I discovered that risperidone medicine is available in my area. It is almost affordable to me.
I understand that the correct action is to visit a head doctor and have him prescribe. With my state I am not sure I can either manage the interaction or afford to pay for a session. So I am considering just borrowing money from someone and getting to buy this risperidone thing myself.
Any informed input is welcome.
The thing about psychology and mental health is that often we do not know ourselves completely and an objective, compent observer can advise us. This is true of everyone, I believe. But it is even worse for people with sz, because when we are psychotic we do not think we are ill in any way. Also, an objective other person must weigh the ups and downs of medication based on his judgment, not based on what we think would be most immediately desirable from our own point of view. An authority needs to tell us we must take the medication even though it has side effects. That is the current state of affairs.
Its a cursed cycle. I need a job to get cured and I need to get cured to get a job. Oh, nevermind. There is no cure, sigh.
My pdoc gave me risperidone as needed. So it’s kinda similar in a sense that I can self administer if needed
Please elaborate on your case. What do you use risperidone for exactly, voices, delusions? How severe can they get for you? How often do you take it to stay stable? What else do you take?
Well currently I’m pretty stable I hear voices occasionally and occasionally some visual distortions (walls / doors stretching and compressing things appearing computer like etc.
I’m very in control and have good other coping skills.
I don’t have any delusions I have dealt with that already.
So the risperidone in my case is for emergency only if I have lost insight and in a full scale episode I would take it which my gf or parents would just make me take it.
So its heavy duty. Good. Thank you.
Yep it’s heavy duty
Its a pretty strong AP. You get dependent on it quickly requiring more and more dose to get same effect also if plan to reduce dose or stop you get worse positive symptoms than you are experiencing now. Since you have pretty good insight of your illness I think your positive symptoms is not much worse to try strong APs in the first place. Weaker ones is ideal to begin with, the reason is as I mentioned before you can’t go back to weaker ones later. More stronger the AP more severe the side effects. One of the noticeable side effect with stronger AP is worsening of negative symptoms and also Parkinson like symptoms. Its not easy to correct negative symptoms like positive ones so need to always think about the other side.
Please name weak common antipsychotics that you know. I would hate to get my negative symptoms even worse.
I experience hallucinations every twenty minutes, unless I drill my head with mental acrobatics. Even then I relapse in seconds with the tiniest of triggers.
I cope with it because my delusions and the content of my hallucinations are well structured. Or I just got used to them after six years. I still have what some call psycopathic mood swings. I am not sure if that qualifies as control.
Start APs only under the supervision of pdoc. Without pdoc its not safe to try any AP as it can sometime worsen your existing symptoms. Anyway weaker ones include aripiprazole (abilify), cariprazine (vraylar). These doesn’t block dopamine fully like strong AP but may not be able to reduce all positive symptoms.
There are several non medication substances which have some AP properties. For example some users report lione’s mane mushroom help to reduce positive symptoms. Another one is holy basil (tulsi). Its like normal tea but have slight AP effect.
Thank you for valuable insight.
It is curious that you mentioned tulsi. I should be able to get some from local hare-krishna’s community, since it’s their (ours??) holy tree. I am not entirely sure if they frown on consuming it or not. They recommended me to walk circles around the tree that they have planted there, but that only made my hallucinations much worse.
Tulsi calms the mind thus better able to manage bad moods. May also help some of the positive symptoms like anger, irritability etc. Glad part is its very cheap and also widely consumed tea in many places so no fear of side effects.
I don’t thinky you should start APs without consulting a pdoc. You could ask your gp doc for help if you have one. I don’t know where you live though and how hard it is over there to get access to a pdoc.
Is that even legal? I guess if it is use the recommeded dose on medical websites like Medscape but make sure you go up slowly.
Not true, antipsychotics arent addictive. I have been stable on the same Abilify dosage for 8 years until I decided to change to Risperdal.
Thats for benzodiazepines and opiates.
I mean once get used to stronger AP then its difficult to return to weaker APs, lower dose of stronger AP etc. So always its best to start with weaker ones and when its not effective then only choose stronger ones.
Try coming off them abruptly and see how the cold turkey affects you then! 
Thats not addiction. You can come off them in a week. And yes you can come off cold turkey if the dose is low. I did it, no withdrawals. You cant compare them to the addiction of opiates and benzodiazepines, not even close.