Does anyone know how to get energy/stay awake while on Abilify. Abilify makes me real tired all the time. I don’t want to keep relying on caffeine because I know too much caffeine isn’t good for you. Are there any other things that anyone knows of that can be used in place of caffeine, but are just as potent? Also, does anyone know if Abilify makes you tired because it lowers dopamine or is there another reason that Ability makes you tired?
How long have you been on it ?
Edit: it makes you tired at the beginning until your body gets used to it.
Im no scientist but i think abilify may make you tired because it raises serotonin and serotonin gets converted to melatonin which is what makes people sleepy. How long have you been on it? If not for very long you may start to feel less tired when your serotonin levels stop increasing and become a bit more balanced.
Like i said though, and im not a scientist, but i feel like abilify, atleast for me, is not a good longterm medication but should be used in acute cases where quick stabilization needs to happen to prevent suicide. This is because it blocks up serotonin reuptake (which recycles excess serotonin) which temporarily raises serotonin. But i feel eventually serotonin will naturally begin to decrease as the overall supply (because its not being recycled correctly) will in the long term cause diminishment.
I have been on it for about 8 years.
Thank you for telling me that serotonin is converted to melatonin! I did not know this! Also, I don’t know if a high amount of melatonin in your brain is enough to make you tired all the time because i’m not sure how strong melatonin is for making people tired. I always assumed that Abilify was making me tired because it lowers dopamine which is needed for energy and motivation. And also, for myself I need to stay on Abilify for a longterm medication because without it I would relapse and have psychosis. I got off Abilify a few times in the past and every time after I did I relapsed. Also I don’t think my serotonin is getting lower over time because I’m still real tired all the time on Abilify and I have been on Abilify for 8 years.
Does anyone know any supplements that lower serotonin?
Abilify didn’t make me tired.
I was taking 5mg/day.
Only risperidone 6mg or 4mg made me tired. Very.
I’m on a different dose of Abilify. I get a 250 mg shot at the beginning of each month which is slowly released. It releases about anywhere from 6 to 9 milligrams in me each day.
hmmm…thanks for sharing @k777 i really hope you figure this out! keep at it and you will find your answer. Good luck!