout the brain to dopamine and blocks it; and that it has a lowers the seizure threshold. He also listed how all the medicines can cause diabetes and weight gain over time, and obesity was being studied as a result or poor diet and medication. I was a lot more open about it then but now I’m just too self-conscious to go to group meetings or discussions in person.
@HopeSeeker, this is a peer support forum. It’s meant for people with psychotic disorders to support each other.
I appreciate your interest and desire to participate. However, we have a family forum that you are welcome to join at https://family.schizophrenia.com that is better suited to your needs. Unfortunately, in the past, participation of family members on this forum, or participation of those diagnosed on the family forum, has led to discomfort for the people those forums exist to help.
Please respect the intent of this peer support forum. Again, I encourage you to join our family forum, where people share your experiences and concerns. But this forum is meant for those with psychotic disorders only.
Thank you for understanding,
Rhubot
Volunteer moderator
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I have been diagnosed with a psychotic illness so has my partner. I’ve looked at the family forum and there is nowhere near as much valuable information as there is here, what’s the problem?
You indicated that you’re here because you are looking for information to help your loved one. I applaud that, but that isn’t the purpose of this forum. Questions from family members about how to direct treatment for other people can make our members upset, paranoid and hostile.
These forums used to be connected, but experience has taught us that it is better for members on both sides if they are kept separate. Please respect that.
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Well she is my best friend really not my partner but she takes abilify so I have become interested in rexulti and whether it is worth her suggesting to her doctor thst she would like to change if it is indeed a new & improved version, there is a shortage of information in the family forum and I qualify to be here so why do I feel like I am being hounded to leave in almost every thread I participate in?
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If he’s been diagnosed with a psychotic illness, I don’t see the issue…
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Hey, sorry, you originally identified as the loved one of someone with a psychotic disorder, so that’s what we thought you were. If you do want to continue hanging out here, though, please keep focused on your own experience and treatment. Many members here get upset when they see someone talking about another person’s treatment plan, because it reminds them of times when they have not had a say in their own treatment. If your best friend would like to join and ask her own medication questions, that would be fine.
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